# Windows Movie Maker won't save



## ziminya

I made a movie with Windows Movie Maker and it won't let me do the final save. I can save the file using the normal save button but it won't let me "Finish" the movie. Each time I try, I get the following message: "Windows Movie Maker cannot save the movie to the specified location. Verify that the original source files used in your movie are still available, that the saving location is still available, and that there is enough free disk space available and then try again." I've checked all the files and they are all still there. There is plenty of memory and I've tried saving to the C drive, an SD card, and a CD with no luck. PLEASE HELP!!


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## BCCOMP

What is your OS, RAM size and version of movie maker. From what I saw on help and support you may not have enough RAM. Go to start>Help and Support>in the Search engine type movie maker. Go to knowledge Base (at the very bottom. There is a link (1) that discibes your problem.


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## ziminya

I hate to bother you with stupid questions, but the help and support page didn't have any listings in knowledge base. I saw that I do have XP but I don't know how to find out how much RAM I have.


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## BCCOMP

Right click on MY COMPUTER go to properties. In the general tap it will list the amount of RAM.


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## ziminya

It's 448 mb. My movie file is 34.06mb.


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## BCCOMP

OK, Hit CNTL, ALT, DELETE, and bring up the TASK Manager, click on Performance Tap. Tell me the Amount of Memory (PF Usage) there is.


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## ziminya

931 mb


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## BCCOMP

Well, you only have from what you say 448 MB and you are using 931MB. Is this computer running really slow, Applications hanging. You are using more memory than you have installed. Double check the amounts again after you shut down windows and reboot. Do not open any other programs, other than the Task manager and see what it says again. This time look at the Physical memory and the Available, let me know what you see.
Thanks,
Bill


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## ziminya

It does run extremely slowly. Physical memory is 456880 and available was fluctuating between 82,000 - 83,000.


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## BCCOMP

Ya, I can see you are running 2x the amount you have. You need alot more memory (RAM). How many programs are running at startup, you may be able to shut some off to reduce the usage and save your movie. Also, I would run your virus protection, spyware apps, and try to get this computer cleaned up (disk clean up, disk defragment). Let me know how you make out. 
Thanks,
Bill


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## ziminya

Thanks! I'll try that right now.


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## BCCOMP

Ya, your computer should run below what you have for the most part. Example: If you have 512MB, your computer should run at about have that at startup 250-300MB. this leaves room for opening other apps. 
Good Luck,
Bill


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## Yakko

I am having the same problem as ziminya. I have all my files together, but I don't know if maybe I don't have enough RAM. The project required 15.70 MB and I have 224 MB of RAM and on the PF it says I have 442 MB. I have no clue what do to...


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## BCCOMP

Try shutting off all other running application (virus protection, spyware etc.) to increase the amount of free RAM you have available. This may allow you to save your movie. You may also want to go to this LINK:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/814836
Hope this helps.
Thanks,
Bill
PS- Afterwards make sure you reactivate your programs (virus protection etc.)


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## motioncity1532

when i attempt to save, the estimated time skyrockets to over 22222222 etc. then it freezes and fails. i get an error report and send it every time. my movies are only 3-6 min long. my ram is 960 mb and my pf usage is 374 mb, can you please help me with my problem, thanks.


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## r3d 4uerb4ch

Hey guys, I have been searching everywhere for an answer to this and have done everything I can, but these posts are the most recent so I figured I would ask around. 

I am also having this problem of "Windows Movie Maker cannot save the file because....blah blah...." I have tried everything to save this movie file and absolutely nothing will work. I have tried things as simple as saving the movie in sections to running sfc /scannow and reinstalling Service Pack 2. I have Movie Maker 2.1 and plenty of disk space. My Physical Memory is 1,048,052kB and I have about 555,000kB available at any given time. I have a Gig of RAM also.

I am getting frustrated because I am attempting to make a video montage of me playing Halo 3 and it was ready about a month ago, beginning of December. I have tried re-making the movie several times and even tried merely making one clip and I still receive the same message. I have even tried using the Movie Maker tools to create a Title/Credits and it will not even save that. 

Please Help, I've got no more ideas!


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## r3d 4uerb4ch

Sorry for the awful English in the last paragraph, I was in too much of a rush to read it through. What I was trying to say was that I have tried making films as small as 15 seconds and it will not allow me to. Also, I have tried making a film that consisted of only an opening Title created with Movie Maker's tools and I was still unable to save it as a movie file. 

I have read suggestions on other forums and just recently posted this same message on another tech support page, none of them have worked.


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## kelvinguy

This is exactly what is happening to me as well!
I'm not sure if this is correct but my *RAM is at 2GB*, my task manager *PF is at 449MB* and *CPU usage is on average under 5%*. Now when i save my movie file which is 30min+ (*204MB* at 'Best fit') - *My PF jumps to 898MB*+ and my *CPU usage jumps to 98%*! And it comes up with the stupid message "Windows movie maker cannot save..."
My windows movie maker is at version: *2.1.4026.0* (to check this you open WMM and from there you go 'help>about windows movie maker'). Is xvid got anything to do with this?? I have like *100GB+* hard disk memory left in case you're wondering if my memory is stocked or something.


GRRRR i'm so fustrated! 
Hope you guys can HELP US! *THANKS!*
Kelvin


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## NONCOM

This is not a RAM issue or anything like that, i have the same issue but manage to run multi track recording on my PC no problem using masses of RAM. The best answer i have heard is that WMM doesnt know when it needs a codec and you will need to download a codec pack to fix it. Just trying this myself now.


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## xTinax

Did anybody have a solution to this yet? I made a really cool movie but now it won't save


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## xXLightningXx

*sigh* So, I have Windows Movie Maker (who doesn't?) and my movie that I made is 4:14. I have 65.?? MB and there is 59 GB available to save my movie to my computer. When I click next, it takes 45 minutes for the screen to say "Unable to save your video. Make blah blah blah. And when it says "estimating time left", there's nothing. The green bars don't even go up. It's just blank. I'm getting so tired of this, but I really want to save my video!! I did a virus scan too  Please someone tell me what's wrong!


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## afwen

I had this problem, and it was not caused by having insufficient memory, missing codecs, or an out-of-date DLL. In the end it turned out that Windows Movie Maker could not handle my WAV-format audio soundtrack. When I changed the audio soundtrack to MP3 Movie Maker was able to finish my movie.


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## II Gorn II

i have the same problem 

its def not ram cause i have 3gigs ram 

ive downloaded tons of codec packs 

and my music is in MP3 format 

so idk

if any1 figures it please post it here


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## dan101

I also Have this problem where I can't save my movie with windows movie maker. In addition to this, my windows movie maker crashes about every 5 minutes while im trying to make a movie.

can anyone help me as well please?

:jail:


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## II Gorn II

i found a way that worked for me http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zWgoeX7TrMo


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## O_W

I tried the above to no avail. However, what I did was the following VOODOO:
1. install windows media player 9 codex
2. remove media player 11
3. reinstall media player 11

It stands to reason that the core problem is codecs. Shaking the system up this way worked for me.
BTW, it also solved my save proble with PhotoStory 3.


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## Nithya Cethin

I recently made a movie and it wont let me save it as a final movie. I made sure that all of the video files i used were still there, and that the music wasnt a corrupted file. I made one other movie before, and it saved it fine. I tried to check my RAM, but i couldnt. I have a HP pavilion laptop, that runs on windows. The movie is only 6.10 (6 mins & 10 seconds) and i cant figure out why it wont save it as a final movie, every time i try i get this notice Windows Movie Maker cannot save the movie to the specified location. Verify that the original source files used in your movie are still available, that the saving location is still available, and that there is enough free disk space available and then try again." Any help? Please?


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## maggiejuliet

movies won't save if the source files have been altered. so, if you edited video clips straight from the "collections" panel on movie maker, by trimming or splitting the clips, you have altered the source file. this changes the name of the clip by adding parenthesis around the newly created clip. video 02 (1). only edit clips AFTER you have dragged them onto the storyboard. this is what helped me.


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## Nithya Cethin

Ok ill try that thanks. I know i used some of the clips in a past movie, and im using more, so im going to have to just redo it but thats ok. Thanks


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## shellrock

I had the same problem... it wouldn't save... but I finally got it to save... but now when I go to try and burn it to a CD - it works the burn goes fine... but then when I go to play it back, it only plays about 30seconds of it and then it freezes on the disc... then when I try to view it on my computer it freezes as well and I have a TON of ram... so not too sure why its doing that or what the issue is... Im trying to make a presentation but it doesn't seem to be working too well.


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## sonicfan287

I'm having this problem too and it's really annoying. In the past WMM will show "missing files" as X's in the timeline, but it plays them all with no problem when I preview my movie. All my files are there and even though my computer isn't exactly made of RAM (I have 484 mb), I've processed bigger movie files with programs running alongside them, so it's not a RAM issue. This happens on occasion and sometimes it just fixes itself, but this is really annoying. Like I said, all my files are there, in their original location, so there should be no reason for this. I've even tried transferring everything via external hard drive to my school's computer (which is faster) and I get the same error (windows cannot save to the specified location). I have 200+ gb left on this drive, so it's not the location, and on my home computer, I have 50 gb left on my c drive, so it's not that either. I have no idea what the problem is.


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## Florisz

Hi all,
I had the same problem in Windows Moviemaker on 2 of my pc's.
I might have the solution for you.
It all has to do with the codecs.
I wanted to save my video to my computer with the 'best quality for playback on my computer (recommended)' setting.
I discovered that on 2 PC's the frame rate was set to 30 and on 1 to 25. The first two were English Windows versions and the one with 25 a Dutch version.
With 25 a Dutch version where I could save my video with no problems.
So I compared the settings of Windows movie maker under 'tools' 'options'(in Dutch: 'tools'='extra')
The second tab(Advanced) showed a difference under 'video properties'.
On the PC that worked, the 'video format' was set to 'PAL' and the aspect ratio to '4:3'
On the other PC's the 'video format' was set to 'NTSC'.
For some reason if the video format is set to NTSC most selectable formats when saving your video are set to a frame rate of 30 while the PAL setting causes it to set it to 25.

As soon as I set it to PAL I could save my video's.
So I think you have to shoose the right 'video format'(PAL or NTSC) depending on the codecs that are installed on your PC. These codecs must be compatible with the chosen 'video format'(PAL of NTSC)

Please let know if this helped you out?

Florisz


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## LilyV687

I've gone through _all_ the posts on this topic, and haven't found much of any help. Most movies I make _willsave in Moviemaker, but I have this particular one that's been ready for AGES and still won't save! My computer's RAM is 0.99 GB and the PF usage is 412 MB usually. The movie I want to save is 35.36 MB and everywhere I've tried to save it has WAY more than enough memory to do so. Some one want to help me? Please? Thank you! : )_


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## mikeP32

I've been trying to make a slideshow with this and although i can get it to save, only with about 1/2 of my desired files, about 250MB worth. Shrinking the files to 1/4 their size does not help either, so total size does not appear to be the issue, although with over 256MB the 'time to save' goes up unendingly. My messages alternate between "can't save..." and an ever-increasing 'time to save'. I have succeeded with small movie files, 60 MB or so, but not with these pics. I'll hope someone finds a solution, but I think i'll find another movie-maker. This one is way too flakey. PS, i have 2GB of RAM, 125GB free on my harddrvive, pagefile managed by 'system', so I can't see where system limitations are the issue. I'm no expert. if anyone knows more than me it'd be good to hear from them...


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## alma47

I got a new computer that has Windows 7. It did not have Movie Maker on it so I had to download Movie Maker 2.6 (recommended from another web site). It worked the same as the one I had on Windows XP until I tried to finish the project and save it to my computer, then I got the same error message "windows movie maker cannot save the movie to the specified location,etc. I knew I had enough ram so I tried the other suggestions, none of them worked. I decided to check the compatibility (I had problems with other programs that would not work because of compatibility)1. all programs 2. right click on Windows Movie Maker 3. click properties 4. click compatibility tab 5. check the run the program in compatibility mode for: 6. click on arrow 7. click on whatever system you upgraded from 8. apply, ok 9. restart computer. It worked for me. I have made two movies since I did this. Hope it helps


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## MsBoku

What is the deal with it? I had no probs up till now. Is there an updated or update? How can i get it to save. I have enough ram and space. I have XP


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## Ddraig

Same problem here  

I'll have to come back and try some of the techniques, but I'm running a quad core xp 64 bit with about 8 gigs of ram and less than half of my terabtye drive is used.


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## Musicguykevin

im trying to save a video but when i press "SAVE TO MY COMPUTER" it says there isent enough room but the videos is 28.09MB and the available space on the computer is 120.31GB and it does load but it makes it to 8% then stops i have no idea what to do PLEASE HELP


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## 31hellomate

WMM usually works perfectly for me, that is until up to now. I'm trying to save a 9 minute video in several different formats (I want HD, but all the HD codecs fail) that goes for all the other codecs as well. I know I have enough RAM, i didnt rename or move the source files, ect.. I tried saving to a lot of different places on my Win XP PC but to no avail. So I tried burning it to a flash drive and a cd, but of course that didn't work either. I have it set to NCTS and at 16:9 in options for good HD videos if that matters. So my question is how can i fix this, i've been trying for HOURS now. Will it work possibly if I uninstall then reinstall WMM. How will i be able to reinstall it? Will WMM be able to read my MSWMM file that I created if i uninstall then reinstall? Or will I have to put all the source files in the collections again? If i have to do that, then will it e able to read the MSWMM? PLEASE HELP!!!!


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