How to Fix QuickTime MOV Error 2048: MOV Files Not Opening

There are times when users encounter QuickTime errors on opening or playing files. One of the most common errors that users complain about is MOV error 2048.

MOV files not opening: Error 2048: couldn't open the file (filename).mov because it is not a file that QuickTime understands.

I downloaded a movie in MOV format. Whenever I try to open the .mov movie file in QuickTime, I get the error message: Error -2048: Couldn't open the file .mov because it is not a file that QuickTime understands."

Many users searched online for a few hours but in vain. Below are the main reasons why QuickTime MOV error 2048 occurs and some troubleshooting tips you can try.

Quick Fix for QuickTime MOV Error 2048

QuickTime MOV not playing and showing error 2048? Just convert the MOV to QuickTime supported formats and codecs with Winxvideo AI. It allows you to convert any video to MP4, MOV, AVI, FLV, MKV, HEVC, H.264, ProRes and more. Fast speed and 100% security.

Table of Content

• Part 1. Reasons Why QuickTime MOV error 2048 Occurs
• Part 2. Ways to Fix QuickTime MOV Error 2048

Part 1. Reasons Why QuickTime MOV error 2048 Occurs

There are many causes of QuickTime error 2048 when opening the MOV movie file. We enlist the main reasons here to help you find out some clues to fix QuickTime MOV 2048 error.

• The .mov movie file is corrupt. Play the MOV movie file using other media players such as VLC. If it doesn't work with other media players, the MOV video is possibly corrupt. There are few things you can do with a corrupted MOV source video file. The MOV video could be corrupt when it is transferred but stopped halfway or when you download the MOV file from any unsafe website.
• MOV codec compatibility issue. Your device is missing MOV codec for decoding MOV video.
• Firmware or other antivirus software are damaged or broken, causing the MOV video to fail to play on QuickTime.
• QuickTime is not properly installed on your computer, making the player fail to handle MOV playback.

Part 2. Ways to Fix QuickTime MOV Error 2048

1. Reinstall QuickTime Player. You can't uninstall QuickTime on Mac. On Windows 10, to uninstall QuickTime, go to Start > Control Panel > Programs > Uninstall a program. On a list of all the programs on Windows 10 PC, choose QuickTime and click it, select Uninstall. Then reinstall QuickTime and try playing your MOV file again to see if the MOV error 2048 is resolved.

2. Update your QuickTime to the latest version. Try the latest version of QuickTime, which has all the latest bugs fixed and the latest codec installed. If QuickTime still pops up MOV error 2048, try other media players.

3. Try another MOV video player. There are many other media players better than QuickTime Player, such as VLC Media Player, 5KPlayer, KMPlayer, Potplayer. For more MOV players, check our list of the top 8 best MOV video players for Windows, macOS, iPhone, and Android.

4. Install extra MOV codec or codec pack. If the QuickTime MOV error 2048 occurs because of the MOV codec compatibility issue, installing the MOV codec can fix the issue. This way works more for Windows users. Check for more MOV video codec or codec pack.

One-stop Fix: Convert MOV to QuickTime Player Format

MOV is a container format and can be encoded with different video or audio codec. Try convert MOV to QuickTime format such as MP4 H.264 to fix MOV error 2048. Get Winxvideo AI on your computer. The program can convert (4K UHD) MOV, MOV HEVC to MP4 H.264, or other file formats accepted by QuickTime Player. Its support for GPU acceleration makes the MOV conversion process 47x real time faster. Now, you should play MOV videos on QuickTime without error 2048 anymore.

[How-to Guide] Convert MOV to QuickTime to Fix MOV Error 2048

Step 1. Download and install the MOV video converter for QuickTime. Run the tool and click the Video Converter button on the main UI. Click the "+ Video" button on the main interface and choose the MOV video with which you have issue.

Step 2. Pop up the Output Profile window by clicking on the Target Format option at the bottom. On the profile window, choose MP4 H.264 and click the OK button to save the setting. MP4 H.264 is universally accepted and is recommended.

Step 3. Click the RUN button to start the conversion process. Then try playing the converted MOV video file on QuickTime to see if the MOV error 2048 is resolved.