How To Resolve the “Media Offline” Error in DaVinci Resolve

When the “Media Offline” error pops up in DaVinci Resolve, it’s usually because the software just can’t find the original source files anymore. All the clips turn red in your timeline and media pool—kind of annoying, especially if you didn’t move or rename anything intentionally. Sometimes, it’s because the files got moved to a different folder, renamed, or maybe they’re stored on an external drive that’s disconnected. Other times, it’s the format or codec that’s causing trouble, especially if you’re dealing with unsupported formats like 10-bit H.265 (HEVC) or AV1. Those files need Resolve Studio for hardware decoding, and if you’re on the free version, they might just refuse to load. Also, corrupted render cache can throw up these errors, especially if cache files get corrupted or become outdated, so clearing those can sometimes fix a weird glitch or two.

Because DaVinci Resolve is finicky about file paths and formats, knowing how to fix offline clips quickly can save a lot of headache. Here’s what you usually wanna try first: relinking files or creating fresh timelines. Sometimes, transcoding your footage to a more friendly format helps. It’s a bit of a process, but totally worth it if you want things to run smoothly again.

1. Relink or Replace Missing Clip

This is probably the most common fix. Resolve keeps track of where your media lives—so if you move or rename a file after importing, it gets lost. To fix this, you just need to tell Resolve where the clip actually is now. Basically, relinking involves pointing Resolve back to the right location.

1. Open Resolve, head over to your Media Pool, and right-click the clip that’s showing as offline. Sometimes you see a little warning icon next to it.
2. Select Relink Selected Clips from the menu. This will pop up a file browser window.
3. Navigate to the folder where the file is now stored. If you’re not sure where, maybe the whole drive got disconnected or renamed? Better to pick the parent folder or drive letter—Resolve will do a quick search.
4. If Resolve throws an error like “Clip could not be found”, click Close and use the next step.
5. In that relink window, hit Search and let Resolve scan recursively through all subfolders. Sometimes this step feels like a shot in the dark, but it works on the second or third try.
6. If the clip has a different name or you’ve misplaced the original, you can also choose Replace Selected Clips. Just find a backup version that matches the original specs—duration, resolution, codec. A heads up: mismatched clips can cause sync issues later, so don’t pick a different resolution or frame rate just because it’s convenient.

Pro tip: Keep your media organized and don’t rename files mid-project unless you relink immediately. Restructure folders beforehand if you can, to save that headache later.

2. Make a New Timeline

Sometimes, your timeline gets corrupted—especially if Resolve crashes often, or if you’re mixing a bunch of weird plugins or effects. Creating a fresh timeline can help re-establish links. It’s like restarting a computer but for your project file.

1. Right-click the current timeline in the media pool and choose Create New Timeline Using Selected Clips.
2. Give it a new name, and decide if you want to keep your current project settings — check Use Project Settings to keep them. Otherwise, tweak it for your workflow.
3. Once created, you might want to Decompose in Place — found by right-clicking the new timeline and choosing Decompose in Place → Using Clips Only. This re-inserts all the clips into the timeline, sometimes fixing the linkage issues, but beware—complex elements like fusion effects or nested timelines might not survive this.

Worth noting: always duplicate your timeline before messing around with decomposing—it’s saved me a few times when things go haywire.

3. Toggle Hardware Acceleration

DaVinci Resolve relies heavily on GPU acceleration to decode formats like H.264 and H.265. But if your driver gets squirrely or the GPU hiccups, it can stop decoding properly, leading to media offline errors or choppy playback. Toggling the hardware acceleration option can sometimes refresh the decoder and fix the stubborn issue.

1. Go to DaVinci Resolve in the top-left menu, then choose Preferences.
2. Switch to the Decode Options tab. Uncheck the box for ‘Decode H.264/H.265 using hardware acceleration’, then hit Save.
3. Close Resolve and restart it. Then, if things work better, re-check that box and save again. It’s kinda like giving your GPU a quick reset. Sometimes, this feels like the magic fix that actually works—other times, not so much.

4. Turn off Render Cache

DaVinci’s cache helps playback, but if it gets corrupted, it can mess up your media links and trigger Offline errors. Disabling the cache forces Resolve to load data directly from the source files, which can clear up weird glitches.

1. Go to the Playback menu, then hover over Render Cache and select None.
2. Restart Resolve to clear any cache files that might still linger. Sometimes, this alone fixes stubborn offline issues, especially after crashes or interrupted renders.

Optional Bonus: Convert Footage to Optimized Media

If your footage is in a super compressed format like 10-bit HEVC, consider transcoding it to a more editing-friendly format. This can really help with playback smoothness and avoid offline problems, especially on older or less powerful machines.

1. Select the clip in your Media Pool and right-click. Choose Generate Optimized Media.
2. Let Resolve do its thing—it might take a little while depending on clip length and your hardware. Once done, playback should feel snappier, and offline errors tend to go away if they were caused by unsupported formats.

Summary

• Relink missing media by pointing Resolve to the current file location.
• Create a new timeline if the current one’s acting up.
• Toggle hardware decoding in preferences to fix GPU hiccups.
• Disable and clear the render cache to get rid of corrupt cache files.
• If needed, convert footage to optimized media for smoother playback.

Wrap-up

At the end of the day, offline media in Resolve usually boils down to sour paths or unsupported formats. Sometimes, just relinking or clearing cache does the trick. If you’re working with high-bit and high-res footage, upgrading to the Studio version can save a lot of headaches. Fingers crossed this helps speed up the fixes and gets your project back on track without too much fuss. Because, let’s be honest—Resolve isn’t always the most straightforward when stuff goes offline.