Are you experiencing an issue with streaming a video on your Mozilla Firefox web browser?
A lot of people encounter an error saying “no video with supported format and MIME type found” when playing a video (live/pre-recorded) on their Mozilla Firefox browsers. Irrespective of the operating system or the configuration of the machine, this error seems to persist. It is assumed that this error is a result of incompatibility between the version of the Firefox browser and the operating system, but the exact cause is still unknown.
Furthermore, the “no video with supported format and MIME type found” error is also persistent on all websites having streamable video content. For instance, Facebook is famous for short, informative, and entertaining video clips. However, when accessing a video clip on Facebook from a Firefox browser, you will see the comments section, the video frame, and a loading sign, but the video fails to load.
Most people see a cross sign with a message “no video with supported format and MIME type found” beneath it. This post is for you if you wish to get to the bottom of this problem.
Possible Cause of “No Video With Supported Format and MIME Type Found”
1. Corrupted or Outdated Adobe Flash Player
Although Firefox has removed all the older plugins from the setup, it still allows you to use Adobe Flash Player to stream live or pre-recorded videos. Installing a corrupted or outdated version of Firefox can become a hindrance to streaming videos. Adobe continues to thrive to provide bug fixes and improvements.
2. Stored Cookies and Cache
Cookie and Cache are components of a web browser that make it faster, safer, and more efficient. Cookies store the information related to the web pages a user visits. For instance, user information such as login credentials, contact form data, settings, etc. gets stored in a Cookie.
On the other hand, the Cache is where the virtual DOM is stored. It makes page loading faster. Not clearing previously saved Cookies and Cache can lead to “No video with supported format and MIME type found” error.
3. Page Crash
Sometimes, after a page crash, the web browser does not notify the user via a pop-up message or an on-screen text (something like “Aw snap!” or “This is embarrassing!”). The page either hangs up or becomes unresponsive. A page crash can lead to “No video with supported format and MIME type found” error.
4. Corrupted or Outdated Mozilla Firefox
The developers at Mozilla Firefox release frequent updates with bug fixes, patches, and improvements to the application. Using a corrupt or an outdated version of a web browser can stop you from streaming newer content online. In fact, this is the most common reason for video streaming issues.
How to Fix No Video With Supported Format and MIME Type Found
1. Update Mozilla Firefox
As I mentioned earlier, to stream videos seamlessly, you must have an updated version of the Mozilla Firefox web browser. It is highly likely that updating the web browser will get rid of the error you are currently encountering. Follow the steps below.
Step 1:
Click the menu button (three dashes) located at the top right corner of the screen.
Step 2:
Click the question mark with the label “Help and select.” Next, click “About Firefox.”
Step 3:
A new window will pop up. If you are currently running an outdated version of Firefox, the application will automatically begin to download the latest version. You don’t have to intervene here.
Step 4:
As shown in the above image, you will be asked to restart the browser. Click on the button and try streaming a sample video immediately.
Also, if you have a corrupt version of Firefox, you can simply download the latest setup by heading to the official Mozilla Firefox website.
2. Install Adobe Flash Player
Adobe Flash Player is a software that allows you to stream or watch a video or animated content on a web browser. It supports most video or audio formats. You can also download this application for your smartphone, although your smartphone operating system is most likely to have a similar software pre-installed.
You should also know that Adobe Flash Player automatically updates itself. Also, there is no option to update the existing version of this software. You have to download a new setup by heading to their official website. To install Adobe Flash Player on Mozilla Firefox, follow the easy steps below.
Step 1:
Head over to the Adobe Flash Player official website by clicking on the link provided in the previous paragraph. Make sure you select the correct operating system and version of the Firefox (keep it default).
Step 2:
Further, the download page may have additional download links for Google Chrome or McAfee Security Scan. Uncheck them before you hit the download button.
Step 3:
Once you have the new setup ready, close the browser. Double click on the Flash Player setup file and follow the instructions provided by the application.
Open the Firefox browser and try to watch a video again. If the problem persists, kindly try the next solution.
3. Clear Cookies, Site Data, and Cached Content
This is the most natural solution of all. The streaming website you are trying to watch a video on may have been updated. By clearing the Cookies, site data, and cached content, you can gain access to the latest version of the download or streaming page. To clear cookies, site data, and cached content in your Mozilla Firefox browser, follow the steps below.
Step 1:
Click the menu button (three dashes) located at the top right of the screen from the dropdown list, select Options.
Step 2:
Further, select the Privacy & Security panel where you will find the Cookies and Site Data section. Click on the Clear Data button.
Step 3:
As shown in the image above, a new window will appear, asking you to select if you want to clear all cookies and cache. Check both the boxes. Hit clear.
Step 4:
Beyond that, you can also clear cookies and cache concerning a particular website, but I recommend deleting all the data. If you wish to save user data like login credentials or contact form, kindly go to History and Clear Recent History. Kindly refer to the above screenshot.
4. Start Firefox in Safe Mode
Bear in mind that Firefox has a Safe Mode of its own. Just like the Windows operating system or any other high-end software program, Firefox too allows you to debug and troubleshoot an issue related to the software by running it in Safe Mode.
Also, this step may not solve the unsupported video format and MIME type issue, but will definitely point you to its direction. If the video you are trying to stream does play in Safe Mode, the next course of action will look for corrupted or outdated plugins and extensions. Follow these steps to run the Firefox browser in Safe Mode.
Step 1:
Click the menu button (three dashes) located at the top right of the screen. From the dropdown list, click on Help.
Step 2:
Further, select Restart with Add-ons Disabled.
Step 3:
Next, As shown in the screenshot above, Firefox will show a dialog box with options to either start the browser in safe mode or simply refresh it. Select Start in Safe Mode.
Step 4:
When you start Firefox in Safe Mode, all the extensions will be temporarily disabled. Also, some features and customizations will be turned off. You can type in the URL of the website you wish to stream the video from. See if the video plays normally. Although the Adobe Flash Player too will be disabled in this mode, sites made with HTML5 won’t require it.
To go back to normal mode, simply close the browser and double-click on the Firefox startup shortcut again.
5. Turn off Hardware Acceleration
This troubleshooting technique requires you to be in the Safe Mode. I have mentioned the steps to enter the Firefox Safe Mode in the previous section, kindly refer to it and return. Once you are in the Safe Mode, follow the steps mentioned below.
Step 1:
In the address bar located at the top of the screen, type about:preferences#advanced and hit Enter.
Step 2:
You will be directed to the Advanced Browser Settings. Here, select General.
Step 3:
Next, find an option called Use Hardware Acceleration and turn it off.
Step 4:
Now load the streaming website and see if the video plays smoothly. Also, check out several other streaming websites such as Youtube, Facebook, DailyMotion, etc. If the video is working fine on these websites, there may be a problem with the video you were initially trying to stream.
Conclusion
Not being able to play your favorite videos online can be quite frustrating. Especially when you have everything you need like a high-speed internet connection, a computer with decent configuration, etc. I hope this post helped you solve the “no video with supported format and MIME type found” error.
