SUPPORT
Help without handing over your archive.
Start with the checks below. They resolve the most common folder, Takeout, export, and activation problems without sharing a private photo.
Quick checks
Before reporting a problem
Keep the export extracted
For Google Takeout, extract every archive part and preserve the folder structure. Select the parent folder containing both media and JSON files.
Review the status
Review, unknown, and error rows are intentionally excluded from copy export. A visible row is not always an exportable row.
Use a separate destination
Choose an output folder outside the source archive and verify that the device has enough free space for new copies.
Troubleshooting
Common questions
A photo is using the file modified date
No supported embedded date, matched Takeout timestamp, or filename date was found. Modified time is a weak fallback and is labeled accordingly. Unselect it if that evidence is not suitable.
Embedded and Takeout dates disagree
When strong sources differ by more than one day, current v1 marks the row Review and excludes it from export. TrueTaken does not decide that one source is historically true.
A Takeout JSON file did not match
Keep JSON files beside their exported media and preserve the original folder structure. Renamed files, duplicate names, edited variants, long truncated names, and changed Takeout conventions can prevent a reliable match.
The browser does not offer folder export
Direct folder writing depends on the browser's directory-picker support. TrueTaken falls back to ZIP export where possible. For larger archives, use a compatible desktop browser or divide the selection.
The ZIP export says the selection is too large
Current v1 limits ZIP creation to 250 MB. This protects against a large in-memory operation failing late. Use direct folder export or smaller batches.
License activation failed
Confirm that the device is online, paste the key exactly as shown on the receipt, and try again. Validation sends the entered key to the validation endpoint and configured license provider; it does not attach a selected photo, filename, path, or audit row.
Another photo app still shows a different date
Current v1 does not rewrite embedded EXIF. An app that sorts by internal metadata can therefore ignore TrueTaken's date-based filename or folder structure.
Accepted input
Current v1 file scope
The scanner accepts JPG/JPEG, HEIC/HEIF, PNG, TIFF, WebP, GIF, MP4, MOV, M4V, AVI, and 3GP, plus Takeout JSON files. Embedded capture-date parsing is currently focused on JPEG, HEIC/HEIF, and TIFF. Other accepted formats may use Takeout JSON, a date in the filename, or file modified time.
Contact
Send a useful, privacy-conscious report
Include your browser and operating-system versions, the action that failed, the row status, and the exact error text. Remove personal filenames and paths. Do not attach private photos unless you deliberately choose to share one for diagnosis.
Useful guides