How to fix broken or corrupt JPEG file headers?

Read time 5 minutes

Due to unforeseen circumstances, multimedia files can get damaged or corrupted easily. If you try to open any damaged JPEG or JPG files, then you receive an error stating the probable cause. A JPEG image is comprised of two parts, i.e., the header and the actual binary image data. So, if the header is corrupted, then it is by far the easiest to repair, using a sample file and a Hex editor such as HxD. In short, it is possible to replace the corrupted header with a healthy header from another healthy image file. Repairing the image data, on the other hand, is a much more complicated and tedious task. Now, we are going to specifically discuss free methods for repairing JPEG Files. Caution should be taken with the image files as a little negligence can cost you a lot later. Following are the top reasons that are responsible for the JPEG/JPG file corruption:

• JPEG/JPG header corruption.
• Malicious attacks on the JPEG files.
• Damaged/bad sectors on the storage media, where JPEG files are stored.
• Improper system shutdown, causing multimedia file corruption.

Method #1 Repair corrupt JPEG headers using Hex Editors

This is an easy way to repair a corrupt header. The only requirement is a healthy image file from the same device (and format) on which the affected image was captured. Using a Hex editor, you can easily replace the header of the affected file with the header from a healthy file.

Method #2 Repair corrupt JPEG headers when healthy file headers are unavailable

In the previous method, we had access to a healthy header file. So, if you don’t have access to a healthy header filer then don’t panic as you can create one by following few easy steps as described below:

1. Launch the Paint application from your PC.
2. Scribble or draw anything in the black space.
3. Next, go to File > Save As > JPEG picture.
4. In the Save As dialog box, provide the location to save the newly created JPEG file.
5. Enter the filename and click on the Save button.
6. Next, proceed to import the newly created JPEG file and the affected file in the Hex editor.
7. The Hex editor will attempt to repair the affected file.

The aforementioned steps might seem easy, but in practice, it is quite difficult to come by a good and reliable Hex editor. Image corruption issues are complicated and vary from case to case; hence every issue requires a different approach. Hex editors rarely live up to the user’s expectations; hence we require a professional photo recovery tool, which we are going to discuss in the next section.

Method #3 Repair corrupt JPEG files using a professional tool

Hex editors are ineffective in severe JPEG corruption cases, and this demands more advanced tools such as Kernel Photo Repair. It is an advanced tool that has the capability to repair all kinds of image files- inaccessible, corrupt, or lost. The minimalist yet elegant and effective user interface streamlines the repair process, providing rich user experience. You can conveniently drag and drop files with no limitations to the file sizes. In just a few steps, you can quickly repair your damaged image files. There are ways to restore JPG/JPEG with ‘Invalid Value for Registry’ error but by far this tool is the best tool in resolving these kinds of errors.

Let us see the working process of this tool to fix broken or corrupt JPEG file headers.

First of all you need to install the purchased or downloaded the tool on your system. Next, follow the steps as:

• Launch the tool on your system. Click on the + (plus) icon to add your JPEG files with broken headers.
  
• Browse and select the JPEG files from your system for the repair. Click Open to add them.
  
• Now that the JPEG files are added, click on Repair Files option to start the repair process.
  
• Provide a saving location to save the repaired JPEG files on your system.
  
• The repair process of the added JPEG files will get started and completed with a Success status.
  

Hence, it is the easiest and most effective way to fix broken or corrupt JPEG file headers. Keep trusting of this products to fix all your data related issues.

Conclusion

JPEG header correction is much easier to fix in comparison to image data file corruption. Still, JPEG header correction is tricky, and many hex editor tools are unable to repair these corrupt header files. A professional tool such as The software is equipped with advanced algorithms that are capable of retrieving and repairing your corrupt photos despite a high-level of file corruption.