This error may state: “EthoVision has detected some experiment inconsistencies.” It typically occurs because necessary files are missing or the experiment file is damaged.
The most common cause is that you do not have the entire experiment folder. If you only have the .evxt
file, please note that this file alone is not sufficient to open an experiment. The .evxt
file acts as an index and does not include tracking data or configuration files. You need the full folder that contains this file—usually named after the experiment.
Here is an example of what a complete experiment folder looks like:
When the .evxt
file is in the folder with all required subfolders and files, the experiment should open correctly. If those files are missing, the software will return an error.
When compressing and transferring experiment folders, Windows may omit empty subfolders during extraction. EthoVision expects these folders to exist—even if they are empty.
Missing folders, such as External/SyncOut or subfolders under Configuration Files, may be recreated manually or copied from a working experiment folder.
Instead of manually copying or zipping folders, use EthoVision's built-in backup system:
.evz
file (EthoVision backup)You can choose to exclude video files to reduce the file size. On the receiving computer, use:
This will correctly rebuild the entire experiment structure, including any necessary empty folders.
If all files are present, the .evxt
file itself may be corrupted. EthoVision creates an automatic backup which you can restore manually:
.evxt
file (e.g., my_experiment.evxt.old
)restore.btn
to match the original experiment file name (e.g., my_experiment.evxt
)Note: If file extensions are hidden:
Reverting to the backup may result in the loss of changes made during your most recent session, but older data should be preserved.