Member Avatar for Missimin

This is probably a really dumb question but where does a video file get loaded into on a web hosting site? I made a video in Dreamweaver. Does the video go in the html folder, the images folder, should I create a video folder, or is there something else I should be doing to make the video show up? Thanks for any help.

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Short answer: the file must live somewhere the web server will serve from (inside your site's public webroot), and your pages must point to that file with the correct URL. was right to wonder where to put it; and brought up hosting choices and folder organization. Below are practical, non-redundant steps for a reliable self-hosted video workflow.

Transcode for compatibility and progressive playback. Produce an MP4 (H.264 video + AAC audio) as the baseline and a WebM copy for broader browser support. Use a tool like ffmpeg and enable the “fast start” flag so the file begins playback before the whole file downloads:

ffmpeg -i input.mov -c:v libx264 -crf 23 -preset medium -c:a aac -b:a 128k -movflags +faststart output.mp4

Server and delivery notes: place media under a logical public folder (so URLs map cleanly), use lowercase filenames with hyphens (no spaces), and confirm the server sends correct MIME types (e.g., video/mp4). Ensure your host supports HTTP byte-range requests (Accept-Ranges) so seeking works. For larger audiences, use adaptive streaming (HLS/DASH) or a CDN to avoid hitting bandwidth limits.

HTML and accessibility: use the HTML5 video element with multiple source fallbacks and include captions (WebVTT) and a poster image. Be aware of mobile/browser autoplay restrictions and test on several devices and browsers.

Quick troubleshooting: if playback fails, check the browser console and Network tab for 404/403 or wrong Content-Type, verify codecs with a local player, confirm file permissions on the server, and test byte-range support. If hosting becomes a bottleneck, consider an external streaming/CDN path.

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Member Avatar for Member #120589

Does dreamweaver create videos? Mine doesn't - perhaps I need to upgrade.
Have you considered hosting with YouTube or Vimeo and just getting the embed code?
Hosting video yourself is not such a great idea. If you get a lot of concurrent plays, you could fall foul of you hosting limits.

Member Avatar for JorgeM

Yes, I would also agree that you simply consider hosting your video with a site as the ones mentioned by diafol. Then on your website, you simply need to have an object that references back to the link on the hosted site.

If you really want to host a video within your web application, you can place it in any folder you wish. I would say that a folder called "videos" makes sense. In your HTML you simply reference back to the location of the video.

This overview may be of help to you: How to Play Videos in HTML

Edited by JorgeM
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