File extension NOMEDIA

File type Google Android OS System Format
Developer N/A
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What is a NOMEDIA file?

The .NOMEDIA file extension refers to the android OS No media file. Basically, the NOMEDIA file is nothing but an empty text file.The origin of this file type lies in Google's privacy compliance and it was made initially to not allow third party viewers and Gallery apps to see any other apps internal media files.

The working of the .NOMEDIA file is interesting, whenever an media scanner or a gallery app searches through the android device's storage, it checks all the directories. Upon discovering a .NOMEDIA file in any directory, the media scanner does not show any of the media files in that directory in the gallery app.

Program(s) that can open the .NOMEDIA file

More information about NOMEDIA file

NOMEDIA file extension is used by empty text files used by Android opreating system for changing indexing methods for various apps. NOMEDIA files don’t contain any data and their size is always 0 kb.

NOMEDIA file usage

Android uses NOMEDIA files is order exclude multimedia files from being indexed by certain apps, such as image galleries or media players. When application discovers NOMEDIA file during folder scanning process, all the files in given folder will be excluded from being displayed in the application. NOMEDIA files are also used for hidding ads featured in free apps by placing such files in folder used by ad.

Impact on loading times

NOMEDIA can affect Android system responsivness and load times of some multimedia apps. Ignoring files during indexing makes app load media files faster.

Additional information

  1. NOMEDIA files don’t have a filename prefix and Android doesn’t normally list them within folders as those files are hidden.
  2. NOMEDIA can be created manually by creating an empty text file or folder with NOMEDIA extension.

How to open NOMEDIA files

If you cannot open the NOMEDIA file on your computer - there may be several reasons. The first and most important reason (the most common) is the lack of a suitable software that supports NOMEDIA among those that are installed on your device.

A very simple way to solve this problem is to find and download the appropriate application. The first part of the task has already been done – the software supporting the NOMEDIA file can be found in the table. Now just download and install the appropriate application.

Possible problems with the NOMEDIA format files

The inability to open and operate the NOMEDIA file does not necessarily mean that you do not have an appropriate software installed on your computer. There may be other problems that also block our ability to operate the Google Android OS System Format file. Below is a list of possible problems.

  • Corruption of a NOMEDIA file which is being opened
  • Incorrect links to the NOMEDIA file in registry entries.
  • Accidental deletion of the description of the NOMEDIA from the Windows registry
  • Incomplete installation of an application that supports the NOMEDIA format
  • The NOMEDIA file which is being opened is infected with an undesirable malware.
  • The computer does not have enough hardware resources to cope with the opening of the NOMEDIA file.
  • Drivers of equipment used by the computer to open a NOMEDIA file are out of date.

If you are sure that all of these reasons do not exist in your case (or have already been eliminated), the NOMEDIA file should operate with your programs without any problem. If the problem with the NOMEDIA file has not been solved, it may be due to the fact that in this case there is also another rare problem with the NOMEDIA file. In this case, the only you can do is to ask for assistance of a professional staff.

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How to associate the file with an installed software?

If you want to associate a file with a new program (e.g. my-file.NOMEDIA) you have two ways to do it. The first and the easiest one is to right-click on the selected NOMEDIA file. From the drop-down menu select "Choose default program", then click "Browse" and find the desired program. The whole operation must be confirmed by clicking OK. The second and more difficult to do is associate the NOMEDIA file extension to the corresponding software in the Windows Registry.

Is there one way to open unknown files?

Many files contain only simple text data. It is possible that while opening unknown files (e.g. NOMEDIA) with a simple text editor like Windows Notepad will allow us to see some of the data encoded in the file. This method allows you to preview the contents of many files, but probably not in such a structure as a program dedicated to support them.

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