Steps to fix corrupted EPUB files on Windows 10
Digitalization of books and documents is one of the endeavors our generation has taken on itself. And between various e-book formats, EPUB is one of the most used ones.
However, like any other file, EPUB can get corrupt and thus inaccessible. This isn’t exactly a common thing, as the EPUB archive isn’t the most complex things ever, but it can happen from time to time. If you’re in need of fixing the corrupt EPUB file, we have a few steps you can try out.
How to fix corrupt EPUB files
1: Extract the EPUB file and archive it again
Let’s start with a simple trick which, seemingly, helped a lot of users who were having a hard time with a corrupted EPUB file. The step is rather simple and all you need is an archiver, like WinRar or WinZip.
Basically, what you need to do is extract the content from an EPUB file and archive it again with the said third-party archiver. That will, hopefully, make it accessible again. Although, a lot of this depends on the capabilities of your EPUB reader.
Here’s what you need to do, step-by-step:
- Download and install WinRar or 7zip. During the installation, don’t forget to allow the application to create the shortcut in the contextual menu.
- Right-click on the corrupted EPUB file and choose “Extract here” from the contextual menu.
- Select all extracted files (it should be 3), right-click on one of them, and choose “Add to archive“.
- Replace the extension file format to epub and click OK at the bottom.
2: Convert EPUB
Other users managed to completely salvage the content of a corrupted EPUB file by converting it. The usual procedure is to convert it to a PDF format and move from there.
However, you can even convert an EPUB file to, well, EPUB. It sounds ludicrous but that’s allegedly a way to solve the problem. So, if the PDF file format doesn’t suit your needs, you can use a converter to replicate the corrupted file.
Convert EPUB files with Epubor Ultimate (recommended)
A great solution to convert EPUB files in order to fix the issues is Epubor Ultimate. You can convert a bunch of books to EPUB, PDF or Mobi, and the converted books will be displayed exactly the way they are, without data corruption.
The process is as simple as drag and drop: get books from the left side library, choose an output format, and click the “Convert” button. That’s all you need to do, and this smart converter will fix your corrupted EPUB files.
This converter supports input formats: KFX, EPUB, PDF, AZW, AZW1, AZW3, AZW4, Mobi, PRC, TPZ, Topaz, TXT, and HTML. It has the ability to convert these into EPUB, Mobi, AZW3, TXT, and PDF (Common font size and large font size).
The trial version is limited to 2 files only, which is enough for you to test its capacity and buy the product if you’re happy.
- READ ALSO: 10 best eBook converters for Windows PCs
Another option is to use Calibre. Follow these steps to convert the EPUB to EPUB (or PDF):
- Download and install Calibre, here.
- Set up Calibre and add the corrupted EPUB file to the library.
- Right-click on the book and choose “Convert books” and then “Convert individually“.
- In the top right corner, select the output format. You can go with the EPUB again or convert it to PDF.
- Click OK.
3: Use an alternative reader
In the end, the problem might be on your part. We can only suggest giving another reader a try. Of course, this applies only to devices which allow you to meddle with the software you use. There’s a whole bunch of available applications which allow you to read e-books in the EPUB format.
Some of them are paid while the majority is free of charge. We have construed our list of choices in the following article, so make sure to check them out:
Maybe an alternative reader will work. In addition, if you were able to open the file on some older iteration of the application, try downgrading it.
That should do it. In case you have any questions or possibly a suggestion to add, feel comfortable to do so in the comments section. You can find it just below.
RELATED STORIES YOU SHOULD CHECK OUT:
- How to print web pages with Edge’s new Clutter-free printing option
- Outlook won’t open PDF attachments on Windows 10
- Secure PDF files with these tools for Windows PCs
- Protect PDF documents using the free PDF Anti-Copy tool