How It Works
A deeply technical breakdown of the metadata restoration process. Learn how TakeoutFix reconstructs your photo metadata locally without ever compromising your security.
Local Directory Parsing
TakeoutFix utilizes the modern browser File System Access API to gain read-only permission to your Google Takeout folder. It executes a high-performance recursive traversal to locate all media files and their corresponding sidecar JSON files entirely on your machine.
- Zero-upload architecture: media bytes never leave your device.
- Asynchronous scanning runs in a background Web Worker to prevent UI blocking.
- Supports nested folder structures and multi-part Takeout archives.
Heuristic Metadata Matching
Google Takeout often edits names, truncates titles, or appends suffixes (like '-edited' or '(1)') to media, making standard matching fail. TakeoutFix applies a multi-layered match heuristic to pair files with their JSON sidecar, resolving filename inconsistencies automatically.
- Name-hash pairing checks original file titles inside the JSON schema.
- Fuzzy matching reconciles truncated strings and system-appended suffixes.
- Timestamp alignment acts as a fallback to resolve similar media files.
Deep EXIF Header Injection
Once matched, the engine extracts the Unix epoch timestamps and coordinates. It parses the binary structures of JPEGs, PNGs, and HEICs, injecting the parameters directly into their EXIF headers (DateTimeOriginal and GPS tags) before outputting clean files.
- Reconstructs native binary EXIF tags without re-compressing the image.
- Updates QuickTime/UserData metadata headers inside MP4/MOV videos.
- Outputs clean, linkable files ready for Apple Photos or Google Photos import.
Ready to reclaim your metadata?
Launch the recovery center and process your files securely, 100% offline in your browser.