---
title: "Videos do not play in the lightbox"
date: 2026-09-06
author: "nK"
---

# Videos do not play in the lightbox

## Symptom

A video item opens a blank slide, or a link instead of a player.

## Cause

- The service behind the link is not supported. The free plugin plays YouTube and Vimeo links.
- The video is private, or embedding is turned off on it.
- A self-hosted file is in a format the browser cannot play.

## Fix

1. Check the service against the list on [Project Formats](https://www.visualportfolio.com/docs/projects/project-formats/).
2. Allow embedding on the video, and make it public.
3. Use MP4 (H.264) for self-hosted files.

YouTube’s **Sign in to confirm you’re not a bot** prompt on background videos was addressed in 3.8.0, so update the plugin if you see it.