Convert MSWMM to WLMP

A newer Windows Live Movie Maker installation may require an older project to be saved as .wlmp before it can be edited. This conversion changes the project file, not the project into a playable video.

What the MSWMM format is

.mswmm is the project format used by older versions of Microsoft Windows Movie Maker, including releases supplied with Windows XP and Windows Vista. It stores editing instructions such as clip order, trims, transitions, titles, effects, and soundtrack placement; it normally does not contain the source video, image, or audio files.

The project therefore depends on the original media and, in many cases, the drive and folder paths recorded when the project was saved. MSWMM files are commonly found in backups of older Windows Movie Maker projects.

What the WLMP format is

.wlmp is the project format used by Windows Live Movie Maker 2011 and 2012, the successor to Windows Movie Maker. Like MSWMM, it describes an editable timeline and references source media instead of being a rendered movie.

WLMP can preserve editable cuts, titles, transitions, and audio placement when Windows Live Movie Maker supports the original project features and can locate all referenced files. It is not a portable video file and cannot normally be opened by modern general-purpose video players.

How to convert MSWMM to WLMP

1. Use an existing, legitimately obtained installation of Windows Live Movie Maker 2011 or 2012. Microsoft discontinued Windows Essentials, so there is no current official installer; avoid download sites that repackage the software with unknown installers. A compatible older Windows computer or virtual machine may be necessary.
2. Restore the source videos, images, and audio files used by the project. Recreate their original drive and folder paths when possible; moving or renaming them can produce missing-media warnings.
3. Open Windows Live Movie Maker and choose File → Open project, then select the .mswmm file. If the installed release supports that MSWMM version, it will open the project and may request conversion.
4. Accept the conversion and use File → Save project to save a new project, giving it a different name such as family-video.wlmp. Do not overwrite the original MSWMM file.
5. Close and reopen the WLMP file. Check every clip, transition, title, and audio track, including synchronization, before exporting.

Support is version-dependent: some Windows Live Movie Maker installations cannot open particular MSWMM projects. If File → Open project rejects the file, the application cannot perform a direct conversion in that environment.

Fallback when direct conversion fails

Open the project in the original or a compatible version of Windows Movie Maker and use File → Save movie file to render a WMV file. Import that WMV into Windows Live Movie Maker and save a new WLMP project if a WLMP container is required, but the result will contain one rendered video clip rather than the original editable timeline.

This fallback preserves the visible output, not separate cuts, transitions, titles, or source-quality media. Keep the original MSWMM and source files for future editing.

Compatibility and conversion limits

Conversion cannot recover deleted media or repair broken file paths. Missing codecs, unsupported audio formats, old effects, title animations, and transitions can change or disappear during conversion; replace affected elements after opening the WLMP.

There is no dependable online MSWMM-to-WLMP converter. An MSWMM usually contains local file references rather than the media required to rebuild the timeline, and a website cannot resolve those paths without receiving every source file. Desktop Windows Movie Maker software is the appropriate conversion method; online video converters are relevant only after rendering the project to a standard video file.

To create a playable result, open the converted project and choose File → Save movie file, selecting an available device or resolution preset. The export produces a video such as WMV; saving the project as WLMP alone does not create MP4 or any other playable movie.