Name the timeline before sorting
A packet report and a displayed-frame sequence answer different questions. Before sorting an owned video's timing data, label whether the column describes decoding or presentation. Preserve the report's original order as a separate field so an analyst can reconstruct what the tool actually returned.
A spreadsheet that merges every timestamp into one unnamed time column can make ordinary encoded-media ordering look like a timeline failure. Do not repair the file merely because that derived column appears to move backwards. First identify which value belongs to which stream and operation.
FFprobe exposes separate packet and frame inspection. Choose the view appropriate to the question. To compare a visible event with a caption cue, use presentation context. To investigate processing order, retain the packet information and the exact decoder or muxer message.
Make one bounded comparison
Select a short authorised passage and record the media identity and stream index. Compare the reported frame presentation moments with a recognisable event in that passage. If a tool provides both raw units and seconds, keep their relationship clear rather than combining them as independent measurements.
An imagined report might show packets arriving in an order different from the order in which their pictures appear. That observation calls for understanding the encoded structure, not automatically reordering bytes or forcing timestamps. A processing change should respond to a demonstrated incompatibility.
If the destination really rejects the file, preserve that rejection and the smallest reproducible sample. Explain whether the issue occurs at opening, decoding or presentation. A properly labelled report gives the next engineer evidence without asserting that every unusual number proves corruption.
Questions answered
Is packet listing order always the order viewers see frames?
No. Keep decoding and presentation questions distinct.
Should I sort and rewrite timestamps to make every report monotonic?
Do not change media on that basis alone. Establish the actual timeline and destination requirement first.
Sources & further reading
Official references for the subjects discussed. Service terms and device software can change.