Identify what should be resumed
Before testing mpv resume behavior, decide whether you want to recover a position in one file or advance through a playlist. Those are different expectations. Choose one authorized local video with an easy-to-recognize middle passage and keep its path unchanged for the initial test.
Record the executable and version that actually opens the file. A desktop file association may launch another front end even when mpv is installed. Also note whether the installation has custom key bindings. The project’s documented defaults describe a baseline; local input configuration can change what a key does.
Use the documented position-saving exit
The default Q action saves position; q quits normally. Use Q deliberately, then let the player exit. For a practical comparison, stop at an unmistakable scene and write down its approximate time. The observation you need is the reopening point of that same input, rather than a recollection that it resumed somewhere in the middle.
Open that same file through the same route and observe the starting position. Keep the file and configuration fixed while assessing the result. A screenshot of the closed player or a remembered timestamp is less useful than a clear note of the original passage and the position reached on reopening.
Keep source changes separate from resume failures
After a baseline succeeds, consider whether the real viewing workflow moves or renames files, changes a network address or opens the media through another application. Those are different source identities or routes for the test. Do not assume a resume record from one access path proves another access path will recover the same position.
If the file begins at the start, record whether the position-saving exit was actually used and whether the same source was reopened. Then inspect the current build’s resume configuration in the manual. Avoid repeatedly deleting player state before preserving the original case, since that can remove the evidence needed to understand it.
Test playlist movement independently
If you use several items, first prove one item’s saved-position behavior and then test movement to the next entry as a separate action. Record which entry was active at exit. A playlist reference changing order can make an apparent resume mistake into a selection mistake.
Keep the final note simple: source route, exit action and observed reopening point. The expected outcome is understood position recovery for the actual installation. It does not establish a server-wide watched history, synchronization to another player or a guarantee that changing stream addresses will preserve a local resume record.
Questions answered
What should I record for a failed resume test?
Keep the exact input route, the exit action and the observed reopening point. Those three details make the comparison repeatable.
Does a local resume test prove my history will sync to a media server?
No. Local position recovery and a server’s watched-history system are separate workflows.
Sources & further reading
Official references for the subjects discussed. Service terms and device software can change.