Match the report title.
Look for "RSC_007 referenced resource could not be found" or the closest title above. Keep the original EPUBCheck, KDP, or Kindle Previewer wording if it differs.
EPUB error guide
RSC_007 referenced resource could not be found
Use this when you already have the exact RSC_007 line. Follow the source file and missing target path before you change nav.xhtml, content.opf, chapters, images, or CSS.
You see
The message matches this guide.
Choose this guide when your KDP, Kindle Previewer, or EPUBCheck wording matches "RSC_007 referenced resource could not be found" or a close variant.
You get
An affected EPUB path and decision.
The report points to the package, OPF, nav, XHTML, resource, anchor, metadata, or ZIP area behind the message.
Do not upload
The issue is outside EPUB structure.
Use the source tool or publishing workflow for DOCX, PDF, KPF, fixed-layout, DRM, cover design, KDP listing, or review problems.
Scan when the message does not name the affected path. The report shows affected paths and repair decisions, not manuscript text.
No signup before the scan report.Checks EPUB package paths, not manuscript text.Repair download only after EPUBCheck passes again.
Need fixed-layout, DRM, or source-file help? Check unsupported or review-first EPUB cases.
Match these report titles
- RSC_007 referenced resource could not be found
- Referenced resource could not be found in the EPUB
- Missing image, stylesheet, chapter, nav, NCX, or OPF resource
- EPUB internal path cannot be resolved
Use this guide when
Your message matches "RSC_007 referenced resource could not be found" or one of the report titles above.
Upload if
You have the exported reflowable .epub and need the affected path, file, field, or repair decision before editing.
Handle outside this tool
Use the source tool or publishing workflow for DOCX, PDF, KPF, KCB, fixed-layout, comics, image-first books, DRM, visual design, or KDP listing and approval problems.
Read the scan report
Decide if this report item matches.
Use the report label, affected file, and repair decision together. A matching title alone is not enough if the file path or EPUB structure points to a different problem.
A useful report does not stop at the error name. It connects the message to an internal file and a next action.
Check the affected file first.
Use the Affected area, Source file, Target file, or Problem type rows before editing OPF, nav, XHTML, CSS, or image paths.
Follow the repair decision.
Repairable means one clear structural change. Needs review or Not supported means use the named file, source project, or platform step.
Keep with your repair note.
Copy these fields from the report instead of rebuilding the fix from memory.
Source file
Target path or field
Original error
Repair decision
Next step
1. Example report output
What an RSC_007 report should make clear.
The report should connect the exact validator text to the source file, missing target, and repair decision.
EPUBCheck message
ERROR(RSC-007): OEBPS/nav.xhtml(12,45): Referenced resource "text/chapter-03.xhtml" could not be found in the EPUB.
KDP / Previewer wording
The EPUB contains a missing or broken internal file reference.
EPUB Fixer report
Source path OEBPS/nav.xhtml, broken target text/chapter-03.xhtml, closest match Text/chapter-03.xhtml.
Do this next
Repair only because Text/chapter-03.xhtml differs from the requested path by letter case and is the single equivalent path.
Do not do this
Do not point nav.xhtml to a random nearby chapter just to clear the RSC_007 line.
Automatic repair is limited to one existing path with only case or URL-encoding differences. Moved, renamed, absent, or competing targets remain manual.
2. Next step
Choose the next step from the source and target.
RSC_007 is common, but the fix depends on whether the missing target is an image, CSS file, chapter, nav file, NCX entry, or OPF reference.
Upload scan
Use this when there are multiple RSC_007 messages.
Group messages by source file first; one folder rename can create many missing-resource lines.
Manual check
Use this when a nav or NCX file is involved.
Navigation repairs can change what Kindle shows in Go To, so confirm the target chapter before changing the link.
Repair summary
Use this when source assets are absent.
Send the missing target path and the original manuscript/export project so the file can be restored correctly.
3. Concrete path example
A typical RSC_007 path mismatch.
This is safe because the existing packaged target differs only by letter case.
Matched
Message: ERROR(RSC-007): OEBPS/nav.xhtml references text/chapter-03.xhtml Report shows: OEBPS/nav.xhtml -> text/chapter-03.xhtml Found: Text/chapter-03.xhtml Fix: update nav.xhtml only if this is the intended chapter
Do not apply this pattern when two chapter files could be valid targets.
Quick decision
Do not fix RSC_007 from the code alone.
The code tells you the category. The source file and target path tell you whether this is a safe path repair, a manifest problem, or a missing source asset.
Scan first
You have more than one RSC_007 line.
Scan the EPUB and group the errors by source file. One moved folder can create many messages, and fixing the root path is safer than editing each link blindly.
Safe fix
One packaged path differs only by case or URL encoding.
RSC_007 means the link points to a ZIP path that EPUBCheck cannot find. Automatic repair requires exactly one existing path that is equivalent after letter-case or URL-encoding comparison.
Manual/source fix
The target is absent or several matches exist.
If the target file is not in the EPUB, restore it from the source project or re-export. If several files look similar, do not guess; choosing the wrong image, chapter, or stylesheet can make the EPUB validate while showing the wrong content.
Start here
Use the RSC_007 path before touching the EPUB.
An RSC_007 line in an EPUB report often contains two clues: the file being checked and the resource it cannot reach. Keep both before editing the package.
What it means
RSC_007 means one file inside the EPUB points to another packaged file that cannot be resolved at that exact path. The book may still display in Calibre because some readers skip the missing image, stylesheet, chapter, nav, or NCX target instead of rejecting the package.
Can it be fixed automatically?
Safe RSC_007 reference fixes are limited to exactly one existing packaged path that differs only by letter case, URL encoding, or both. A separate manifest issue may be repairable under its own evidence. The repaired EPUB must pass EPUBCheck again.
What to check next
Start with the file path in the error message and find the file that contains the broken link, image source, CSS url(), nav entry, NCX entry, or manifest reference.
What not to assume
The repair is not safe to automate when several files could match, when the referenced resource is absent from the EPUB, or when replacing it would require deciding what the book should contain. In those cases the correct fix is usually to restore the original image, CSS, XHTML, nav, or NCX file from the source project and export the book again.
Common situations
Use the source file to understand the RSC_007 case.
An RSC_007 in a chapter is not the same as an RSC_007 in nav.xhtml, CSS, or content.opf.
XHTML image or link path is broken.
A chapter can point to ../Images/Cover.jpg while the EPUB contains images/cover.jpg. EPUB paths are case-sensitive, so a file that opens locally can still fail validation.
Update automatically only when exactly one existing path differs by case or URL encoding. Folder moves or renamed assets require manual confirmation.
CSS references a missing font or background image.
CSS url(...) paths are resolved from the stylesheet's folder, not from the chapter. A moved stylesheet can make fonts or background images look missing.
Confirm the asset exists at the resolved ZIP path and is declared in the OPF manifest before changing the CSS URL.
nav.xhtml or toc.ncx points to an old chapter name.
Chapter renames and split/merge exports often leave navigation files behind.
Fix automatically only for one case or URL-encoding difference. A changed chapter name or location requires manual reading-order confirmation.
The file is present but not wired through the package.
Sometimes the target exists in the ZIP, but the package inventory or relative reference still makes validators treat it as unreachable.
Align the OPF manifest or the reference path, then run EPUBCheck again before making another edit.
The OPF manifest still names a removed file.
A deleted image, stylesheet, or XHTML file can remain in content.opf even after the export tool removed it from the package.
Remove or correct the manifest item only after confirming the file is not used by a chapter, nav file, NCX file, or stylesheet.
The RSC_007 error text
RSC_007: Referenced resource could not be found in the EPUB.
Where RSC_007 shows up during EPUB validation
KDP, Kindle Previewer, or EPUBCheck reports RSC_007 during validation, often after an export, file rename, manual ZIP edit, image optimization pass, or a retry on a file that still opens in a local reader.
What it means
RSC_007 starts when one internal reference cannot resolve.
RSC_007 means one file inside the EPUB points to another packaged file that cannot be resolved at that exact path. The book may still display in Calibre because some readers skip the missing image, stylesheet, chapter, nav, or NCX target instead of rejecting the package.
The broken pointer can live in XHTML href or src attributes, CSS url() values, OPF manifest references, nav links, NCX content sources, image references, or stylesheet imports. Common causes are letter-case changes, renamed folders, spaces or URL encoding differences, files moved during export, and files present in the ZIP but not wired the way the package expects.
Before you edit
Trace the source file to the missing target path.
Work one reported path at a time. Fixing a case mismatch is different from restoring a missing image, and both are different from an OPF manifest issue.
- 1Start with the file path in the error message and find the file that contains the broken link, image source, CSS url(), nav entry, NCX entry, or manifest reference.
- 2Record the missing target separately from the source file. The source tells you where to edit; the target tells you what the package failed to resolve.
- 3Compare the referenced path with the real file path inside the EPUB, including folder, letter case, spaces, URL encoding, and ../ relative path segments.
- 4If the target file exists, check whether content.opf declares it when it is an image, CSS file, XHTML file, font, nav file, or NCX file used by the book.
- 5If exactly one path differs only by case or URL encoding, such as Cover.jpg versus cover.jpg, fix the reference and validate again before making a second change.
- 6If several files could be the intended target, or the file is not packaged at all, restore the source file or review manually instead of guessing.
Why KDP checks it
Why strict validators reject RSC_007.
EPUBCheck
EPUBCheck checks EPUB 2 and EPUB 3 files against the official rules and reports package, markup, link, and file-reference problems.
EPUB 3.3 package rules
The OPF file is the EPUB's map: metadata, file list, reading order, and navigation wiring. KDP and EPUBCheck use it to decide whether the book package is coherent.
Can this be fixed safely?
When an RSC_007 repair is safe enough to automate.
When automatic repair is safe
Safe RSC_007 reference fixes are limited to exactly one existing packaged path that differs only by letter case, URL encoding, or both. A separate manifest issue may be repairable under its own evidence. The repaired EPUB must pass EPUBCheck again.
When you need manual review
The repair is not safe to automate when several files could match, when the referenced resource is absent from the EPUB, or when replacing it would require deciding what the book should contain. In those cases the correct fix is usually to restore the original image, CSS, XHTML, nav, or NCX file from the source project and export the book again.
Before / after example
Before: a nav entry points to text/chapter-03.xhtml, but the package contains Text/chapter-03.xhtml. After: the nav link uses the packaged path. Before: chapter1.xhtml references images/diagram.png and the EPUB has no diagram image; that should be restored from the manuscript source, not fabricated.
Ready to retry?
Scan the file before making a second KDP attempt.
A scan can separate a simple path mismatch from a genuinely missing resource, then show whether the same EPUB has more than one broken reference.
Upload EPUB to scanFAQ
Questions authors ask about RSC_007.
What does RSC-007 mean in EPUBCheck?
RSC_007 means an internal EPUB reference points to a file that EPUBCheck cannot resolve. It often appears in links, image sources, CSS URLs, OPF manifest items, nav files, or NCX entries.
How do I find the broken file behind an RSC-007 error?
Use the path in the EPUBCheck or KDP message as the starting point, then inspect the packaged EPUB files for the closest real match. Compare folder names, capitalization, spaces, URL-encoded characters, and whether the target is declared in the OPF manifest.
Can I fix RSC-007 without re-exporting the EPUB?
Sometimes. The reference can be repaired automatically only when one existing packaged path differs by case or URL encoding. A separate confirmed manifest issue can use its own repair rule. Missing, moved, or renamed files require manual restoration or re-export.
Why does my EPUB open in Calibre but fail KDP with RSC-007?
Calibre and other local readers may skip or tolerate a broken image, CSS, nav, or chapter reference. KDP, Kindle Previewer, and EPUBCheck validate the package paths more strictly before accepting the file.
Will Kindle Previewer show the same RSC-007 problem?
Kindle Previewer can report the same underlying broken reference, but the wording may differ from EPUBCheck. The important detail is the affected path and whether the referenced file exists in the EPUB.
What is the difference between RSC-007 and RSC-012?
RSC_007 usually means the referenced file path cannot be found. RSC_012 means the file exists, but the anchor after the # symbol is missing inside that file. The first check is the packaged file path; the second check is the target id inside the XHTML.
Should I handle all RSC_007 lines the same way?
No. A broken image path, a missing CSS import, a nav link to a moved chapter, and an undeclared OPF resource can all surface as RSC_007. The affected source file and target path decide the fix.