How to Copy a Protected DVD

Last Updated: March 29, 2019

Today DVDs are used for a variety of media. They can hold movie files, music files, video game files and even computer programs. It is always a good idea to have multiple back-up files of any digital file, but many of the DVDs sold today are copyright protected. Here you will find information on how to burn a copyrighted DVD.

Steps

1
Review that you have the right equipment. You will need a computer or laptop computer that has a DVD ripper/burner. If you do not have a DVD ripper, portable external DVD players are available at most electronic stores.
2
Check that you have enough free memory on your computer to transfer files. You will need to transfer the files you wish to burn onto your hard drive initially, and so you should have at least enough space to store the file. If your computer hard drive does not have enough space, you can clean up your hard drive by deleting old files, copying them onto another memory device, or defragmenting your hard drive.

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3
Purchase blank DVD-Rs. This can be done at any electronic store.
4
Purchase decryption software. This is also readily available, and is crucial for copying copyrighted DVDs. The software is what will crack, or decode, the copyrighted material. To do this, the software must have CSS or ArccOS decryption element.
5
Insert the DVD you want to burn into your DVD ripper/burner.
6
Follow the steps given by the decryption program. Use the decryption software to crack, or decode the DVD.
7
Rip the decoded files to your hard drive. These are the files that you will burn to your blank DVD. This can be done with any number of programs which will come with your DVD ripper/burner. Simply follow the instructions given within the program.
8
Compress the files if necessary. Most DVDs only have a 4.7 gigabyte capacity, and any files over that size will need to be compressed. Data compression software can be found easily (and for free!) for most operating systems.
9
Insert a blank DVD into your ripper/burner. Make sure the DVD has no data previously written on it, as this may affect the copying process.
10
Burn the decoded files from your computer, to DVD. This can be done by using the same program you used earlier to rip the copyrighted DVD. While burning your new unencrypted DVD, try not to use any other programs, as this could adversely affect your DVD.
11
Place your new DVD in a jewel case for safekeeping, and use your new, unencrypted DVD at will.

Community Q&A

Question

Does this not aid and abet piracy?

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Top Answerer

It is a federal crime in the USA to distribute or use software or hardware systems for the purpose of bypassing copyright protection on data files. However, people are allowed to make backup/field copies of their own legally-purchased DVDs.
Question

Do I need to shrink the DVD for this process?

Community Answer

Yes and no. If the DVD is under the standard file size of 4.7 GB, then not really. There is software that runs in the background of your computer that decrypts the DVD copy protection in real time, allowing you to just copy the DVD using your standard DVD Burning Program/Suite.
Question

How can copying be protected?

Community Answer

DVD companies pay other companies to install DRM (Digital Rights Management) onto their discs. Although these measures can be bypassed, it is often very hard and can take anywhere from 3 months to 3 years, so people don't usually bother.