How to Copy an Unprotected DVD

By Jean Brewer

Unencrypted DVD movies can be copied.
i dvd image by dinostock from Fotolia.com

Copying an unprotected DVD can be accomplished with the right equipment. If the DVD movie is on a standard 4.7 GB disc, this involves using the DVD copy software of your choice to make a duplicate of the disc. If the movie is larger than 4.7 GB, you need a disc large enough to contain the movie or the ability to shrink it to fit on a standard 4.7 GB DVD-R. Microsoft Windows does not have a built-in DVD copying ability, but several programs that will copy unprotected DVD movies are available. Some are free, while others are not.

Commercial Software: Nero

Open Nero by going to "Start," "All Programs," "Nero." You will be presented with a variety of options.

Choose "Copy Entire Disc" from the options presented.

Place the DVD movie you wish to copy in your DVD drive, then choose this drive on the drop-down menu.

Choose the same drive for both source and destination drives, unless you have two DVD drives to choose from. If so, use the drive that will burn DVDs as your destination drive.

Click the "Copy" button. This will begin the copy process. If you are using the same drive for both source and destination, a window will appear notifying you to place a blank DVD in the drive when the program is ready. A window will appear notifying you when the copy process is completed.

Freeware: DVDShrink/DVD Decrypter Duo

Click on the DVDShrink icon on your desktop to start the program.

Place the unencrypted DVD movie in your drive.

Click "Open Disk" to focus the program on the DVD you want to copy. Use the drop-down menu to select your drive. DVDShrink will take a few moments to analyze the disc. "Full Disk" will automatically be selected.

Click the "Backup" button.

Click the drop-down menu, and choose "ISO file and burn with DVD Decrypter."

Click "OK" to begin the copy process. If the DVD movie that you are copying is larger than 4.7 GB, it will be analyzed to provide a better quality copy with the compression used. Once the disc is encoded on the hard drive, DVD Decrypter will take over to begin the burning process.

Remove the DVD movie you are copying from the drive, and replace it with a blank DVD.

Click the "Write" icon at the bottom to begin the burning process. A window will appear notifying you when the process is completed.

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