DVD does not play all DVDs for the region it is set to.

[aria]

Hello,

I recently (about 1 month) installed Kubuntu 12.04 on my HP-G6 laptop with i3-2350 & HD3000. Almost all works well, including 1080p youtubes. But I still cannot play all DVDs. Region free ones play all, but for region 1 (my region) some play, some others refuse to do it (original DVDs, not copies). Checked the region on my DVD (regionset) and is 1, as it should. Installed lot of codecs, including bad and ugly ones, and today I also installed “libmediainfo0” and all I found with the name “libxine (1&2)”, but still lot of region 1 DVDs do not play.

VLC starts but stops before showing an image (and repeats this behavior each time I hit the play). Kaffeine starts and sometime shows images for several seconds, then stops, popping-up a window with the message “Read error from: Error reading NAV packet”, and sometimes does not even mention the NAV packet (simply “Error reading DVD” or something like this).

What should I do to get all region 1 DVDs play?

Thanks,

[HalationEffect]

My best guess is that the DVDs you're having problems with are encrypted. To play them, you'll need to install libdvdcss2 which is available from the Medibuntu repository.

To add the Medibuntu repository to your system, use the following command in a Konsole window:

sudo wget --output-document=/etc/apt/sources.list.d/medibuntu.list http://www.medibuntu.org/sources.list.d/$(lsb_release -cs).list && sudo apt-get --quiet update && sudo apt-get --yes --quiet --allow-unauthenticated install medibuntu-keyring && sudo apt-get --quiet update

[blobfish]

sudo apt-get install libdvdread4
sudo /usr/share/doc/libdvdread4/install-css.sh

[aria]

Thanks HalationEffect! It's a little bit disturbing not having libdvdcss2 already installed with the OS or after the main update, or at least within Kubuntu repositories. Did install it now.

Thanks Blobfish too! While I had libdvdread4 already installed, and libdvdcss2 too, encrypted DVD did not play until I perform the second code line in your thread above. Now all works as it should.

Thanks both of you, problem solved.
Bests,

[HalationEffect]

It's a little bit disturbing not having libdvdcss2 already installed with the OS or after the main update, or at least within Kubuntu repositories.

Unfortunately, Ubuntu can't distribute libdvdcss2 due to possible legal repurcussions. That's why it has to come from the Medibuntu repository.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libdvdcss

Many GNU/Linux distributions do not contain libdvdcss (for example Debian, Fedora, SUSE Linux, and Ubuntu) due to fears of running afoul of DMCA-style laws, however they may provide the tools to let the user install it themselves. For example, it is available in Ubuntu through Medibuntu.

libdvdcss uses a generated list of possible player keys. If none of them works (for instance, when the DVD drive enforces region coding) a brute force algorithm is tried so the region code of a DVD is ignored

(Edit) In the course of googling for extra info, I learned some things about the DVD Content Scrambling System (CSS) and libdvdcss2:

http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntucat/...nd-libdvdcss2/

The libdvdcss library can be used to decode encrypted DVDs on a Linux system. Most – but not all – commercially marketed DVDs are encrypted. Contrary to the FUD and popular belief, the purpose of this encryption has nothing whatsoever to do with copy protection. It was developed so that an encrypted DVD could only be played on a licensed player. Licenses are granted by The DVD Forum.

Unlike most similar projects, libdvdcss doesn’t require the region of your drive to be set.

[aria]

HalationEffect, this is more than I ever expected! Tried a second zone disc on my first zone drive, and did play! That's amazing! Didn't expected to do so! OK, if libdvdcss2 does this thing too, I understand why it cannot be delivered with the OS.
Thanks a lot,

[HalationEffect]

Glad I could be of help

[blobfish]

..... That's why it has to come from the Medibuntu repository. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libdvdcss.....

I guess I am confused.

:~$ apt-cache policy libdvdread4
libdvdread4:
  Installed: 4.2.0-1ubuntu3
  Candidate: 4.2.0-1ubuntu3
  Version table:
 *** 4.2.0-1ubuntu3 0
        500 http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ precise/universe amd64 Packages
        100 /var/lib/dpkg/status
:~$ dpkg --search "install-css.sh"
libdvdread4: /usr/share/doc/libdvdread4/install-css.sh
:~$

and
http://packages.ubuntu.com/search?se...ecise&arch=any
and
http://packages.ubuntu.com/search?ke...se&section=all

this all tells me that install-css.sh is part of libdvdread4 which is in the universe repo and not in medibuntu as the wiki says. Is the wiki outdated/misleading/wrong or am I missing something?

[HalationEffect]

Open up the install-css.sh script in kate or whatever text editor you prefer... you'll see that the script grabs libdvdcss2 from medibuntu.

[blobfish]

Interesting! but the script must be doing something more than just installing libdvdcss2?, base upon aria's reference to the script execution.

While I had libdvdread4 already installed, and libdvdcss2 too, encrypted DVD did not play until I perform the second code line in your thread above.

[HalationEffect]

I'm honestly not sure why it didn't work for aria until after running the script... having had a good look at the script, I can't see that it does anything other than download and install the lib.

I'm wondering if he/she mistakenly thought that the command I suggested installed the file, when in fact all it does is add the repository.

[blobfish]

I'm wondering if he/she mistakenly thought that the command I suggested installed the file, when in fact all it does is add the repository.

That is probably correct. I am wondering if the "install-css.sh" is a left over from a time before the medibuntu repo was in existence and is kept current for backward compatibility? So basically the following 2 ways should both produce dvd decryption.

1)
//no need for extra repo as libdvdread4 is in universe.
sudo apt-get install libdvdread4
sudo /usr/share/doc/libdvdread4/install-css.sh

2)
setup medibuntu repo. //already described in previous post.
sudo apt-get install libdvdcss

[HalationEffect]

I am wondering if the "install-css.sh" is a left over from a time before the medibuntu repo was in existence and is kept current for backward compatibility?

I don't see how that can be the case - the script downloads the file from the Medibuntu repo site (http://packages.medibuntu.org)... unless older versions of the script downloaded the file from a different source.

The main benefit of the script is that with it, you can get the lib without needing to add a repo to your system. If you don't want any other Medibuntu packages, then adding an external repo just to get one package that is unlikely to ever need updating might not be desirable.

2)
setup medibuntu repo. //already described in previous post.
sudo apt-get install libdvdcss

2nd line should be:

sudo apt-get install libdvdcss2

[blobfish]

... unless older versions of the script downloaded the file from a different source.

that is what I meant by "kept current for backward compatibility".

2nd line should be:

sudo apt-get install libdvdcss2

doesn't matter.

System-Precise:~$ apt-get -s install libdvdcss
NOTE: This is only a simulation!
      apt-get needs root privileges for real execution.
      Keep also in mind that locking is deactivated,
      so don't depend on the relevance to the real current situation!
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree       
Reading state information... Done
Note, selecting 'libdvdcss2' instead of 'libdvdcss'
libdvdcss2 is already the newest version.
0 upgraded, 0 newly installed, 0 to remove and 447 not upgraded.

[HalationEffect]

Huh, I was entirely unaware that apt-get was capable of that. Colour me impressed!