Buzz
This article provides a guide on how to rip a DVD using VLC Media Player. However, it’s important to note that copying DVDs for anything other than personal backup is considered illegal in many countries. Many modern DVDs come with copy protection, which means they can’t be copied unless decrypted with special software.
Steps
Preparing to Rip
Ensure your computer has a DVD drive. You should see the 'DVD' symbol etched or printed on your computer's disk tray. This is a crucial step for copying DVDs.
- If you don’t see the DVD symbol on or near your drive, your computer likely doesn’t have a DVD drive. You will need to purchase an external DVD drive or use another computer.
- If your computer doesn’t have a tray or disc reader, skip this step.
Purchase an external DVD drive if needed. If your computer doesn't have a built-in DVD drive, you’ll need to buy an external USB DVD drive and connect it to your computer before you can rip a DVD with VLC.
- If you're using a Mac, you’ll need a DVD drive with a Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) adapter. You can also purchase a USB 3.0 to USB-C conversion cable to connect your Mac to the DVD drive.
Install VLC if you haven't already. If you don't have VLC Media Player installed on your computer, go to https://www.videolan.org/vlc/index.html from your browser, click on Download VLC, and follow the instructions:
- Windows - Double-click the downloaded installer file, click Yes when prompted, choose your language, click OK, click Next three times, select Install, and then click Finish.
- Mac - Double-click the VLC DMG file, then drag the VLC icon to the Applications folder.
Insert the DVD into your computer. Open your computer’s DVD tray, place the disc with the label side facing up, and close the tray. Now you can begin ripping the DVD on Windows or on Mac.
- Before proceeding, make sure to close any windows that pop up on the screen at this point.
On Windows
Launch VLC Media Player.Begin
VLCVLC Media Player- If you're prompted to update, click Yes and wait for the update process to complete before proceeding.
Click on the Media. This option is located in the top-left corner of the VLC window. When clicked, a menu will appear on the screen.
Click on Open Disc… (Open Disc) near the top of the Media menu that is currently displayed. A new window will appear on your screen.
Check the box "No disc menus" (No Disc Menus). This option is found in the "Disc selection" section of the "Open Media" window.
- If your computer has multiple DVD drives, click on the "Disc device" box and select the movie title.
Play
Click on Convert (Convert) in the displayed menu. This will take you to the next page.
Ensure that your video is set to convert to MP4 format. Click on the "Profile" selection box, then click on the option with the "(MP4)" suffix.
- For example, select Video - H.264 + MP3 (MP4) near the top of the "Profile" selection box.
- If you encounter an error related to DVD protection after selecting to convert the DVD, repeat all previous steps, and when you get to this point, choose Video - H.265 + MP3 (MP4).
Click on Browse (Browse) at the bottom right corner of the window. This will open the File Explorer window.
Enter a name for the file. You can type any name for the converted file in the "File name" field, then add the extension .mp4.
- For example, to name the file "The Hobbit", you would enter The Hobbit.mp4 here.
Click on a folder on the left side of the window.
- For example, click on Desktop on the left side of the window if you want to save the copied DVD file to your computer's desktop.
Click on Save (Save) at the bottom right corner of the window to save your settings.
Click on Start (Start) at the bottom of the Convert window. This will begin converting the DVD to MP4 format.
- The process can take from a few minutes to several hours, depending on your computer's speed and the size of the DVD.
- The progress bar at the bottom of the VLC Media Player window will show the video conversion progress.
Xem tập tin đã được chuyển đổi. Sau khi quá trình sao chép đĩa DVD hoàn tất, tập tin đã được chuyển đổi sẽ hiển thị trong thư mục lưu đã chọn trước đó. Bạn có thể nhấp đúp vào tập tin video để xem trên trình phát video mặc định của máy tính.
- Nếu VLC không sao chép toàn bộ DVD, hoặc nội dung được sao chép bị mất âm thanh hay gặp vấn đề kỹ thuật, bạn cần kiểm tra xem phiên bản VLC mới nhất đã được cập nhật chưa và thử lại. Nếu bạn vẫn không thể sao chép đĩa DVD, có lẽ đây là loại đĩa đã được thiết lập tính năng chống sao chép. Trong trường hợp này, bạn sẽ phải mua phần mềm giải mã DVD để sao chép nội dung trong đĩa. Hãy tìm hiểu cách sao chép đĩa DVD có khả năng chống sao chép để biết thông tin cụ thể.
Trên Mac
Mở VLC.Spotlight
vlcVLCLaunch- You can also click on the VLC application in Launchpad or double-click the VLC icon in the Applications folder to open it.
Click the File (File) menu in the top-left corner of the screen. A dropdown menu will appear here.
Click Open Disc… (Open Disc…) in the File menu currently displayed. This action will open the settings window with the DVD disc information.
Click on the Disable DVD Menus option in the top-right corner of the window.
Check the "Streaming/Saving" box in the lower-left corner of the window.
Click the Settings button on the right side of the window. This action opens the DVD disc conversion settings.
Check the "File" box. This step ensures that copying the DVD will create a file on your computer.
- If both "File" and "Stream" are checked, click the "File" box again to set the primary output destination.
Click the Browse… option in the top-right corner of the window. This will open a window that lets you choose the folder to save the DVD file and rename it.
Give the file a name. Enter a name for the DVD file in the "Save As" field, and add the .mp4 extension.
- For example, to save the DVD file as "Batman", type Batman.mp4.
Select a folder to save the file. Click on the "Where" field and choose a folder (e.g., Desktop) from the menu that appears.
Click the Save button. This is the blue button at the bottom of the window.
Click the "Encapsulation Method" dropdown below the "File" section. A new menu will appear.
Click on Quicktime. This option is located near the bottom of the dropdown menu.
Adjust video settings. Below are the settings that influence the image quality of the DVD file:
- Check the box labeled "Video".
- Click on the "Video" selection box.
- Select H264 from the menu.
- Click on the "Bitrate" box and select 128 from the list.
- Tick the "Scale" box and choose 1.
Adjust audio settings. Below are the audio settings for the DVD file:
- Check the box labeled "Audio".
- Click on the "Audio" selection box.
- Select MP3 from the list of options.
- Click on the "Bitrate" box and select 128.
- Click on the "Channels" box and select 2.
Click on OK, then click OK on the main window. This action prompts VLC to copy the DVD file into the selected storage folder.
- This process may take between 15 to 40 minutes for each 30-minute video.
Play the converted file. After the video copying is finished, the converted file will appear in the selected storage folder. You can double-click the file to play it using the default video player on Mac.
- If VLC fails to copy the entire DVD, or if the copied content has missing audio or technical issues, ensure that the latest version of VLC is updated and try again. If you still cannot copy the DVD, the disc may have copy protection enabled. In such cases, you will need to purchase DVD decryption software to copy the content from the disc. Learn how to copy copy-protected DVDs for detailed instructions.
Tips
- The file copied using VLC achieves the best quality when played directly on VLC.
- The copied DVD file may experience a slight reduction in quality.
Warning
- Avoid stopping or pausing VLC during the DVD copying process.
- Copying copyrighted content for commercial purposes, instead of for personal backup or fair use, is considered illegal.
