Question regarding thread closure...

[ubuntu-freak]

Would this thread have been closed if the OP said that he/she was trying to backup a DVD/DVD collection? The official Ubuntu manual gives advice on backing up encrypted DVDs, though it does tell users to check their countries copyright laws.

Backing up DVDs is no different to ripping audio CDs and making compressed copies of the content, or ripping it uncompressed, incase of future damage to the disc. Incidently, DVDs are much more sensitive to damage, so it's actually wise to back them up.

Thanks.

[KiwiNZ]

will look at this and come back shortly

[KiwiNZ]

The quick answer is yes.

If you check with any of the DVD writing software companies they all state warnings concerning Encrypted DVD's

[ubuntu-freak]

The quick answer is yes.

If you check with any of the DVD writing software companies they all state warnings concerning Encrypted DVD's

Isn't it illegal to copy audio CDs in the US and UK as well? It's also illegal for anyone to die in the UK Houses of Parliment and illegal to be a vegan in at least one US state.

Some laws are there to be ignored, laughed at etc, it's always been that way. The masses decide what's right and wrong, not lobbyists, currupt politicians, judges etc.

[KiwiNZ]

No the Judges decide when they slap a huge fine.Following the legislation enacted by the duly elected authority.

We will not allow this site and its owners to be exposed to the risk of litigation.Please refer to the code of conduct.

[ubuntu-freak]

I don't believe it would come to that, as nothing is being sold to bypass copy-protection, but I respect that you feel you have to be cautious in this matter.

Thanks.

[jdong]

I'd like to clarify, "backing up" a DVD is very different from "backing up" an audio CD. An audio CD can be backed up verbatim by a byte-by-byte binary cloning procedure. This qualifies as a legitimate archival backup in most jurisdictions and I'd have no problem with discussing this on the forums.


A DVD can also be backed up in a byte-by-byte binary clone, but the resultant copy is unplayable because the encryption key is not presented as a part of the block device. You now have a disc that is unplayable in licensed players and must be brute-force cracked by a decrypter to play. The act of playing back the DVD in this manner is not legal, and backing up an unusable copy is probably not all that useful. What most people call "backing up" an encrypted DVD entails automatically retrieving the CSS key from the hardware via libdvdcss2, and writing the decrypted contents on the fly to the backup medium. This is not a 1:1 backup, but rather the circumvention of the copy protection system, and that is not legal under most jurisdictions. This is too shady for us to support.


This doesn't really affect any decisions made here, I just wanted to point out that the CD to DVD analogy is not entirely accurate.

[ubuntu-freak]

It was just meant to be a real world analogy, but I get your point and respect the sites position.

Thanks jdong.