DVD-rom hack

[BIG DICK]

I've got a sharp laptop and I was wondering if theres any way of hacking the dvd-rom drive so i can play american disc's?

anyone know how or got any suggestions?

appreciate your help.

regards

BD

[FL310]

I assume you want to change the country (area) code. Have a search on Google, there are many players around which do the job...it is a software controlled feature.
You may also have a look at your DVD player software, normally you can change the code there as well...often only once or twice but that is an entry in the registry which may be changed.

[A-V-8R]

Go to:

http://www.firmware.fr.st/

A little poking around their will help you out. Basically, you have to reflash the bios of the DVD drive to do it, a very simple procedure.

I did it to a Toshiba Satillite and it worked wonderfully.

You must be a nice guy, despite your nickname. If you weren't you would know that porn discs are usually region free ...........

[Mac the Knife]

Try http://digilander.iol.it/firmware2/rpcman.htm if your player is compatible.

[18-Wheeler]

Yep, that first site mentioned is where I got the 'fixes' for my own DVD drive, and also four others for four of my friends.
Yep, cracked FIVE of the things so far!
Bit rough being an international pilot with a laptop, as you never know where you'll end up and so you end up at the mercy of the regional coding limits.
Or not, as the case may be ... :D

[5711N0205W]

On a similar note, we have the above model home DVD Player and so far despite lots of searching I have been unable to locate a region hack.

This is a bit of a bind as an Aunt in the US sent the children some region 1 DVD's at Christmas.

Anyone have any pointers to de regionalising this model?

[FL310]

A standalone-home DVD player has a software installed which is also programmable to set the region...some models, and I am not sure if your one will do it (but give it a try) use following procedure:

Switch system on
open the drawer
press setup on the remote
highlight CUSTOMS SETTING
type 3333
press ENTER (or if not available select OK)

now you should see a "hidden" menu for the regional mode.
0 is normally the multi-region mode
press the required selection
press ENTER
press SETUP

close drawer and enjoy...

There is of course the chance that you may have to select a different code for the hidden menu, don't give up if it is not 3333, just try also the other possibilities like 2222 etc.

[ORAC]

5711N0205W:
Don't know a software one, but Techtronics will do it for you for 84 quid.

Techtronics.com (http://www.techtronics.com/uk/shop/50-jvc-xv-s40-s42-multi-region-dvd-player.html).

[Send Clowns]

That'd buy you two new Samsung 16x48 drives, ORAC, so you could set them on different regions!

I have the download for mine (a Samsung SD-616F F101) from the firmware site, but seem to have two choices of file. The readme says


-F101U -> UDMA
-F101D -> DMA

I assume that is Direct Memory Access (DMA) or Ultra DMA. Now my computer uses DMA (at least that is the option for drives in the "Systems" bit of the Control Panel) so do I choose this? Or is it related to the exact model of DVD-ROM (there are two sub-models covered by this download)?

P.S. This is just the official Samsung flash, the patch is yet to come. However I can apparently back up my firmware, so fingers crossed :p

[5711N0205W]

Thanks for the open drawer etc etc, I'll give it a go as I'm certaintly not forking out £84 to have it chipped!

[FL310]

ASFKAP...you do not have much knowledge, unfortunately.
This is tricky if you don't know how to escape if something goes wrong.

First of all, this is not possible under Windows XP.

You need to start in DOS mode. That is of not much help if your harddrive is in NTFS format. To revert that to FAT32...Partition Magic with no guarantee of no data loss...

You can, however, use the Caledra DrDOS and access NTFS, but first you need to find that program.

This brings you only into the situation to be able to go through the process of flashing...now you need to find out what version your current unit has and select accordingly.....

In your case with limited knowledge I highly recommend NOT to try it as you may easily spoil your unit forever.

Sorry for not offering more help, but it would be almost a book to write as plenty of details will be required and a step by step explanation needs to take care about a couple of nasty bits which may cross your path.:rolleyes: :rolleyes:

[lekkerste]

18-wheeler, do you consider yourself to be an 'advanced' computer user? Do you think someone with a fairly basic level of knowledge would have any problems? I'm asking you as you've had a 100% success rate with this site, and I am worried about trashing my drive. Thanks.

[18-Wheeler]

I do alright, almost never have to ask for help from anyone to work stuff like that out.
If you're running Win95/98 it's pretty easy as all you have to do is to boot up into real DOS mode and run the patch. (Read the instructions for all the details)
Bit more of a bother for WinME, as it doesn't have the option to boot up into real DOS mode, but there's a program that you can find on that site (I think) that lets you boot off a floppy into DOS.
My own laptop was a bit tricky to do, as the same slot is used for both the floppy drive (which I needed to boot up with) and the DVD player .... so it was interesting for a while! :)

[Tinstaafl]

I bought a DVD to replace the CD-ROM in my lapop.

Used the software on the previously mentioned firmware website to identify the firmware version (the software confirmed the lockable status of the drive), downloaded the appropriate hacked replacement and reflashed the drive.

Now I have a region unlocked drive.

Caveats:

Make damn sure you identify which firmware version your DVD drive has and be very certain you download the correct replacement.

If a laptop then make sure your battery has full charge AND that you're plugged into the mains. A power interruption while still flashing the drive will probably render the drive useless. Not much you can do about it with a desktop unless you have battery back up power supply.

According to some websites some drives can become permanently locked ie unflashable after a certain number of different region disks are played. It's better to reflash prior to playing more than one or two disks.



Hope it goes well for you!

T.

[lekkerste]

Thanks again. I'm actually running an apple iBook with OSX., but I guess the basics of doing it are similar regardless.