How to Rip DVDs with VLC

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff | Tech Tested

Updated: April 15, 2019

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This wikiHow teaches you how to rip a playable DVD file from a DVD disc using VLC media
player. Ripping DVD files for any purpose other than personal viewing is illegal in most
countries. Many newer DVD's have copy protection and are unable to be ripped without
first decrypting the DVD with special software.

Part 1

Preparing to Rip

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Make sure your computer has a DVD drive. On your computer's CD tray, you should
see the "DVD" logo engraved or painted on. This is necessary if you want to be able to
rip the DVD.

o If you don't see the DVD logo on or near your computer's tray, you probably don't
have a DVD drive. You'll need to buy an external DVD drive or use a different
computer.
o Skip this step if your computer doesn't have any tray or slot for discs.
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Buy an external DVD drive if necessary. If you have a computer which doesn't include
a DVD drive, you'll need to buy an external USB DVD drive and attach it to your
computer before you can rip a DVD in VLC.

o If you're using a Mac, you'll most likely need to buy a DVD drive which includes
a Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) adapter. You can also buy a USB 3.0 to USB-C adapter
cable to bridge the gap between your Mac and your DVD drive.
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Install VLC if you don't have it. If you don't have VLC Media Player installed on your
computer, go to https://www.videolan.org/vlc/index.html in your computer's web browser,
click Download VLC, and do the following:

o Windows — Double-click the downloaded setup file, click Yes when prompted,
select a language, click OK, click Next three times, click Install, and click Finish
when prompted.
o Mac — Double-click the VLC DMG file, then click and drag the VLC icon onto
the Applications folder,
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Insert your DVD into your computer. Open your computer's DVD tray, place the DVD
in the tray with the logo side facing up, and close the tray. At this point, you're free to
proceed with ripping your DVD on Windows or on a Mac.

o If any windows open when you do this, close them before proceeding.

Score
0/3

Part 1 Quiz

Why might you need to buy an external DVD drive?

Part 2

On Windows

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Open VLC Media Player. Double-click the traffic cone-shaped VLC icon on your
desktop, or open Start

, type in v l c , and click the VLC media player result.

o If you're prompted to update, click Yes and wait for the update to finish
downloading before you continue.
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Click the Media tab. This option is in the top-left corner of the VLC window. Clicking it
opens a drop-down menu.

3.

Click Open Disc… . It's near the top of the Media drop-down menu. A pop-up window
will open.

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Check the "No disc menus" box. It's in the "Disc selection" section of the "Open
Media" window.

o If your computer has more than one DVD tray, click the "Disc device" box and
select the movie's name.
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Click the "Menu"

icon. It's a downward-facing arrow next to Play near the bottom of the page. Clicking it
prompts a drop-down menu.

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Click Convert . It's in the drop-down menu. This will take you to the next page.

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Ensure that your video is set to convert to MP4. Click the "Profile" drop-down box,
then select an option which ends in "(MP4)".

o For example, you might click Video - H.264 + MP3 (MP4) near the top of the
"Profile" drop-down menu.
o If you receive an error regarding DVD blocks after you begin converting the
DVD, repeat this method up to this step, then select the Video - H.265 + MP3
(MP4) option instead.
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Click Browse . It's on the lower-right side of the window. Doing so opens a File Explorer
window.

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Enter a file name. Type whatever you want to name your converted file into the "File
name" text box, then type . m p 4 after it.

o For example, to name your file "The Hobbit", you would type in T h e
H o b b i t . m p 4 here.
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Click a save location. Do so on the left side of the window.

o For example, you'd click Desktop on the left side of the window if you wanted to
save your ripped DVD file on the desktop.
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Click Save . It's in the bottom-right corner of the window. This will save your settings.

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Click Start . It's at the bottom of the Convert window. Your DVD will begin to convert to
an MP4 format.

o This process will take anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours, depending on
your computer's speed and the size of the DVD.
o The video progress bar at the bottom of VLC Media Player's window will show
how much of the video has been converted.
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Play your converted file. Once the DVD finishes ripping, its converted file will appear
in the location to which you ripped it. You can double-click the file to play it in your
computer's default video player.

o If VLC doesn't rip the entire DVD, has missing audio, or other technical issues.
Check to make sure you have the latest version of VLC installed and try again. If
the DVD still isn't able to rip, it may have copy-protection on it. In which case,
you will need to purchase DVD decryption software to copy the contents of the
DVD. Read "How to Copy a Protected DVD" to learn how to decrypt a copy-
protected DVD.