Does HandBrake Remove DRM from DVD? How to Rip a DRM-ed DVD?

Can HandBrake remove DRM from DVDs?

No, Handbrake can't remove DRM on its own. Since V0.9.3, Handbrake has removed the internal libdvdcss and can no longer decrypt DVDs and videos with DRM. According to the official site of Handbrake, "HandBrake does not defeat or circumvent copy protection of any kind. It does not work with video files employing Digital Rights Management (DRM)." When you import DRM-protected media into Handbrake, it will warn you "no valid source found" or "Copy-Protected sources are not supported".

But with the help of third-party tools, you can use Handbrake to remove DRM from DVDs. How to do it? Check below.

Table of Contents

• Part 1. Download Libdvdcss and Remove DVD DRM in HandBrake
• Part 2. Libdvdcss and Handbrake won't Remove DRM? Try Best Handbrake Alternative!
• Part 3. FAQ

Part 1. Download Libdvdcss and Remove DVD DRM in HandBrake

No matter how many upgrades HandBrake brings, it still can't circumvent DVD copy protections. So, is it impossible to use HandBrake to remove DRM on a DVD? Actually, you have the chance to rip a CSS-encrypted DVD with HandBrake if installing libdvdcss.

What is libdvdcss? It is a library designed for accessing DVDs with Content Scramble System (CSS) encryption, which is widely used by free player software to decode protected discs. It is available for Windows, macOS, Linux and more platforms. Using it, HandBrake is able to remove DRM on DVDs and rip protected DVDs successfully.

So, how to use HandBrake to rip an encrypted DVD with DRM removal?

Step 1. Download and install libdvdcss for HandBrake.

On Windows: 

• Download for Windows 32 Bit: https://download.videolan.org/pub/libdvdcss/1.2.12/win32/
• Download for Windows 64 Bit: https://download.videolan.org/pub/libdvdcss/1.2.12/win64/

After the correct libdvdcss version is downloaded, copy the dll file to HandBrake installation folder which is normally located at C:\Program Files\Handbrake. Now, libdvdcss is successfully installed on your computer. >> Check detailed steps to download libdvdcss on Windows

On macOS:

You need the Homebrew to install libdvdcss on Mac:

1. Open the Terminal application, enter /usr/bin/ruby -e "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/master/install)" to install Homebrew on Mac.
2. Launch a command line window and type in brew install libdvdcss and hit enter. Then libdvdcss will be installed on Mac to help Handbrake remove DVD DRM.

Step 2. Launch HandBrake. If you have inserted the DRM-ed DVD into optical drive, HandBrake will automatically show the source selection panel. You just need to choose the DVD. If not, click Open Source to access the source selection panel.

Step 3. Libdvdcss will work in the background to help Handbrake remove DRM from DVD and find the correct movie title. Then it will display the DVD information. Click Browse button in Destination section to define folder to save output file and the name.

Step 4. In Output Settings section, select MP4 or MKV as output format. In addition, various presets are listed on the right of HandBrake window. You can pick any preset (for web, for devices and more) depending on your needs as output.

Step 5. Click Start Encode to remove DRM on DVD and rip the encrypted DVD to MP4 or MKV with HandBrake.

Tips:

• You can adjust video/audio parameters, like codec, bitrate, frame rate, resolution and more to achieve an ideal effect of the resulting file.
• HandBrake empowers you to add/delete audio and subtitle tracks. You can also import external subtitles for a foreign DVD.
• If there is no demanded preset provided by HandBrake, you can add a personalized preset by customizing preset name, picture size, audio and subtitles.

Part 2. Libdvdcss and Handbrake won't Remove DRM? Try Best Handbrake Alternative!

It is not a simple task to install libdvdcss and get it to work with HandBrake to remove DRM, especially on Mac. Even with libdvdcss installed successfully, Handbrake can only remove DRM measures such as region codes and CSS. Errors happen from time to time:

• Trying to download libdvdcss on macOS Monterery but get an warning message when I start to install the package, saying it is incompatible.
• Handbrake on M1 Macs can't seem to get it to recognize/use libdvdcss properly when trying to archive my DVD videos.
• Fail to rip encrypted DVD even though libdvdcss is installed...
• After I upgrade my system, Handbrake can't remove DRM anymore. Libdvdcss errors?
• And even if libdvdcss is properly installed, HandBrake may also have difficulty in ripping some DRM-ed DVDs.

In such case, try a Handbrake alternative DRM remover - WinX DVD Ripper Platinum:

• Remove DVD copyright DRM protections of any kind: CSS, Region Code 1-6, RCE, AACS, UOPs, Sony ARccOS, Disney X-project DRM...
• Convert protected DVDs to non-DRM MP4, AVI, WMV, MOV, FLV, 3GP, iPhone, iPad, Android, Xbox, PS5, and more.
• 1:1 clone DVD with main/full title as MPEG-2 file; backup DVD to ISO image with untouched quality!
• Intel QSV, Nvidia NVENC hardware accelerator, Hyper-threading tech, and Super Encode Engine help rip a DVD in about 10 minutes.

How to Rip DRM-Protected DVDs with this Handbrake Alternative?

Step 1. Download and install the Handbrake DRM removal alternative on your computer.

• Free download WinX DVD Ripper Platinum on Windows 11/10/8/7
• Free Download WinX DVD Ripper Platinum on MacOS Ventura or older version

Step 2. Insert DVD into optical drive. Launch WinX DVD Ripper Platinum and click DVD disc to import source DVD. This best alternative to Handbrake will remove DRM from a protected DVD and recognize the correct title from multiple titles, all on its own. Handbrake DRM errors like "DVD disc not found" or "no valid source found" won't occur in this DVD ripper.

Step 3. All titles of DVD will be loaded soon. Main title is auto-checked. Meanwhile, Output Profile window appears. Select one format as output format, for example General Profiles > MP4 Video. Click OK.

Step 4. Click Browse button to define destination folder and click RUN button to start DRM removal. After all is done, you can get a crisp video ripped from protected DVD in the destination folder.

Note: If the DVD contains some advanced or complicated DRM that Handbrake and this DRM removal software fail to handle, click the Safe Mode on the interface of WinX DVD Ripper Platinum and try again. This feature is able to remove the most difficult DRM measures that Handbrake as well as many other paid software can't bypass.

Disclaimer: Digiarty Software does not advocate ripping copy-protected DVDs for any commercial purpose and suggests referring to the DVD copyright laws in your countries before doing so.

Part 3. Handbrake DRM Removal FAQ

1. Can Handbrake remove DRM from iTunes movies?

No. iTunes stores all the movies in M4V with DRM. While Handbrake is able to handle videos in M4V format, it works with non-DRM files only. Handbrake doesn't support DRM of any type, including iTunes DRM.

2. How do you remove copyright using Handbrake?

Libdvdcss and other third-party tools such as AnyDVD are the only way to let Handbrake remove DRM. When the libdvdcss library is installed correctly on your computer, Handbrake can automatically load libdvdcss when a protected DVD is inserted. Libdvdcss functions as a decryption library, allowing Handbrake to access and rip the content of DRM-protected DVDs. By integrating Libdvdcss into Handbrake's functionality, users can effectively remove DRM restrictions from DVDs and proceed with the ripping process.

3. Do all DVDs have DRM?

No. Generally speaking, homemade DVDs are created without DRM. But nearly all the DVDs you bought from a store come with DRM and encryptions. Handbrake with libdvdcss is able to remove some DRM measures such as CSS and region codecs. But libdvdcss is an old library and can't remove newer protections.

4. Is it legal to remove DRM?

If you use Handbrake or the DVD ripper in the article to remove DRM from DVDs in order to play a movie easier on other platforms, it's widely regarded as legal. However, you need to know that it is prohibited in the US to break DRM. DRM removal is perfectly legal only if you do it for personal usage.

5. How to remove video DRMs using Handbrake?

While Handbrake does not directly remove DRM from video files, it can be used in combination with additional libraries or software to remove DRM. For DVDs, you need to install libdvdcss or VLC. If you want to remove DRMs of videos from iTunes, Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney+, follow the general steps to use Handbrake to remove DRM from iTunes or other videos:

Find and download a program that is capable of removing DRM from your video files. Some examples include Requiem iTunes DRM Removal, TunesKit, DVDFab, and NoteBurner M4V Converter. These tools work by circumventing the encryption used by the DRM protection on the file, allowing you to create a DRM-free version of the content that you can use as you wish.

Install the DRM removal software and follow the instructions to remove the DRM from your video file.

Launch Handbrake and click on the "Source" button to import the DRM-free video file into Handbrake. Then you can convert the DRM video with Handbrake as normal.

Related External Source from Wiki:

1. HandBrake - HandBrake is a free and open-source transcoder for digital video files, originally developed in 2003 by Eric Petit (a.k.a. "titer" from his SVN repository username) to make ripping a film from a DVD to a data storage device easier. Since then, it has undergone many changes and revisions...

2. DRM - Digital rights management (DRM) is a set of access control technologies for restricting the use of proprietary hardware and copyrighted works...

Note: It's important to note that removing DRM from video files without the permission of the copyright holder may be illegal in some countries.