www.makemkv.com

I'm a bit new to 4K UHD, but I'm a quick learner. I've been using MakeMKV for well over a year now to back up my standard HD (1080) movies, and it's been working flawlessly! Now that I've (recently) made the leap to ALL things 4K, I'd like to back up my 4K UHD Blu-ray discs as well.

After digging around in this forum, I figured out how to free my ASUS BD burner from at least some of the shackles its been bound by. Using the SDFtool Flasher application, another GREAT piece of software, I flashed my ASUS BW-16D1HT with firmware version ASUS-BW-16D1HT-3.10-WM01601-211901041014. When I run MakeMKV, the Info section of the user interface displays the following;

Drive Information
OS device name: \Device\CdRom0
Current profile: BD-ROM
Manufacturer: ASUS
Product: BW-16D1HT
Revision: 3.10
Serial number: KLSK2L82559
Firmware date: 2119-01-04 10:14
Bus encryption flags: 1F
Highest AACS version: 76

LibreDrive Information
Status: Enabled
Drive platform: MT1959
Firmware type: Patched (microcode access re-enabled)
Firmware version: 3.10
DVD all regions: Yes
BD raw data read: Yes
BD raw metadata read: Yes
Unrestricted read speed: Yes

As I understand it, the LibreDrive info is the good stuff (?), and in theory, this drive should be able to back up my BD UHD discs. Maybe? However, after several minutes of chugging and chugging on the very first 4K UHD disc I tried to back up (The Fifth Element - 20th Anniversary Edition), MakeMKV displayed the following;

Disc Information
Label: FIFTH_ELEMENT_THE
Timestamp: 2017-05-17 14:13:04
Protection: AACS2.0/C v61
Data capacity: 60.37 Gb
Disc type: BD-ROM UHD
Number of layers: 2
Bus encryption flags: 80

MakeMKV v1.16.5 win(x64-release) started
Using LibreDrive mode (v06.2 id=0FA242DD4D0B)
Using direct disc access mode
Loaded content hash table, will verify integrity of M2TS files.
Saved AACS dump file as C:\Users\AL/.MakeMKV/MKB20_v61_Fifth_Element_C175.tgz
The volume key is unknown for this disc - video can't be decrypted
Failed to open disc

I assume the 'volume key' is an encryption key of some sort that's needed to decrypt the .M2TS files, and without that key, well ... the obvious result is the "Failed to open disc" message from MakeMKV. Also, what's the purpose of the MKB20_v61_Fifth_Element_C175.tgz file?

The other interesting part of this is that a standard Blu-ray disc (1080 format) was also in the case, which MakeMKV had no trouble backing up at all. Not exactly what I hoped for, but better than nothing at all, I guess. At any rate, after Googling "Blu-ray volume keys" I ended up on the 'MakeMKV FAQ - How do I pass volume key to MakeMKV?" webpage, which also provided the following link; https://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=120988

And that's as far as I've been able to go with this. So far, I only have ten 4K UHD movies, but I'd really like to back them up. I don't fully understand what to do with all these Blu-ray keys that appear to go all the way back to 2009, but my guess is to put them in a text file and put the file in the MakeMKV directory? The other link provided on the above linked webpage points to this page - https://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=120988 - which is page 9 of 28 pages of volume keys.

More questions; has anyone compiled ALL the keys into a single file that's correctly named that I can download and copy to the MakeMKV directory? Or do I have to do all that copying and pasting myself? Also, what's the name of the file supposed to be so that MakeMKV will open and read it? Are ANY of my assumptions correct?

One last question; what are the odds that ALL of the 4K UHD movies I purchase will be in the same boat (so to speak) as "The Fifth Element" movie and I won't be able to back up ANY of them without the keys?

Have you read the UHD FAQ at the top of the UHD Disks forum?

MakeMKV automatically downloads the keys for UHD disks, if it can. Right now, there are reports that the server they are kept on is not resolvable, so it isn't serving up the list.

MrBigger wrote: ↑

Sun Feb 20, 2022 10:13 pm

Now that I've (recently) made the leap to ALL things 4K, I'd like to back up my 4K UHD Blu-ray discs as well.

Welcome to the rabbit hole. Just wait until you start buying all the stuff you said you wouldn't repurchase on UHD because, well, it's 4k (I'm looking at you complete Marvel Cinematic Universe!). Also, have a plan to how you're going to scale the storage - it fills up much more quickly than with 1080p discs.

Now, on to your question. As Woodstock mentioned, the site from which the hashed keys are downloaded appeared to be unresolvable over the weekend. Try again if you have not done so already; it should be good now.

Another tip - always clean every single UHD disc before you rip it. If you hold the cases at just the right angle in the right light, you'll see the residue of an oily manufacturing substance, and marks from the suckers on the machine that picks the cases up at assembly time. Often times, that residue makes its way onto the discs and prevents a good (or fast) rip. Clean them by using a few drops of dish detergent and warm water, rubbing from the center out. Be sure to rinse the soap off well, then dry with a microfiber cloth - again from the interior hub to the edge. BDs cases also have this residue, but it's harder to see in the blue cases, and the discs were less likely to suffer, likely a result of not cramming so much data onto a single disc.

Enjoy!

Woodstock wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 21, 2022 2:20 am

Have you read the UHD FAQ at the top of the UHD Disks forum?

MakeMKV automatically downloads the keys for UHD disks, if it can. Right now, there are reports that the server they are kept on is not resolvable, so it isn't serving up the list.

Woodstock - No, I have not read the UHD FAQ yet, but I will. Thanks for the update on the server! Obviously, I shouldn't assume ANYTHING where these and other topics are concerned!

awdspider - Thanks for responding to my post! It is greatly appreciated! Actually, I have a list of about 50-60 UHD discs I'll be purchasing as expenses allow. I only have 10 or 11 so far, but I haven't even installed my new blu-ray UHD player into the rack yet! I'm retired and getting lazy in my old age. Still, this new hobby is a real visual treat and its kinda taken over my universe. For how long remains to be seen. The new 65" OLED sure makes a HUGE difference, and having 4K streaming devices and 4K from a satellite looks pretty good these days!

On the subject of cleaning discs, thanks for the info! I've been cleaning vinyl LPs since the mid to late 50s, so it's kind of second nature for me to clean ALL flat things with groves and/or data on them. I'm a bit anal about those things, but for a very good reason; it really DOES make a difference!

As to the cases, I've been storing my CD musical collection, HD DVDs and (now) UHD discs in binders, so the plastic storage boxes they show up in end up in the recycle bin shortly after the shrink wrap is removed.

Again, thanks for all the great info you passed along! I'll be attempting to backup my new UHD discs some time this weekend!

AL

I guess my timing just sucks? I tried 3 discs today (Sunday 2/27/22) and MAKEMKV gave me the same result as my first attempt;
The volume key is unknown for this disc - video can't be decrypted
Failed to open disc

Dune (2021) was the first one I tried today, which is pretty new and I assumed (maybe) that the volume key isn't known yet for that one? Then I tried a couple of old movies - E.T. and Braveheart - and got the same result. Such is life.

I guess all this is still a work in progress and there's no telling if/when it MIGHT actually work (some day)? Being old I am a bit cynical, so I'll just leave at that and try again in another week or so.

Thanks again to all who responded to my post!

Cab you help me on how to post please??

Echobase wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 28, 2022 4:19 am

Cab you help me on how to post please??

Post what?