Matroska version 2/version 4

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senpai92
Posts: 6
Joined: Tue Jun 15, 2021 5:11 pm

Matroska version 2/version 4

Post by senpai92 »

Hello, I have been using Makemkv for a long time to rip my bluray discs, and I noticed with Mediainfo the line "Matroska version 2", while when I use Mkvtoolnix I have "Matroska version 4".
My question is very simple what's the difference between the two and is there an advantage to using one rather than the other? Thanks in advance
dcoke22
Posts: 2606
Joined: Wed Jul 22, 2020 11:25 pm

Re: Matroska version 2/version 4

Post by dcoke22 »

There's a homepage for the MKV container: https://matroska.org/index.html

If you look at the Element Specifications section you can see which flags came into existence at which version.

I'm guessing, but it is probably true that MakeMKV doesn't need any of the flags introduced in newer versions. I also suspect part of being compliant with Matroska is being able to read older versions. So, using version 2 gives MakeMKV all the functionality it needs while making it highly compatible with other tools.
senpai92
Posts: 6
Joined: Tue Jun 15, 2021 5:11 pm

Re: Matroska version 2/version 4

Post by senpai92 »

dcoke22 wrote:
Sat Jan 21, 2023 8:27 pm
There's a homepage for the MKV container: https://matroska.org/index.html

If you look at the Element Specifications section you can see which flags came into existence at which version.

I'm guessing, but it is probably true that MakeMKV doesn't need any of the flags introduced in newer versions. I also suspect part of being compliant with Matroska is being able to read older versions. So, using version 2 gives MakeMKV all the functionality it needs while making it highly compatible with other tools.
Thank you for your reply. I see it more clearly now. I asked myself this question because I read several forums where users said to rip their discs with Makemkv then put them back in Mkvtoolnix. For my part, I have been working for years with Makemkv alone and I have had no problems.
Moreover I came across a web page (I don't know which one anymore) where it was specified that versions 1, 2, 3 would no longer be maintained, so I said to myself why isn't Makemkv in version 4? But your answer seems quite relevant, it may not need its improvements to work well. thanks again
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