Does MakeMKV bypass region locking?

[Narmatonia]

There is an anime I want to get on DVD, but the only affordable option is a Region 4 (Australian) dvd, and I live in Region 2.
Does MakeMKV bypass the region locking when ripping DVDs or will I need to change the region of my dvd drive for it to work?

[Woodstock]

A lot depends on your drive.

There are a few that will prevent MakeMKV from brute-forcing the region coding. Most are not a problem, and if you have a LibreDrive-capable drive, it's a non-issue.

I have Asus and LG drives built over the last 12 years or so, and have not had an issue with region coding. It's a total non-issue for Bluray.

When you start MakeMKV, what does it say about your drive in the Info window, before you tell it to open a disk?

[rblood01]

With proper approved drives like the one I have, after firmware flash.

Drive Information
OS device name: K:
Current profile: BD-ROM
Manufacturer: HL-DT-ST
Product: BD-RE WH16NS60
Revision: 1.02
Serial number:
Firmware date: 2118-10-29 19:36
Bus encryption flags: 17
Highest AACS version: 50

LibreDrive Information
Status: Enabled
Drive platform: MT1959
Firmware type: Patched (microcode access re-enabled)
Firmware version: 1.02
DVD all regions: Yes
BD raw data read: Yes
BD raw metadata read: Yes
Unrestricted read speed: Yes

As you can see, the "DVD all regions" is set to "Yes". This drive has been firmware flashed to do so.
Start by reading this
viewtopic.php?f=16&t=19634

Get a feel for what is going on. Then follow up with some reading on how to flash drives and potential problems and hangups. (like sleep bug) if You don't wan to do this step. There are vendors that will sell you a drive or, as I understand it.. the author of the above link will remote flash your drive (if it is qualified) to proper settings. (for a small fee of course) After you have a properly setup approved drive, you should have no problems ripping out of region drives, blu-rays etc. using MakeMPK

Hope this helps

[Narmatonia]

The info reads:

OS device name: E:
Manufacturer: HL-DT-ST
Product: DVDRAM GP57EW40
Revision: PF00
Serial number: K5IHBDA4946
Firmware date: 2016-01-29 15:38

So basically if MakeMKV is unable to read the out of region disc (and assuming I'm out of changes), I would need to 'flash' the disc drive to make it LibreDrive compatible?

[Woodstock]

Given that the drive is made by LG, there is a very good chance that MakeMKV can read out-of-region disks using it without any firmware changes. You will actually get a message from MakeMKV if it is a problem.

MakeMKV will normally let you know if the drive is compatible with patching the firmware, like the example shown above. Since it doesn't, it probably should not be flashed. If you want "universal", it might be a good idea to look at UHD-friendly drives.

[Narmatonia]

OK thanks for the advice

[rblood01]

Before you try to flash any drive make sure the platform reads on Make MKV like my example does. 1959. If it doesn't don't flash it. If you need to flash, find a UHD friendly drive. You can find them in the main guide (and possibly many other locations on this site.