Place the unfinalized DVD into the computer DVD tray and open "Nero 9 StartSmart."
Unfinalized DVDs
The software you will need for the backup part of the process as well as recovery from unfinalized DVDs is Nero 9. Nero 9 has a straight "DVD to DVD" copying function that ignores whether the disc is finalized or not.
In handling unfinalized DVDs there two scenarios, the disc has not been finalized or the DVD has been unsuccessfully finalized due to some glitch in the process. In either case the cause is not relevant.
DVD finalization is done in two ways depending on the contents of the DVD. If the DVD only contains data then finalization simply means to "close" the disc so that no further recording can be done.
Unfinalized video DVDs are more complex and the DVD MUST be finalized for it to be playable. In this case the software is not just closing the DVD so that it can be read by other software and devices. The DVD finalization process is also writing a very complex set of files and instructions that tell the DVD player exactly what is on the disc and where it is. What you see of this is huge are simply the menus and their functionality.
If it is at all possible with any unfinalized DVD try to get the original device used to create the disc to finalize it. If this is not possible or the original device is failing to successfully finalize the disc then read on.
So now we come to the "good news / bad news" section of the page! In order to recover from unfinalized DVDs you are going to need software. The good news is that there are two software products that can be used and they will give you two bites at the cherry. The bad news is that you are going to have to work out for yourself whether you are willing to pay for it! The question you have to ask yourself is whether the contents of the unfinalized DVD are worth the investment in the software. I can't decide that for you.
Information and Precautions
Go to www.isobuster.com and download a copy of the software.
Using the free functions first make sure that Isobuster can read the disc and can report at least the presence of a file structure. If it can then it is time for you to make the decision as to whether the data on the disc is worth the purchase price.
Using the free functions first make sure that Isobuster can read the disc and can report at least the presence of a file structure. If it can then it is time for you to make the decision as to whether the data on the disc is worth the purchase price.
Unfinalized DVDs - Backup
So, again from within Nero 9:
On this page you will find some tips and techniques for handling unfinalized DVDs.
So, regardless of the situation it is STRONGLY advisable that you create a back up of the disc BEFORE you begin any heroic attempt at the recovery of an unfinalized DVD.
Well hopefully somewhere on this page you found how to fix unfinalized DVDs! If not feel free to hit the "contact" button and I will try to help you in any way I can.
There is no software available that is going to be able to tell you whether you have an unfinalized DVD or a DVD that has suffered an error in being finalized. It is a "Catch 22" in that the software will always be stumped because DVD finalization is the key to the software working out what is on the disc. Most software will report the DVD as being either full and unreadable or empty but unable to be written to!
You can get a copy of Nero 9 by clicking this image link below.
You will now have all the files where you selected them to go.
In the case of a video DVD the ones with the extension .VOB are the MPEG files from your disc wrapped in the VOB container. They can then be imported into a video editing program using the "Import DVD/VR" function or can be read by most DVD burning software.
In the case of a video DVD the ones with the extension .VOB are the MPEG files from your disc wrapped in the VOB container. They can then be imported into a video editing program using the "Import DVD/VR" function or can be read by most DVD burning software.
Nero 9 also has another function that will perform a DVD finalization on just about any disc. Failing that it has one more function that will allow extraction of all the data on the disc regardless of whether it is finalized or not. In about 90% of cases Nero 9 will be the only software you need. You can check out more features here: DVD Disc Repair or here Best DVD Software.
Ok, once you have downloaded and installed Nero 9 open the program and you will get the Nero StartSmart window. Make sure the unfinalized DVD is in the DVD tray of the computer and Windows has finished asking stupid questions about what you want to do!
Select the "Rip and Burn" tab then select "Copy Disc" and finally "Copy Entire DVD."
Follow the on-screen instructions and remember to have a blank disc handy for creating your new unfinalized DVD copy.
Follow the on-screen instructions and remember to have a blank disc handy for creating your new unfinalized DVD copy.
Now a further word of warning here! In handling damaged, errored or unfinalized DVDs there will be long lags where it appears that the computer has frozen or that the software is doing nothing. BE PATIENT! Take a walk, stay calm...relax! Some of the techniques here may take a long time to complete.
DVD Finalization
If the above procedure fails for any reason, usually because the disc has been partially finalized, we come to your second bite at the cherry!
Now higher on the page I told you that you had two bites at the cherry. Truthfully you have one full bite as outlined above and two "half bites!" Your first "half bite" is again using Nero 9 only this time we are not going to salvage the disc itself.
Second (half) bite!
Third (half) bite! (last chance cafe)
Isobuster
Navigation Menu
From here you can open your video editing program and use the import or insert DVD files function to navigate to the newly created VIDEO_TS folder and import your files from there.
Alternately the VIDEO_TS folder can also be used to burn a new copy of your DVD.
Alternately the VIDEO_TS folder can also be used to burn a new copy of your DVD.
In the option box that appears you can choose No Menus or Preserve Menus it is relatively unimportant as there are most likely no menus anyway. Let it run and hopefully you will now have a fully finalized disc that is readable.
This action finishes off the contents of the disc and makes it readable to other DVD playback devices such as the DVD ROM in your computer. An unfinalized data DVD can generally only be read and added to by the software that was creating it in the first place.
By using this function you can simply make a an exact copy of the disc and you will now have two copies of the unfinalized DVD. One to play with and one for backup if something goes wrong.
| · | Click "Create and Edit" at the top of the screen. |
| · | Click "Author, edit and capture video." |
| · | "NeroVision" will open. |
| · | Click on the "Disc Tools" drop down menu then click "Finalize Disc." |
We are going to use a little known function of Nero to at least pull all the data off the disc and on to your hard drive.
| 1. | Open "Nero Recode." |
| 2. | Select "Recode an entire DVD to DVD." Make sure the "DVD Video Files" or "Data Files" button is selected correctly for your DVD and the "Fit to Target" button is checked and showing 4.7gig. |
| 3. | Select "Import DVD." Recode will now read the contents of the disc and, if it can, write the contents to a folder it will automatically create in My Documents called "Recode." |
| 4. | Navigate to your "My Documents" folder and you will find the newly created folder called "Recode." Inside that folder you will find the normal ifo, bup and vob files normally seen in a DVD video folder or your DVD data files. |
| 5. | Rename the "Recode" folder to VIDEO_TS exactly as I have typed it if the original unfinalized DVD was a video DVD. |
At this point the best you can hope for is the extraction of the MPEG video files or data files on the disc. You MAY lose any video menu information and you may lose some of the video or data.
It is most likely, at this point, that there is damage to the file structure on the disc or even the disc itself and you are not dealing with a straight unfinalized DVD situation.
| 1. | Start Isobuster then load the disc. |
| 2. | When Isobuster has detected the files on the disc run the Find Missing Files and Folders option under the File menu. |
| 3. | You will now have an entry on the left hand column of Files and folders found by their signature. |
| 4. | Select that, then go to File, Files found via their signature then Extract files found via their signature. Choose a location and let it run. |
