How To Install Makemkv on Linux To Convert or playback DVDs/Blurays

There is a small utility which you can use to convert your DVDs and Bluray media to a free and portable format. It is called MakeMKV.

Linux and multimedia consumption

Usally you would need a proprietary codec for the playback of DVDs and bluray discs as they have built-in protection deeply integrated in to them for the prevention of piracy. This opens up problems for the free software world. The playback codecs must be available for your operating system and as it is well-known Linux isn't considered by big enterprises.

The solution is MakeMKV. This tool enables you to convert your media from proprietary formats to a free one called Matroshka.

Legal questions

People may think that copying their media is considered a crime but there is no legal foundation for this as long as you don't give your copys to others or even sell them. There is even a law in Germany regarding this called "Privatkopie". There was a resolution from the german federal high court of justice which states that a copy is allowed as long as it is used only for private purposes.

Needed requirements

Linux Build Packages

You will need a few packages to build MakeMKV and a GUI for it. So let's install them on an apt-based system like debian or ubuntu.

Source files

You can download the source files from the links mentioned here: MakeMKV Forum Entry. The needed files are makemkv-oss-1.14.2.tar.gz and makemkv-bin-1.14.2.tar.gz

Build and install MakeMKV

To extract the tar.gz files use the following command:

Now change to the directorys and run the build commands:

And also:

How to use it

At the first start of MakeMKV you will be informed that this is a beta version which will only be usable for a duration of one month. No need to be worried there is a reusable official serial here: MakeMKV Official Serial. But as always please consider buying this software to help the developers supporting the software in the future.

When inserting a disc in to your drive MakeMKV will automatically recognize it. After a while a disc symbol occurs in the GUI. Click on it and the analysis begins. After a while a menu tree-structure shows up in which you can choose which files should be converted. In most cases there is only one video file needed and related subtitles etc. so choose the biggest file and all subtitles you need.

Choose a target path and filename of your liking and start the process by clicking on Harddrive symbol.

Additional information

Congratulations! You converted your physical copy to a libre digital one. Consider that this is a uncompressed one which can take up a lot of storage. If you want to know more about how you can compress your media files and therefore decrease their size while increasing the playback performance take a look at my article here: Converting Media Using Handbrake.