Changing region code in Windows Media Player?

[Bryan]

I put a Region 2 DVD into the drive to test it, and it played with no problem, but now WMP thinks R2 is the default, and won't play R1 DVDs. Is there a way to reset it or default it back to R1? Thanks.

[RoyGBiv]

1. Hardware Issue ...

Unless things have changed, this is a hardware issue. That is, your DVD player is set for a certain region.

It may be the case (I don't know ... this is purely a guess) that Windows and/or WMP detects the region coding of a disc and sets it for that region. This is certainly possible, but it seems rather dangerous.

In any case, most DVD players come with a limit to the number of times you can set the region coding, usually five, after which it is set for the region of the last change permanently.

Assuming you're using XP, you can check by making your way to the Device Manager (right-click My Computer > Properties > Hardware tab > Device Manager). From the device list, find your DVD drive and right-click on it, click Properties and go to the DVD Region tab.

You can change your region here, but make note of how many changes you have left. There should be an info field indicating how many changes are remaining. If it's "0" you're out of luck. If it's "1" you can change it, but be aware that when you do, this will be the last change.

There are ways around this limit, but they can turn your DVD player into a nice paperweight if something goes wrong.

[Bryan]

3. That did the trick. Thanks!

n/t

[ChromeFoundry]

2. Anydvd will remove region codes from any inserted DVD

I think there is a free trial available:

http://www.slysoft.com/en/anydvd.html


May be worth a shot.