In order to play DVDs, you need to have the right codecs installed. A codec is a piece of software that allows applications to read a video or audio format. If your movie player software doesn’t find the right codecs, it may offer to install them for you. If not, you’ll have to install the codecs manually — ask for help on how to do this, for example on your Linux distribution’s support forums.

DVDs are also copy-protected using a system called CSS. This prevents you from copying DVDs, but it also prevents you from playing them unless you have extra software to handle the copy protection. This software is available from a number of Linux distributions, but cannot be legally used in all countries. Please contact your Linux distribution for more information.

Kaupallisissa DVD-elokuvissa on yleensä aluekoodi, joka määrittää mille maantieteellisille alueille elokuva on suunnattu. Usein DVD-asemat voivat toistaa vain samaa aluekoodia olevia levyjä. Jos käytössäsi on esimerkiksi aluekoodin 2 DVD-asema, se voi toistaa Suomesta ja muualta Euroopasta ostettuja DVD-elokuvia.

It is often possible to change the region used by your DVD player, but it can only be done a few times before it locks into one region permanently. To change the DVD region of your computer’s DVD player, use regionset.

Lisätietoja DVD-aluekoodeista on saatavilla Wikipediasta.