Play DVDs on Ubuntu with VLC

Start with a fresh installation of Ubuntu or related distro. Open a terminal and type the command:

$ sudo apt install vlc libdvd-pkg

Linux will add extra software called dependencies. Click enter for defaults. You may already have vlc installed. This is a first step to download software libraries. Ubuntu will launch screens warning you that it will now download files.

This looks new!

If you are new to Linux this is an old screen from before GUI graphical user interfaces. You navigate with <tab>, <enter>, <esc> and <arrow> keys. Accept defaults for the next few screens.

Type the command:

$ sudo dpkg-reconfigure libdvd-pkg

Ubuntu will launch a screen warning you that it will now download files from Videolan organization, the authors of VLC. Accept defaults.

After a few minutes of download and compilation we return to the command line.

Does it work?

Insert a DVD and open VLC media player. Menu Media->Open Disc.

Click DVD. Do you see /dev/sr0 or another reasonable entry for our optical drive? Click the down-arrow for more devices. Click Play. Is the word Play dark so you can click it?

Is that it?

If only. Getting the menus working for a DVD is only part one. Can your computer read the movie files and play on screen? Use your arrow keys to move around and see how functional it is.

Working!

It happens. Try a few more DVDs and you may find some still will not open.

It didn't work

Try installing from Restricted extras software packages for Ubuntu distros. What these packages give you is codec programs (coder/decoder) for decoding studio DVDs to watch movies. Try other DVDs with less encoding.

$ sudo apt install ubuntu-restricted-extras

Some disks are more highly encoded, you have to play them on a DVD player or pay for a Windows program.

Your Optical Device

Do you have a DVD or Blu-ray disc player or is it CD only? Logos for these should be printed on the front plastic. The product code for your drive may say CD, BD or DVD. Combo means a drive that can burn some types and only read others.

Linux should give it a device name such as /dev/sr0 or /dev/cdrom. Look at the Disc device in the Open Disc panel. Is that the correct device? Does Linux see some other storage device?

Remove and reconnect USB external DVD drives. Watch for them in dmesg.

Does it work in Windows?

DVD disks and drives have region zone settings in firmware. Most of the world is Region 2, North America is Region 1. Device Manager controls the region zone and is limited to 5 changes.

I've got a movie file

You have an ISO file that plays fine on a Windows computer or another Linux. Do the installation steps above so that your computer can read the ISO file and see the encoded movie for VLC to play.