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- No-CD / No-DVD
This is a Patch or Executable which enables you to play the game without the need for the CD or DVD. In most cases a game serial or key is still required to play the game!
- Generic No-CD
This is usually a Patch which enables you to play the game without the need for the CD. The word Generic means that the patch can be used on more than one version or update of the game.
- Fixed EXE
This is a Fixed Executable which bypasses the CD/DVD Protection in the game. Usually the CD, DVD, or a backup of it, is still required to be able to play the game.
- CD-Copy
These are instructions to create a working backup of your original CD. Keep in mind to get the correct language & version of the required file(s).
- CD-Info
This is information about the Game CD.
- Mini-Image / Maxi-Image
A Mini-Image works like a No-CD / No-DVD. It is a downsized CD or DVD-Image from which all files have been removed except the ones that are required for the CD/DVD protection. A Mini-Image must be mounted as a virtual CD/DVD-ROM using DAEMON Tools or Alcohol 120%. Make sure to use the very latest version of either to avoid game blacklisting (the game then checks if either is installed and refuses to work unless they are uninstalled/removed).
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| Most files (Patch & File Archives) are packed using RAR but it also happens that they are packed using ZIP or ACE.
Sometimes an ACE or RAR archive exists inside a ZIP archive, this is usually done to get the smallest file possible, if this is the case first UnZIP the file and then UnACE or UnRAR it to extract the files!
Keep in mind that newer .ACE (v2.xx) packed files can not be extracted using older versions of WinACE, WinRAR or WinZIP. So if an .ACE archive fails to unpack try using the LATEST 2.xx version! The same also applies for the latest WinRAR!
Sometimes it happens that an .ACE file is downloaded with a .TGZ extension, just rename the file back to *.ACE as it can otherwise not be extracted using WinACE!
Use the software below to unpack these files:
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If you still experience unpack problems then use the latest Total Commander (previous called Windows Commander) as this multi functional tool is able to extract all available extensions without a problem!
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- EURO/AUSTRALIAN Games
If a Patch or Executable is not available in your language then try one from another country as this usually will work. For example a SPANISH Patch usually also works for the ITALIAN & FRENCH versions of the game. Just do some trail & error!
- CD-Reader
For some CD-Protections a good CD-Reader & CD-Writer is needed to be able to backup the game. The cheaper IDE CD-ROMs are just not able to copy sectors from a CD which contains errors. In most cases it is better to use the CD-Writer to read the CD as an image-file to harddisk and then burning the image-file to a CD-R. Checkout the Play/Backup Protected Game CDs page for more detailed information!
- Copying Files
When copying files from a CD to harddrive then Total Commander (previous called Windows Commander) is an extremely powerful file-manager. If you don't want to use Total Commander then make sure that the Folder Options in Explorer is set to Show all files to also show hidden files (View->Folder Options->View->Hidden Files).
- Patching Files
When original files are being patched then make sure to have a backup of these files available before patching. Usually it is not possible to update a patched file to a newer version when they are modified! Then just replace the patched file with the backup of the original file and the update will work fine!
- Write Protected Files
When a file is copied from a CD then it is Write Protected, this means that this file can not be modified or deleted. Some patches are not able to patch this protected file but this can easily be fixed. In explorer right-click the file and select Properties, now remove the Read-Only attribute and the write protection has been removed. Or in a Command Prompt (DOS Box) enter the following: attrib -R file.exe
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Since about 1999 most PC Games have been protected against making a backup. In Europe, Australia & Asia most games have been protected using the SafeDisc, SecuROM & LaserLok CD Protection. mostly because of US legislation, US games were usually not protected but currently they are using the same CD protection all over the world. As of 2000 about 95% of the protected game CD's are using the SafeDisc v2 CD Protection.
Checkout the CD/DVD Protections page @ CD Media World to get a complete overview of all available protections and how to deal with them.
There are currently a number of tools which are able to detect which CD Protection is being used on you original CD's, checkout the CD/DVD Utilities page @ CD Media World to get them!
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It happens that there are no CD-Copy instruction available @ GameCopyWorld. When a Fixed/No-CD Executable does exist then use the following instructions to make a backup:
CD-Copy Instructions (1 DATA Track):
- Create the following temporary directory:
- Copy the full contents of the original CD to TempDir.
- Replace the original main executable with the Fixed Executable or No-CD Executable.
- Burn the contents of TempDir to a CD-R and use the same CD-Label as the original CD.
- Remove/Clear the TempDir.
- Play the game!
CD-Copy Instructions (1 DATA & 1+ AUDIO Tracks):
- Create the following temporary directories:
- TempDir#1 : C:\TEMP\CD
- TempDir#2 : C:\TEMP\AUDIO
- Copy the full contents of the original CD to TempDir#1.
- Replace the original main executable with the Fixed Executable or No-CD Executable.
- Extract all Audio/CDDA tracks to TempDir#2.
- Create a Mixed Mode CD and burn the contents of TempDir#1 (DATA) & TempDir#2 (AUDIO) to a CD-R and use the same CD-Label as the original CD.
- Remove/Clear the TempDir.
- Play the game!
If it worked then contact us and tell how you did it so other users may benefit from it!!!
Also checkout the new Backup Protected Game CDs page which contains more detailed instructions how to make a backup of a specific protected CD.
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Download Managers
It is not possible anymore to use regular download managers to downloads file, unless a valid referrer is being send.
Missing download button
If you can not see the download buttons (blue diskette) then make sure that your privacy tool is not blocking it.
AntiVirus & Privacy Tools
Some AntiVirus or Privacy software kills the page referrer which is being checked by our download script, if it is killed then it is not possible to download any file. Make sure that this does not happen for: dl.gamecopyworld.com
Known Privacy Tool problems:
- BitDefender - Set the Real-Time Protection to "Standard" or "Tolerant" as the "Aggressive" mode will result in an empty page when trying to download a file!
- ZoneAlarm Pro - Referrer problem: go here.
- Kerio Personal Firewall - Referrer problem: go here.
- Norton Internet Security (NIS) - Referrer problem: go here.
- Norton Personal Firewall (NPF) - Referrer problem: go here.
.RAR & .ACE Files
When downloading files with the extension .RAR or .ACE use Internet Explorer to download the file as older versions of NetScape corrupts the file as it doesn't know these file extensions. |
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| If you execute a patch and are getting errors like MSVBVM50.DLL not Found! then this patch is made using Visual Basic. To be able to use these patches a few files (DDLs) need to be copied to the windows directory:
Some of the Patches & Fixed Executables only work on Win9x/ME then there is no other way than to wait for a version which works on WinNT/Win2K/WinXP.
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| Game CD's usually consists of one DATA track and one or more AUDIO tracks. These AUDIO tracks are separate tracks on the CD and normally are not copyable using the copy command. Additional software is needed to grab/rip/extract these AUDIO tracks from CD to a WAV audio file. These WAV files can then be used for AUDIO tracks with any CD-Burn software.
The following software is capable of grabbing AUDIO tracks:
For more Audio grabbing software checkout the MP3/Audio Software page @ CD Media World.
Also checkout the GameCopy Hints here for more detailed info on copying games. |
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