Cannot play DVDs Getting Error Message

lking52

New Member
I'm having a problem playing and recording DVD discs. I can pop a CD into my CD/DVD drive and Windows Media Player fires up and plays them fine. Whenever I insert a DVD I get this error message:

WINDOWS CANNOT ACCESS THE SPECIFIED DEVICE, PATH OR FILE. YOU MAY NOT HAVE THE APPROPRIATE PERMISSION TO ACCESS THE ITEM.

I've tried using different players but still get the same error message. I found the following fix for this problem but it didn't work for me.



1. Run Regedit
2. Navigate the tree to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\DVD\shell\play\command
3. Double click the (Default) value on the right side of the split dialog (Edit String dialog should appear)
4. Copy the contents of the Value data field
5. Click cancel on the Edit String dialog
6. Right click on the right side of the split dialog
7. Choose New->Expandable String Value
8. Just hit enter if the cursor is allowing you to change the name of the new value
9. Doublie click the New Value you just created (Edit String dialog should appear)
10. Paste the string you previously copied into the Value Data field
11. Click OK on the Edit String Dialog
12. Now on the left hand side of the split dialog, highlight the folder HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\DVD\shell\play\command
13. Right click it, and choose Export
14. Save this file to some location of your choosing, and some name of your choosing.
15. Close regedit
16. Go to the location you saved the file
17. Right click the file, and choose the Edit option (should launch the file open in notepad (or some other text editor)
18. You should see something similar to (Don't just copy and paste what I have below, because this PC has WinDVD installed):

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\DVD\shell\play\command]
@="\"C:\\Program Files (x86)\\InterVideo\\WinDVD\\WinDVD.exe\" %1"
"New Value #1"=hex(2):22,00,43,00,3a,00,5c,00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,67,00,72,00,61,\
00,6d,00,20,00,46,00,69,00,6c,00,65,00,73,00,20,00,28,00,78,00,38,00,36,00,\
29,00,5c,00,49,00,6e,00,74,00,65,00,72,00,56,00,69,00,64,00,65,00,6f,00,5c,\
00,57,00,69,00,6e,00,44,00,56,00,44,00,5c,00,57,00,69,00,6e,00,44,00,56,00,\
44,00,2e,00,65,00,78,00,65,00,22,00,20,00,25,00,31,00,00,00

19. Now delete the first line:
@="\"C:\\Program Files (x86)\\InterVideo\\WinDVD\\WinDVD.exe\" %1"

20. Now replace everything in front of the = of the remaining line with just the @ character, final results should look similar to:
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\DVD\shell\play\command]
@=hex(2):22,00,43,00,3a,00,5c,00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,67,00,72,00,61,\
00,6d,00,20,00,46,00,69,00,6c,00,65,00,73,00,20,00,28,00,78,00,38,00,36,00,\
29,00,5c,00,49,00,6e,00,74,00,65,00,72,00,56,00,69,00,64,00,65,00,6f,00,5c,\
00,57,00,69,00,6e,00,44,00,56,00,44,00,5c,00,57,00,69,00,6e,00,44,00,56,00,\
44,00,2e,00,65,00,78,00,65,00,22,00,20,00,25,00,31,00,00,00

21. Save the notepad file and close Notepad
22. Now double click the file you just saved, a warning should appear saying you're going add stuff to the registry.
23. Click Yes to Continue
24. A Dialog should appear stating the values were added to the registry
25. Re-open regedit
26. Traverse back to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\DVD\shell\play\command (you should already be there)
27. Now the value on the right hand side labeled (Default) should have the same Data as before, but the Type should indicate it is REG_EXPAND_SZ


I just formatted this computer and I still have the problem. I don't know if this means anything but when I was in the registry, HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\DVD\SHELL\PLAY\COMMAND I double clicked the DEFAULT line and copied the data value, "C:\Windows\system32\dischandler.exe" -%L I then pasted that line into the start search box and Windows Media Player started up. I just wanted to see if that path was valid and it seems like it was but still I have the error message when I put in a DVD. If anyone can help me with this, I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    dell inspiron 531
Considering that you are having this problem on a fresh install it is quite possible that you have a bad drive-they don't last forever. Have you tried a dvd with data on it (such as your windows dvd)? Have you checked the permissions for that registry key? http://www.vistax64.com/tutorials/67717-take-ownership-file.html (see option 2 for an example on checking registry permissions). Before you start editing the registry you need to back it up. Export all of it to your desktop.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • Operating System
    Windows 8.1 Industry Pro x64
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavillion Elite HPE-250f
    CPU
    Intel i7 860 Quad core 2.8 ghz
    Memory
    8 gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD 5770 1 gb ram
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Alienware 25 AW2521HF
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080 &1680x1050
    Hard Drives
    1 TB x2
    Other Info
    https://www.cnet.com/products/hp-pavilion-elite-hpe-250f/
  • Operating System
    Windows 2012 R2 Data center/Linux Mint
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Poweredge T140
    CPU
    i3 9100 3.6GHz, 8M cache, 4C/4T
    Memory
    8GB 2666MT/s DDR4 ECC UDIMM
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050
    Hard Drives
    1 TB & 360 GB x2
    Other Info
    https://www.dell.com/en-us/work/shop/productdetailstxn/poweredge-t140?~ck=bt
Ordinarily, when a optical drive can read and write to a CD but not a DVD, and vice versa, the problem is fixed by either updating either the driver or firmware from the manufacturer's website.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Operating System
    Vista Home Premium 64 bit SP2
    Manufacturer/Model
    Cyberpower
    CPU
    Intel Quad CPU Q6700 2.67 GHZ
    Motherboard
    NVIDIA 780i
    Memory
    4 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    MSI GTX 560 TI Twin Frozr
    Sound Card
    Sound Blaster SB Audigy
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Viewsonic VG2436
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080p
    Hard Drives
    Samsung HD 105SI
    WDC WD20
    Case
    Apevia XJupiter
    Cooling
    air
    Keyboard
    Logitech MX 3200
    Mouse
    Logitech MX 600
    Internet Speed
    30 Mbps
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