Windows Media Player 12 - DRM issue

[strugglinauthor]

Just managed to get DRM and DRM old under explorer as well!  I needed to check 'Hide Protected Operating System Files' in Folder Options, although Windows warned me about doing so.  Shall I progress with the original posting, just after the 'hiccup'?

Rgds

Keith

[DavidPK]

Hi Keith,

Do this first.

Open windows Control Panel, open Administrative Tools and open Services.  Near the bottom of the list should be 'Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service' - right click this and select Properties.  Next to Startup type, select Disabled in the dropdown box and click Apply.  Now click the Stop button to end the service.

Now browse to C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows and delete both DRM and DRM old.

Now carry on as below.

Download the application on the link below and save it to your Downloads folder.

DRM Reset.

Open your Downloads folder, right click this application, select 7-Zip, select Extract Files and click Ok.  Open the newly extracted folder, right click cleanDRM and select 'Run as Administrator' to execute it - this should only take a couple of seconds and you will just see a flash of the Command Shell, there will be no confirmation.

Now click the Start Menu, open All Programs, right click Internet Explorer and select 'Run as Administrator' - click on the link below.

http://go.microsoft.com/FWLink?LinkID=34506

Click the Upgrade button and hopefully you should see a message about downloading a necessary component first before the upgrade takes place.

When done, close all browser windows.

Open windows Control Panel, open Administrative Tools and open Services.  Again, right click 'Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service' - and select Properties.  Next to Startup type, select Automatic (Delayed Start) in the dropdown box and click Apply.  Now click the Start button to launch the service.

Try playing the file again.

Regards,

DP-K

[strugglinauthor]

Hi David,

Don't quite know how to say this - but no difference I'm afraid.  I even tried a re-boot and downloading a new file to make sure.  As before, the files will open with the VLC media player but are just flashing blocks of colour.

Do I need to go back to your posting of 6.02AM with the 'Take Ownership' procedure or is there something else to be done?

Once again - thanks for your tenacity.  I'm close to putting it back in the box and taking the mothballs off my old laptop!

Rgds

Keith

[DavidPK]

Hi Keith,

You're welcome

I would say at this stage that i'm not sure this is a DRM problem.

Can you let me know what security software you currently have installed.

Regards,

DP-K

[strugglinauthor]

Hi David,

Norton Internet Security and Windows Defender. 

Rgds

Keith

[DavidPK]

Hi Keith,

Try the following.

Open windows Control Panel, open Programs and Features, right click on bbc iplayer and select Uninstall.  When the process has completed, restart the notebook.

Download the Flash uninstall utility on the link below and save it to your Desktop.

Flash Player Uninstaller.

When the download has completed, close all browser windows and run the uninstaller.  After this has completed, restart the notebook.

Next, download and install Firefox and then using Firefox, download and install the latest version of Adobe Flash.  Note: You may want to deselect the option to include McAfee Security Scan Plus before downloading.

Close all browser windows before running the Flash installer.

Download and install iPlayer again from the following link.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/install

After the installation has completed, restart the notebook.  When reloaded, download the file again and see if it plays.

Regards,

DP-K

[strugglinauthor]

Hi David,

I do not have the iplayer desktop installed and so could not uninstall it.  It played merry hell with my old laptop and so I never used it but downloaded the WMA files instead.  That said, it does provide a workaround as, having installed it onto my new PC, I can download programmes in iplayer desktop format and they work fine. 

I still can't understand why Windows Media Player and VLC player refuse to play ball though.  Do you have any interest in trying to find out why or shall we accept that I'm destined never to play BBC programmes on my media players??

Rgds

Keith.

[DavidPK]

Hi Keith,

If you're happy to try a few more ideas I would certainly like to find what's causing this

I'm starting to wonder if the file is getting corrupted during the download - my thinking here is that you are able to play a file that your wife has downloaded, which goes a long way in ruling out a DRM issue.

It may help to see if it works the other way round.

Could you transfer the file you have downloaded on your notebook and see if it will play on your wifes' notebook.

Regards,

DP-K

[strugglinauthor]

Hi David,

Thanks for sticking with it - I hate leaving things half done.

I have copied both the Microsoft test file and the BBC WMA file onto the wife's PC and both play fine.  For the BBC file, her Media Player says 'Media Changing...' as mine does and then it spends 2 or 3 seconds downloading the DRM usage rights.  It is at this point that mine throws up the error.

I still feel it is DRM related.  With relation to playing a file successfuly that my wife downloaded, I should stress that this was not a DRM protected file from the BBC but was an AVI movie without DRM downloaded from a different source.  I suppose the fact that I could play it proves that the nuts and bolts, if you will, of the media player are working.

Rgds

Keith

[DavidPK]

Hi Keith,

Does your wife have a DRM protected file on her notebook that you could copy and try on your machine?

Regards,

DP-K