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Fix: This Blu-Ray Disc Needs A Library For bd+ Decoding And Your System Does Not Have It

22nd February 2024

Blu-ray discs store high-definition videos and follow a digital optical storage format. It can store a huge amount of data, like movies. However, sometimes you might encounter an error message “Blu-ray disc needs a library for bd+ decoding, and your system does not have it.”

To fix the error, Go to your Downloads folder and unzip keydb_eng.zip. Copy the unzipped keydb.cfg file. Press Windows + R to launch Run. Type %appdata% and press Enter. Create a new folder here and name it aacs. Open the aacs folder and paste the keydb.cfg file here. A physically damaged disc might need a replacement. But the other two missing files issue can be solved by following some steps. Before moving on to the methods mentioned in this article, ensure that your disc is physically not broken or damaged.

When you want VLC to play Blu-ray, you might receive this error. There could be many reasons for this error, such as the disc being physically damaged, the libaacs file missing, or the keyDB.cfg file is missing. Here are come quick methods. Keep reading this article to fix the issue efficiently and quickly.

Table of Contents

Fix The Error ‘This Blu-Ray Disc Needs A Library For bd+ Decoding, And Your System Does Not Have It

You can fix the VLC error on your Blu-ray disc in two ways.

Adding library files to AACS.

Updating VLC version.

Further in this article, we will learn how to implement the methods and fix the error you are facing.

Methods To Fix bd+ Decoding Error

By implementing these methods, you should be able to solve the error “this Blu-ray disc needs a library for bd+ decoding, and your system does not have it.” and play the Blu-ray disc. Follow along and try one method at a time.

Adding Library Files to AACS

Let’s discuss how you can fix the error “this blu-ray disc needs a library for bd+ decoding and your system does not have it.”

Go to the site ‘vlc-bluray.whoknowsmy.name‘. It may show some security messages due to SSL certificate expiration. If you are okay with visiting this site, please go ahead; if not, please don’t. Under Keys Database, click on the Get the File option. It might show you a security message for the file you need to download. In that case, find and open More Options and choose to keep the file.

Under the AACS Dynamic Library, find and click on the download link suitable for your system to download the file.
After downloading the files, you need to navigate to the following path in File Explorer:

C:\Users\Your username\AppData

Or you can right on the Windows icon to open Run. In the text field, type the above file path and be directed to the respective folder.

Inside the AppData folder, you need to open the Roaming folder. Now inside it, create a new empty folder with the name aacs and then open it.
Drag the file KeyDB.cfg you downloaded in step 3 (you’ll find it where all your downloaded files are saved by default) in the aacs folder.

Navigate to one of the file paths in File Explorer, where you will find the VLC installation folder:C:\Program Files\VideoLAN\VLCC:\Program Files(x86)\VideoLAN\VLCInside that folder, drag the libaacs.dll file you have downloaded. You can locate this file like you did in step 7.

Updating VLC Version

If adding the library files didn’t make the Blu-ray disc work, you might need to update the VLC version. To fix the error “this blu-ray disc needs a library for bd+ decoding, and your system does not have it,” follow the below steps and update the VLC to its latest version.

In the VLC media player, navigate to the header menu.
From the available options, click on Help.
For a new version, you will receive a message of 3-4 lines stating: A new version of VLC…Do you want to download it?
Click on the Yes option to download the latest version of VLC.
By doing this, it will start downloading the files that need to update the application.
After its completion, click on the Install button in the dialogue box.
Now follow the prompts to upgrade to the VLC version.

This step will probably update and fix all the bugs and missing files. Now try to open the Blu-ray disc and check for the error.

Methods To Fix bd+ Decoding Error For Mac

Can VLC play Blu-ray on Mac? Yes, it can, and you might receive the same error. The above methods will work for Windows OS. Let us understand how to solve the error “this blu-ray disc needs a library for bd+ decoding, and your system does not have it” in macOS.

Follow the first three steps of Adding Library Files to AACS.
Now press command + option + L and launch the Download folder or navigate to the folder where your downloaded files are saved.
From that folder, copy the Keydb.cfg file.
Navigate to the Folder from the Finder’s Go menu.
You need to navigate to the below path or create a file with the name aacs in the Preferences folder. ~ is the home path in your Mac. ~/Library/Preferences/aacs/
Navigate to the folder where your downloaded files are saved and copy the libaacs.dylib file.
Inside /usr/local/lib/ directory, paste the file or create the directory if it doesn’t exist.

Now check if the Blu-ray disc error is gone or still persists.

How To Play Blu-ray Discs With VLC?

To play Blu-ray discs in the VLC, you need to modify a few settings in the VLC. Go through the below steps to allow VLC to play Blu-ray discs.

Open the Blu-ray drive to insert your Blu-ray disc on your PC.
Now you need to open VLC.
Find and open Media from the menu bar.
Now you need to select the Disc tab from the window.
From the Disc Selection, select the Blu-ray option.
Now also check the No Disc Menu box just below it.
In the same window, select your disc in the Disc Device option.
Now click on the play button to play your Blu-ray disc.

Change Region Code in Media Player

You might also encounter an error message saying the disc and region codes don’t match. Three regions are available on the VLC Blu-ray codecs: Region A, B, and C. These three regions correspond to a group of countries over the world.

The regions here mean that if a movie belongs to Region A, you can only be in the countries present in Region A. And you cannot play them in any other region. However, if the disc is Region Free, you can play it in any region. Suppose you face a problem in the Windows media player library not adding files no matter what you do. In that case, your database is most likely corrupted, and you may have to delete it, and then again, you have to add all your media back to the library.

You should follow the below steps to fix the error “this Blu-ray disc needs a library for bd+ decoding, and your system does not have it” and play the Blu-ray on the VLC player.

Open the VLC media player application and select the Tool menu from the top.
Now from there, select the Preferences option.
Click on All from the lower-left corner to open Advanced Preferences.
In the Advanced Preferences window, search for Input / Codecs by scrolling through the list of categories.
Now double-click on the Access Modules to open up a list of options.
Select Blu-ray, and you can change the region on the right side.
Now click on the Save button to play the Blu-ray disc normally.

FAQs

Can VLC play Blu-ray?

VLC does not extend support for Blu-ray directly. Some newer versions might support Blu-ray media playback, provided that you make some configurations.

Why won't my Blu-Ray player read discs?

The most apparent cause is a dirty or damaged disc, but other possibilities include an erroneous region code or a misconfigured home theatre setup.

Does Windows 10 have support for Blu-ray?

Blu-ray disc playback is not a built-in feature of Windows 10 since Microsoft would have to get a license to do so.

How to update Blu-ray player?

After turning the player on, if there is a disc in the player, remove the disc. At the Home Screen menu, use the remote and arrow keys to select Setup - Software Update and then press Enter to see the update prompt.

Conclusion

In this article, we have discussed all the possible reasons and solutions to the error “This Blu-ray disc needs a library for bd+ decoding, and your system does not have it.” You can also check it with the other media players and machines when VLC won’t play Blu-ray.

The methods are pretty simple and should fix the error. However, if you still get the same error and the above methods also won’t work, you probably have corrupt disc files. And due to this, you won’t be able to recover the data saved in that.

Mauro Huculak

Mauro Huculak: Technical writer specializing in Windows 10 and related technologies. Microsoft MVP with extensive IT background and certifications.