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Is it possible to somehow create a copy (an image) of a heavily cracked CD-ROM (but not broken in two)? Hopefully without damaging DVD drive...

How to Repair a CD that Skips By Contributor; Updated September 15, 2017 You could purchase a commercial CD scratch repair kit to try to fix your damaged compact disc, but you might want to first try some remedies that use household products.

_{Unfortunately CD 2/4 of Polish version of Planescape: Torment game got cracked...}

1. Cracked DVD repair and cracked CD repair are not really possible. There is nothing you can do to repair the crack effectively. The best option to save the information stored on the disc is to try and play the disc and make a copy of its contents. This likely will work if the crack is minor.
2. How to Repair a CD With Toothpaste. When CDs were released, they were advertised as 'indestructible.' No one will believe that any more. While you can buy commercial CD repair kits to fix these fragile objects, it turns out there's an.

Fix Cracked Cd

Jakub NarębskiJakub Narębski

4 Answers

Losing a copy of PS:T would be a great loss to the world!

Repair A Cracked Crock

Recovering with ddrescue

I suggest you attemt to use ddrescue to recover what you can from the disk. If you run *nix it will run natively and is likely in your package manager or what have you not (macports?), otherwise it's included in many Linux live disks, some are listed in this thread.

You should have a look at the ddrescue manual, but a basic example (Example 3 in the manual) for recovering a cdrom is

You might want to add the option -r [number > 0] to try reading more times, and -S or -p for convenience.

You should then end up with an 'iso' image of the disk, which you can then burn to a new cd-r or use with some disk emulating software.

Reducing the cdrom speed

As @ChrisF mentioned, spinning a damaged cdrom up to high speeds might not be the wisest endeavor, and it certainly won't help the rescue effort (it's generally easier to read the text on slow moving cars, right?).

I have no idea how to reduce this on MacOS, but most Linux distros let you use the eject command to reduce it, like so

Unless I'm very mistaken, a cd speed of 1x is approximately one rotation per second. I can't really test how this output looks, since this computer doesn't have an optical drive.

You probably want to choose the lowest available speed. Make sure you do this before you try to recover with ddrescue.

Closing

Unfortunately, there is a very real danger that you will lose some data in this process. This might have different consequences, though I believe DRM complications won't be an issue, general data errors might be a problem. Bit errors in textures are not really a big problem apart from looking bad, but damage in the binaries might be fatal. Assuming you can install at all, you might be able to extract non-broken files from the GOG.com release of PS:T (English, available at 10 USAian bux), although that would likely be a major undertaking. Alternatively, you might be able to copy savegames between the versions to play through broken sections. (This is just speculation on my part.)

Eroen

Is It Possible To Repair A Cracked Cd

Eroen

If the encoding material (the, usually aluminum, reflective foil layer) is damaged, then you're probably out of luck. Otherwise, you can reinforce the backside with a label and mend the crack surface using standard CD repair techniques—e.g. applying resurfacing solution and putting into a heating/polishing unit. Here's another crack repair technique using scotch tape. Other repair techniques are discussed here.

As a last ditch attempt, some people have successfully recovered data from unreadable disks using cdparanoia (FOSS) or Exact Audio Copy (freeware). If these two apps can't read it, then it's probably gonna be more effort than it's worth to recover the data.

Though this should be a lesson to you to rip and/or back-up your purchased disks first thing in the future. I personally prefer to rip an ISO image and use that exclusively while I keep the original disc in storage as a backup. With UMDs (PSP games), this greatly reduces load times and also eliminates wear-and-tear on the original optical disk.

(I know the legality of ripping CDs/DVDs is in question in many countries, and software publishers will argue that you only own a license to play the game, not the actual DVD/CD. But most game publishers still aren't going to send you a replacement disc if yours gets damaged or is lost, so it's up to you to CYA.)

Lèse majestéLèse majesté

About the physical aspect of the recovery process: one thing you should worry is that the cd spins at a very fast speed, and it might end up 'exploding' inside your drive, releasing the fragments and destroying your drive... and destroying your CD, too, of course.

So, before doing trying the recover, analyze your CD and see how bad it looks. Even small cracks can propagate in a very intense way. And you know that the data is stored in the bottom of the CD. So, you might add something at the top of the CD, creating a new layer with some material to provide physical integrity to your CD.

For example, a thin layer of some plastic glued to the top of the CD. Remember that CD is made of plastic - polycarbonate, and you have to choose an adhesive that sticks to it, but without causing damage. For example, think of those paper labels that are applied in home-made CDs.

As an alternative to ddrescue and the likes, the safecopy program can do this too, in a rather user-friendly way:

It supports re-reading the file, low-level disc operations, and much more. All is documented in the extensive manpage. (man safecopy)

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged dvddata-recoverycompact-disc or ask your own question.

CDs and DVDs are quite robust storage media however, with time they’ve lost their significance to flash drives, external hard discs and USBs. Nevertheless, there are a lot of tasks where CDs still play a vital role; typically installations or specific music or movies.

How To Repair A Cracked Cd

But it is common knowledge that with continued use, CDs/DVDs tend to get scratched and they increase every time a scratched CD is accessed. So much so, that after a point, a scratched CD/DVD becomes unreadable. And a scratched CD could mean bad news – data loss!

While a lot of CD recovery software and tools are available for purchase, it isn’t always necessary to invest money in them. There are a lot of things you can do at home to fix a scratched CD and recover your data.

This article lists down 7 super tricks to recover data from scratched/damaged CD/DVD to help you reclaim your data.

Important Note:Before using any of the below listed methods, carefully read the associated precautions and warnings.

Trick 1: Masking tape method

Before proceeding you should come to terms with the fact that holes in the foil layer of a CD are NOT repairable, not even by professionals. The best way to move past them is to skip them altogether so that at least the remaining data can be accessed and saved elsewhere.

• Hold the disc with its shiny side up in clear view of a bright light.
• See if any holes are visible on the shiny side.
• Flip the disc and mark the areas holes with a permanent marker.
• Take 2 small strips of masking tape and stick them on top of each other over the area you have just marked.

Note:The CD might make a noise while running but you’ll be able to access at least 70% of the data on it.

Trick 2: Wax method

• Apply a very thin layer of Lip-balm / Vaseline / liquid car wax / furniture wax / neutral shoe polish on the shiny playing surface of the CD.
• If you’ve used any wax, allow it to dry (if specified so by the manufacturer).
• Using a clean, soft, lint-free cloth, wipe off the excess in a radial motion (inside-to-outside).
• Test the disc. If it plays, immediately backup the data on it since this is a temporary solution.

Trick 3: Clean the disc

A disc can appear to be scratched even if it not owing to dust, oil or other contaminants on the surface. They might prevent it from playing properly and hence give you the idea that it is probably scuffed. Thus, attempt to simply clean the disc properly in order to fix scratched disc.

• Wash the disc with warm water to remove dust.
• If you can see dirt accumulated on the surface, gently rub it with a finger while washing.
• To clean it more effectively, use a mild detergent or liquid soap dissolved in water. You could also use alcohol for cleaning the disc. However, in that case use a cotton swab to clean.
• While cleaning it, rub the CD in radial motion (starting near the center and straight toward the outer edge).
• To dry it, avoid using cloth or towel. Shake the CD to drip off excess water and let it air-dry. Do not place it in the sun.
• Test the disc. If it still doesn’t play, try another CD player; it may handle scratched better.
• If it does play, immediately take its backup.

Trick 4: Light bulb method

This method might not work every time, but it is worth a try. Plus it is simple.

• Switch on a 60 watt incandescent filament bulb.
• Thread the CD into your index finger and hold the shiny side at a distance of 10 cm (4 inches) from the lamp facing towards it.
• Hold it like that for not more than 20 seconds while rotating it slowly around the threaded finger. DO NOT hold it under the light-bulb for more than 20 seconds since it might start melting from the heat.
• While the CD is still hot, play it in the CD drive.
• If it plays, save all data on it to the computer.

Trick 5: Polishing Method

Warning:This method should be used only as a last resort since it can further damage the disc. Read the instructions carefully before going ahead.

The logic behind this step is that polishing a scratched CD removes some of the outer plastic coating thus making the scratched shallower. To polish the CD, household baking soda based toothpaste is most commonly used.

• Apply a small amount of toothpaste (paste not gel) to a clean, soft, lint-free cloth.
• Gently rub the cloth on the scratch in a radial motion (starting at the center and rubbing out to the edge).
• Do this 10 – 12 times or for a couple of minutes applying more toothpaste as necessary. Do not apply too much pressure.
• Wash the CD with warm water to remove the toothpaste and let it air-dry.
• Test the disc. If it plays, copy its contents elsewhere immediately.

Trick 6: Use Data Recovery Software

Is There A Way To Repair A Cracked Cd

Quite a few automated applications can achieve data recovery from damaged optical media including CD/DVD/Blu Ray Discs etc. One such quite efficient program is Stellar Data Recovery Professional. Through advanced algorithms, this software attempts to read bad sectors on the disc by reading at very slow speed multiple times.

Trick 7: Professional Refinishing

If the CD still doesn’t play, take it to a music or DVD rental store and have it professionally refinished. Consider this option only after cleaning the disc so that it can be made sure that the CD is not damaged any further.

Can I Repair A Cracked Cd

Final Word

Reading A Cracked Cd

So the next time you try to play an old CD/DVD and it doesn’t budge, try out one of our handy tips above to fix a scratched CD/DVD and get your data back. If you know any other then we are happy to hear from you.