Want to play your expensive PC game without damaging it ?

By far the best software to use is Slysoft's Game Jackal it allows you to save profiles of the discs not images so that when the shortcut to play is clicked it will know you have the disc that you installed the game with.



If works for about 90% of all games it's at v4.0.2.3 as of March 2010 you will have to pay but it's well worth it to prevent damage to your original disc.!!! Buy now this easter for a massive 25% off the lifetime license use the code FAIRUSE

http://static.slysoft.com/SetupGameJackal4023.exe

Simply the best Free application that is guaranteed to find just what you are looking for is PROTECTION iD by CDKiller and TippeX it will scan the executable file after the Game has been installed and identify the protection and the version that has been used.

Most PC games require the installed EXE file to search for the original game disc in the DVD or CD drive to allow the game to run if you use Alcohol52% Free Edtion data-type function you can create a disc image on your hard drive. This will allow you to fool the computer into thinking that the image has the correct protection that the game wants to find in order to run. Clever eh!!!

This has been tested on Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2008 which has SecuROM v7.33.0014 protection which Game Jackal can't handle at the moment...

SECUROM ERROR CODES
------------------------------
(1000) - Insert original instead of backup
(4001) - Please insert original disc instead of backup
(4003) - Take the disc out when it is trying to be accessed
(5024) - Required Security Module can't be activated ( only when you are using sysinternals process explorer check out this link showing SecuROM on the game Spore when using Process Explorer !!!

http://www.thearchitect.co.uk/weblog/archives/2008/09/spore_arrives_drm_copyprotection_is_a_bug_not_a_feature.html

If you try to run the program with either a copied disc or without a disc inserted you will get the disc not inserted error this which is the whole point of using SecuROM to protect Gamer Pirates but we are only interested in backing up our expensive single copy of the game.

SOLUTION - rip an image of the disc or a back-up with Alcohol52% FE using the secuROM datatype, place the image files TW08.MDS and TW08.MDF in this new folder you need to create it !!!

C:Program FilesEA SportsTiger Woods PGA TOUR 08Image

THEN - Mount the image using Daemon Tools Lite

*(Note: you can't use the DaemonTools SecuROM emulator one your virtual drive this only works with Alcohol52% datatype SecuROM rips.!!!

**(Double Note: Remember to take out your backup of the disc before you try this OK !!!!)

Read more tips from Owen Stephen Dawson