FileForums - DVD Backup for Dummies

Special thanks to gh0sth@cker for this awesome post.

Original dvd's (DVD-9) use dual layers to store more data - so they can store twice as much as a blank dvdr (DVD-5) basically.
DVD-9 can store up to 7.95GB, while DVD-5 can store up to 4.38GB

So obviously a 1:1 copy isn't possible, but the main way that dvds are copied is by compressing the movie (and/or stripping menus and extras) to make it fit the DVD5 capacity.

Clone DVD isn't revolutionary, in fact it's not that good! There are much better programs to do the job and they have been released for a good while now.

There are three steps involved in creating a backup of a DVD-9 disk:[list=1][*]Rip the dvd to hard drive - Many DVDs are Content Scrambling System (CSS) encoded, which is a copy-protection file system. So a program to decode is needed.[*]Compress the movie to fit onto DVD-5 - this may also involve leaving out menu/extras[*]Burn the movie.[/list=1]
Some of these "all in one" dvd copy programs won't do everything...a quick list: (in no particular order)

CloneDVD
Will not rip CSS protected dvds
Will compress (with or without menus/extras)
Will burn

DVDXCopy
Will rip
Won't compress (will usually span the movie over two disks)
Will burn

DVDXCopy Platinum
Will Rip
Will compress (with or without extras & can customize individual titlesets compression %)
Will burn

DVDXCopy Xpress
Will rip
Will compress (with or without menus/extras)
Will burn

DVD2One
Will not rip
Will compress (with or without menus/extras)
Will not burn (but can link directly to CopytoDVD)

DVDShrink
Will rip
Will compress (with or without menus/extras)
Will not burn

DVD95Copy
Will not rip
Will compress (with menus/extras)
Will not burn (but can link directly to CopytoDVD)

Pinnacle Instantcopy
Will not rip
Will compress (with menus/extras)
Will burn

You can always rip with Smartripper or DVD Decrypter, choose a program from above to compress with, then burn with a dvd authoring program (Nero, Copytodvd etc)