How Do I Change My Blu-Ray Regional Code Settings in My Disc Player?

Affected Platforms:

• OptiPlex
• Latitude
• Inspiron
• Precision Workstations
• XPS
• Vostro
• Alienware
• Dell G-Series

Not Applicable

Blu-Ray Region Codes

Blu-Ray discs contain regional codes that restrict use of the disc to specific global regions. For example, when trying to play a Blu-Ray movie that is encoded for a region other than the region for which the Blu-Ray player is configured, a code lock error message appears.

The region setting can be manually changed on the Blu-Ray player. Some players, however, may only allow the region to be changed a specific number of times, such as Dell MediaDirect 3.3 and above or Cyberlink PowerDVD 7.0 and above.

If the Blu-Ray player is locked to the last region that was selected, only Blu-Ray discs that are set to that particular region can be played. For example, MediaDirect may only allow five region changes. After the limit has been reached, the Blu-Ray disc player is locked to the last region that was selected and only Blu-Ray discs that are set to that particular region can be played.

Blu-Ray Disc Region Code Areas

Table 1: Blu-Ray Disc Region Codes

Change Blu-Ray Regional Code Settings in MediaDirect

1. Boot into Windows (allow the computer to turn on and start Windows) and launch MediaDirect either from the application on your desktop or by pressing the MediaDirect button on your keyboard.
2. Click Settings, and then click Movies.
3. Click BD Settings (Blu-Ray disc settings).
4. Click Region Selection. By default, the regional setting is set to Region A. Click Close on the warning message before selecting the region you want.
5. Click Apply, and then click Apply again when you are asked to save the changes.

If you cannot see BD Settings, ensure that your BD drive is installed properly. The BD settings do not appear if the computer only supports DVDs. If you still cannot find the BD Settings, try updating your MediaDirect version.

Change Blu-Ray Disc Regional Code Settings in PowerDVD

1. In the main PowerDVD menu, select Settings.
2. In the Settings page, select BD Settings.
3. Select the region that you want from the Region Selection drop-down menu. The default setting is Region A.