Anyone tried making a backup image of some games' discs protected with SecuROM and other kind of DRM?
I'm trying to make a backup of my games' discs, starting with Crysis now. I used Imgburn (the latest version), and it seems that the image was successfully made, but I don't know if it works just like the original. Does, after mounting, the game recognizes the image as original?
Anyone had some sort of experience with this stuff?

This is kind of getting into the danger zone of piracy. Making "back-up" copies of copyrighted materials in a manner to bypass the DRM is kind of the definition of warezing :p

It's legal to make backups but illegal to break the DRM. No need for others to tell you again . . . especially since we ALL already know that.
ImgBurn will make a copy but . . . it won't work. You will need other software programs to make backup copies of your game disks. The good news is they are readily available; the bad news is they make your SecuRom, Tages etc. installs go nuts. Some of the older versions will disable your DVD/CD drives if they detect the software. It's a pain to get everything back in working order sometimes and . . . you may not have access to many of your games until it is uninstalled . . . maybe not even then without a registry cleaning.
If you have an old XP box with no games, that would be a good way to go about getting the copies without endangering your game rig. Google "game disk backup", "game copy" etc and you will find all you need to know about making game disk backups.
Hummn, didn't post fast enough, I see you have been properly flogged . . . =)

Some protections have a "sleeper" implemented, that means a game might work, but gets very hard or really bugged over time. All according to their diabolical plan, of corse.
And if you're not sure about the legality of this, just remember that it's the balkans, where copyrights go to die ;)

Well, technically he's not trying to bypass the DRM, he's trying to make working copy as allowed by laws in most countries (you are permitted to make backup of software you own for personal use as long as you either destroy or hand over the backups in case you ever resell the software) as he isn't trying to crack or remove the DRM. However, in most cases, the making of working backup requires cracking or removal of the DRM and that is illegal in most countries making the first law quite useless as most software today contain DRM :-p.

It is that grey area that Stuff already mentioned.
You are allowed to make a back-up, but not to break the DRM. In the case of what he is asking, it will be bypassing an aspect of the DRM.
SO rather than muck around in the grey area, I would suggest just not asking here at all.

^ True, hahaha! :)
^^ Okay, thanks. I do have a home PC with XP as the OS, so I'll see what I can do.
^^^ I don't want to bypass the DRM. I just want to get a 1:1 image of the disc on my PC. Since, for example, Crysis' DRM (SecuROM 7.xxsomethingxx) only requires the disc to be inserted, a 1:1 image would only need to be mounted to a virtual drive to make it work. That's the theory, at least. :)

So, you want to make a copy that will be able to fool the DRM for Crysis...
Can you see how this is really not something you should ask here? :p

Fool what, exactly?
First of all, I couldn't care less about any potential laws or something, because we don't have the exact laws that you guys do. You can copy the crap out of anything you want, modify it in any way you want, as long as you don't sell it (or at least, as long as someone doesn't report you selling it).
Second, I doubt I'm breaking any US laws, since, Crysis' DRM requires that the original disc be present in the drive if you want to start the game. Meaning, if it is possible to copy the exact contents of the disc (the game's data, the DRM, everything) and make a backup image, the only thing needed would be for the image to be mounted. The DRM will still require the disc/image to be inserted. I doubt I'm breaking any "laws" here, since even the DRM would be functional.
And if you burn the image to a disc, the DRM would still be functional as on the original disc.
I was asking if anyone had any experience in making a backup of this kind. But never mind, I'll check somewhere else. Jesus...

Do you already have software capable of mounting an ISO disk installed on your game rig. This software usually causes SecruRom etc to go nuts as well. I like having a backup copy of all my software but . . . you may be better off to find a fixed exe if you just want rid yourself of the disk requirement.
If you learn the process of making a "good" backup copy you would still need to mount it etc. The fixed exe would let you play your legally owned game without learning the in's and out's of making good backups or having to mount a disk.

Not going to get into the whole laws crap. I am no lawyer and I don't know your country's laws at all. But I would imagine that the safest way to handle things on an international forum would be to go with the strictest laws, but whatever.
Now, let's just look at this for a moment:
The Crysis DRM, as you describe it (I haven't looked) requires the original disc to be present in the drive. It checks for that disc.
What you want to do, is make it think your back-up copy is the original disc. And you are asking for our help to make that back-up copy.
So, you are asking for us to help you trick the Crysis DRM into thinking that your back-up copy is the original copy.
Okay, maybe that is still too hard for you to follow. I am sure that, as an obviously upstanding citizen who would never do anything wrong, the very concept of piracy never even occurred to you :p. So let's just posit a scenario.
Jimmy just bought Crysis. He loves every second of it. He soars through the jungles as Nomad. And Billy loves Crysis too. He comes over to Jimmy's house all the time to play. However, Jimmy just got a girlfriend, and they would rather play other games. Games that Billy really shouldn't be in the same room for. Unfortunately, Jimmy wants to use his webcame to keep records of these happy memories. And everyone knows that Crysis makes for some damned fine foreplay :p.
So Billy asks Jimmy if he can make a copy. It isn't bypassing the DRM if he doesn't use a crack, right! (just like Jimmy's girlfriend is still a virgin because he only sticks it in her bum :p). And Billy makes that perfect 1:1 copy and plays with it at home, while Jimmy plays with his girlfriend.
Can you see the problem with this story? Err, actually, there are so many problems with that one that I'll just say what my point was :P. By tricking the DRM into thinking that your back-up/loaned copy/downloaded copy is the original, you are bypassing the DRM. Which is REALLY not something you should get help with at GoG. Maybe you are fully aware of the difference and distinctions that you seem to think apply, but what about the morons (like myself) who just see that you are a filthy pirate/ They will think that it is okay to ask THEIR piracy questions. And then poor Jimmy's girlfriend will get pregnant. And nobody wants that.

@Stuff, I use Virtual CloneDrive for mounting the images I made out of GOG's games, and some other DRM free games and software. I have installed Crysis, and played it with the disc inserted (it has SecuROM (and also the PoP trilogy which has Starforce I think), no problems have appeared whatsoever). I know that I could use a crack or something, but I want to preserve the disc, to have an image on my HDD in case something goes wrong with it.
@Gundano, I never freaking ever called you a moron, what the fuck is with that crap. The main reason for trying to make the damn image in the first place was because the disc is not read sometimes by the drive, I need to insert / eject it multiple times. Funny how you called me a pirate and came up with a little story about sharing the image and stuff. I wanted to preserve the stupid disc from being damaged, but just forget it.

Good to Go . .

Oy. In case it wasn't obvious, I was trying to be humorous so as to stop making you throw a temper tantrum because somebody dared to point out that what you are doing could be misconstrued as something bad. Clearly, that just made the temper tantrum worse.
And I'll believe that you are actually saying "forget about it, I'll go elsewhere" when you stop replying to and requesting help from Stuff and the like.
I'll just summarize: IF you get rid of all the context of your story, you are essentially asking how to bypass DRM. IF you add all the context back to your story, you are STILL asking how to bypass DRM (but probably for a good reason). Either way, not something that you should ask here. You actually SHOULD go look at one of the warez forums. They have tutorials and people who ARE experts at this.

Yes the infamous FADE DRM with it's "original games do not fade" message (Operation Flashpoint used it along with Securom). Some of the promlems with it were:
a) It faded legal games in some setups (it relied deliberate scraches on game disk and some CD/DVD drives could not read them properly)
b) games with it refused to work with known virtual drives installed on computer