The bytes after a NAL header are EBSP, not RBSP: ISO/IEC 14496-10 §7.4.1 has the encoder insert 0x03 after any 0x00 0x00, and §7.3.1 removes it before parsing. The measured-picture-type parse read the raw NAL instead, on the stated reasoning that slice_type is too early for an escape to intervene. That holds only up to a point. first_mb_in_slice is ue(v), so a value of 65535 or more needs sixteen leading zero bits and opens the payload with 0x00 0x00, which an encoder must then escape. A UHD frame is ~32,400 macroblocks, so a conforming Blu-ray never reaches it — but 8K does, and the disc is untrusted input. Such a stream decoded slice_type against a byte the encoder had inserted and reported the wrong picture type: a wrong result rather than an error, which is the class this lens exists for. The prefix is un-escaped into a 16-octet buffer rather than the whole NAL: the two ue(v) fields are at most 32 bits each, so nothing longer can be needed, and it keeps a per-frame allocation proportional to the frame off the path. The test pins both directions. It asserts the un-escaped prefix decodes to first_mb_in_slice = 65535 and slice_type = 2, AND that the raw EBSP does NOT — without that second assertion the test would pass whether or not the fix were present, which is the failure mode this audit has now found four times. The bit string was derived independently rather than by hand: my first attempt at the fixture was wrong by one nibble and the test caught it. Also covers the cases that must NOT be unescaped: a 0x03 not preceded by 00 00 is ordinary payload, and 00 00 03 03 keeps its second 0x03 because the escape resets the zero run.
libfreemkv
Rust library for 4K UHD / Blu-ray / DVD optical drives. Drive access, disc scanning, stream labels, AACS decryption, CSS decryption, KEYDB updates, and content reading in one crate. Drive-level unlocking is handled internally; consumers work with disc access and decryption only.
DVDs (CSS) decrypt out of the box. Blu-ray and UHD (AACS) require a keydb.cfg (default ~/.config/freemkv/keydb.cfg) supplying disc-specific volume unique keys; no AACS key material is compiled in.
12+ MB/s sustained read speeds on BD. Drive prep (init()) handles unlocking internally via the freemkv-unlock crate — clients never see it; when no drive unlock applies, the library rips via the host-certificate AACS handshake.
Multi-lingual by design — the library outputs structured data and numeric error codes, never English text. Build any UI or localization on top.
Part of the freemkv project.
Install
Consumed by git tag (not published to crates.io):
[dependencies]
libfreemkv = { git = "https://github.com/freemkv/libfreemkv", tag = "vX.Y.Z" }
Quick Start
use libfreemkv::{Drive, Disc, ScanOptions};
use std::path::Path;
// Open drive — identified via INQUIRY
let mut drive = Drive::open(Path::new("/dev/sg4"))?;
drive.wait_ready()?; // wait for disc
drive.init()?; // unlock + prep (handled internally)
drive.probe_disc()?; // probe disc surface for optimal speeds
// Scan disc — UDF, playlists, streams, AACS (all automatic)
let disc = Disc::scan(&mut drive, &ScanOptions::default())?;
for title in &disc.titles {
println!("{} — {} streams", title.duration_display(), title.streams.len());
}
// Stream pipeline — read PES frames from any source, write to any output
let opts = libfreemkv::InputOptions::default();
let mut input = libfreemkv::input("iso://Disc.iso", &opts)?;
let title = input.info().clone();
let mut output = libfreemkv::output("mkv://Movie.mkv", &title)?;
while let Ok(Some(frame)) = input.read() {
output.write(&frame)?;
}
output.finish()?;
Multi-pass recovery rip
Recovery moved OUT of this crate in 1.6.0. The sweep/patch strategy, the
ddrescue mapfile, damage classification and the multipass loop now live in the
freemkv-engine crate as freemkv_engine::recovery::{copy, sweep, patch}.
libfreemkv keeps the layers underneath: the raw single-shot read
(Drive::read) and the SCSI-fact translation (SenseFamily) that the engine's
strategy is built on. The dependency runs engine → libfreemkv, so this crate
cannot call into it; front-ends get recovery from the engine directly. See
docs/rip-recovery.md for what stayed here.
What It Does
- Drive access — open, identify, internal unlock + prep, speed control, eject
- 12+ MB/s reads — auto-detects kernel transfer limits, sustained full speed
- Disc scanning — UDF 2.50 filesystem, MPLS playlists, CLPI clip info
- Stream labels — 5 BD-J format parsers (Paramount, Criterion, Pixelogic, CTRM, Deluxe)
- AACS decryption — transparent key resolution and content decrypt (1.0 + 2.0 bus decryption)
- KEYDB updates — download, verify, save from any HTTP URL (zero deps, raw TCP)
- Content reading — adaptive batch reads with automatic decryption
- Stream I/O — unified stream pipeline for reading and writing any format
Streams
| Stream | Input | Output | Transport |
|---|---|---|---|
| DiscStream | Yes | -- | Optical drive via SCSI |
| IsoStream | Yes | -- | Blu-ray ISO image file (read via stream pipeline; written by freemkv_engine::recovery) |
| MkvStream | Yes | Yes | Matroska container |
| M2tsStream | Yes | Yes | BD transport stream with FMKV metadata header |
| NetworkStream | Yes (listen) | Yes (connect) | TCP with FMKV metadata header |
| StdioStream | Yes (stdin) | Yes (stdout) | Raw byte pipe |
| NullStream | -- | Yes | Discard sink (byte counter for benchmarks) |
Streams implement a single unified pes::Stream trait (re-exported as PesStream) exposing read() and write() on one type. input() / output() resolve URL strings to PES stream instances. All URLs use the scheme://path format — bare paths are rejected.
Keys
DVDs (CSS) decrypt out of the box, with no external key file needed.
Blu-rays and UHD (AACS) require a keydb.cfg at ~/.config/freemkv/keydb.cfg (or passed via ScanOptions). No AACS key material is compiled into the binary.
Architecture
Drive — open, identify, init, single-shot read
├── ScsiTransport — SG_IO (Linux), IOKit (macOS), SPTI (Windows)
└── unlock_bridge — private seam to the freemkv-unlock crate
(firmware / AACS cert / CSS bus-auth unlockers)
Disc — scan titles, streams, AACS/CSS state
├── UDF reader — Blu-ray UDF 2.50 with metadata partitions
├── MPLS parser — playlists → titles + clips + streams
├── CLPI parser — clip info → EP map → sector extents
├── IFO parser — DVD title sets, PGC chains, cell addresses
├── Labels — 5 BD-J format parsers (detect + parse)
├── AACS — key resolution + content decryption
├── CSS — DVD CSS (bus auth → player-key disc crack → known-plaintext title-key attack)
└── KEYDB — download + verify + save
Streams — unified PES pipeline
├── PesStream — pes::Stream: one trait, read()/write() PES frames
├── DiscStream — sectors → decrypt → TS demux → PES
├── IsoStream — ISO file → decrypt → TS demux → PES
├── MkvStream — MKV mux/demux
├── M2tsStream — BD transport stream
├── NetworkStream — TCP with FMKV metadata header
├── StdioStream — stdin/stdout pipe
└── NullStream — discard sink
See docs/ for detailed technical documentation on each module.
Error Codes
All errors are structured with numeric codes. No user-facing English text — applications format their own messages.
| Range | Category |
|---|---|
| E1xxx | Device errors (not found, permission) |
| E2xxx | Profile errors (unsupported drive) |
| E3xxx | Unlock errors (failed, signature) |
| E4xxx | SCSI errors (command failed, timeout) |
| E5xxx | I/O errors |
| E6xxx | Disc format errors |
| E7xxx | AACS errors |
| E8xxx | KEYDB update errors |
| E9xxx | Stream / mux errors (URL, PES, ISO, pipeline, demux) |
Platform Support
| Platform | Status | Backend |
|---|---|---|
| Linux | Supported | SG_IO ioctl |
| macOS | Supported | IOKit SCSITask |
| Windows | Supported | SPTI |
Contributing
Run freemkv info disc:// --share with the freemkv CLI to capture your drive's identity for contribution. Drive-unlock profiles are maintained in the freemkv-unlock repository.
License
MIT