Insert the bad DVD into your computer's DVD drive or a newer DVD player if the disc isn't working on your DVD player. If you are trying to play a DVD that you burned on your computer at home in an older DVD player, the player may simply not have the technology to read the disc. The DVD itself may be fine.
Rip the files from the disc if your computer can read the disc. Even if the data on the disc is bad, some computer-based programs have the technology to read past the corrupted sections of the disc and still play the disc as normal. To rip the main file from the disc manually, go to the "Start" menu on your computer, go to "Computer," right-click the drive that contains the DVD, choose "Open" and then drag the folders that appear in the window to any folder on your computer. The files on your computer can be played at any time directly from the hard drive.
Get a DVD recovery program if the DVD cannot be read by your computer. Free programs with the ability to recover DVDs include CDCheck and Recovery Toolbox for CD. Both programs can be downloaded online (see Resources.)
Install the DVD recovery program to your computer. To install either program, double-click the download icon for the program and follow the screens.
Launch the recovery program with the DVD in the DVD drive. Select the DVD from the drive list that comes up.
Click the "Check All" option in the recovery program to select all of the files contained on the DVD. Choose a folder where you want to save the recovered files by clicking the folder icon and navigating to the folder in the window that opens. Then, click "Save" or "Recover" to retrieve data from all of the files on the disc and save the files into the folder selected.