Playback Has Failed Due To A Video Subsystem Error

Article #:	0111
Article Date:	12/11/2001
Author:	Steve Z.

Problem:

You receive a "Video Subsystem" error in InterActual Player when you attempt to play the disc.

Solution:

A Video Subsystem error is InterActual Player's way of telling you that it is having problems detecting or using a DVD decoder. A DVD decoder is the software that plays DVD's in your computer. If your computer has played DVD's before, then it used a decoder to do this. You should be sure to check your computer's Start | Programs menu and see if you have a DVD decoder. The InterActual software will most likely not function properly if your original DVD playback software is missing or not working correctly.
The error message recommends that you lower your screen resolution and color depth as a possible fix for the problem. Click here for instructions on how to adjust these settings.
If adjusting your resolution and color depth has no effect, check below for a list of other causes of this error:

No DVD Decoder Installed - The InterActual software requires an installed DVD decoder, or it will not play video. Check the sofware bundle that came with your computer - it may contain DVD Decoding software. If your computer does not already have a functioning DVD program installed, you will need to obtain one and install it on your system. Please visit our Buy a DVD Decoder page for a list of DVD Decoder programs available for purchase and download. There are no free DVD decoders available.
Upgrading Windows - If you have recently upgraded your Windows operating system from an older version to a newer release, please be aware that you are responsible for determining if your software is still compatible with the newer version of Windows. InterActual software is dependent on your existing DVD playback software for video playback, and upgrading Windows could cause this DVD playback software to stop functioning, or become undetectable to external programs that require it in order to work, like InterActual Player. InterActual Player itself is tested and should work on all supported Windows platforms (Windows 98, ME, NT, 2000, and XP), but it relies on your DVD playback software for video playback. Therefore your system must be properly configured to play DVD video before you can use InterActual Player. It is recommended that you try reinstalling the DVD playback software provided with the system originally to see if it will work. If it does not work in your new configuration, please visit our Buy A DVD Decoder page for some recommended Computer DVD Players that should work in current Windows systems.
DirectShow Issues - InterActual Player relies on Windows DirectShow to detect and initialize the DVD decoder. DirectShow is not one component of Windows; rather, it is a whole group of components. These include your video drivers, Windows Media Player, DirectX, and Internet Explorer. Please make sure that all of these are up to date. It is highly recommended to obtain video driver updates either from the computer manufacturer, or from the website of the video card maker.
Improperly Installed OEM DVD Playback Software - Mass-produced computer systems do not always have their DVD playback software properly installed at the factory so that it can be detected and shared by other programs. These issues usually do not affect the DVD program itself, and it is usually able to play DVD's just fine in its own interface. But when a program like InterActual Player attempts to use it, the software may not find all of the components it is expecting to find, and the error message may be the result. In cases like this, we recommend uninstalling and reinstalling the DVD program provided by the computer manufacturer, under the guidance of their Support department if you are not sure how to do it. Once this is done test the video playback in your original software to confirm it is still working properly. Then, try the playback in InterActual Player. The video functions in the InterActual software should work correctly.
Unsupported DVD Decoder - The InterActual Player has support for most of the DVD decoders still currently available. However, there are some decoders that are not supported in InterActual Player, and attempting to use the software with one of these products could generate the error message. Here are some examples:
- Creative Labs Encore PC-DVD - There is no direct support for the Creative DVD hardware decoder in InterActual Player. Creative has released WDM (DirectShow-compliant) versions of some of their hardware drivers, but the functionality of these drivers is limited and do not provide an acceptable user experience. It is recommended that you use the Creative PC-DVD playback software to play the video.
- Chromatic Research MPACT - Owners of older Gateway and Quantex systems may have this decoder card. InterActual Player does not have any built-in support for this decoder, so video functions in our software will not work. Again, it is recommended that that you play the DVD in the MPACT software.
- Margi DVD To Go - InterActual Player has no direct support for this laptop DVD decoder card. However, there are WDM (DirectShow-compliant) drivers available that are tested in the lab and appear to support playback in the InterActual software pretty well. Please check with the Margi website in our Links section for information about driver compatibility, and make sure that your system will support Margi's WDM drivers.
Non-DVD decoders conflicting with the existing DVD decoder - There are some utilities available that may conflict with your existing DVD decoder when they are installed, thus preventing our player from detecting it. Some examples include:
- DirectVobSub (as well as other similar utilities)
- Nimo Codec Pack (this utility may install unsupported DVD decoder files that can conflict with existing DVD software)
- Elecard MPEG codec (installs with some desktop video devices)
- MyHD tuner card (Windows attempts to assign DVD playback to this card's driver instead of the user's DVD playback software when using InterActual Player or any other DirectShow interface)
All of the above are confirmed through customer feedback to cause problems with DirectShow DVD playback, and may need to be removed from the system in order to restore normal playback to our software.