No-CD crack

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A No-CD crack is a modified executable file or a special "byte patcher" program that removes built-in CD check mechanisms allowing the user to play computer software without having to insert the CD-ROM.

This act is a form of software cracking. No-CD cracks can be found on the Internet from various reverse engineering websites or file sharing networks. No-CD cracks have legal uses, such as creating backups of legally owned software (a user right by law in many countries) or avoiding the inconvenience of placing a CD-ROM in the drive every time the software is being used, although this might be used likewise to circumvent software laws by downloading and executing full versions of non legally owned applications.

In addition to cracked executable files or byte patchers, CD protection can be bypassed by producing a mini image containing the complete contents of the software's CD-ROM. This image can then be mounted with a disk image emulator such as Daemon Tools to trick the user's computer into believing the disk image is the software's physical CD-ROM and it is in the drive.