What Is a Virtual CD-ROM?
A virtual CD-ROM is a compressed disc image of a physical CD-ROM. Unlike a physical CD-ROM, which plays in a CD-ROM drive, a virtual CD-ROM runs directly on the hard drive. A virtual CD-ROM is an image of an entire disc, and not just a single track (as is the case with MP3). Because it holds the entire contents of a physical disc in a compressed format, virtual CD-ROM is often used to run video games and disc-based applications on mobile devices lacking a CD-ROM drive.
To create a virtual CD-ROM, you’ll need CD-DVD emulation software like FarStone Virtual Drive, which contains a driver that fools Windows into treating the virtual CD-ROM it as if it were a physical CD running in a CD-ROM drive.
Virtual Drive lets you configure up to 23 “virtual CD-ROM drives” (depending on available drive letters) and make an unlimited number of virtual CD-ROMs. You can customize your virtual disc with documentation and expansion packs, or you can include several volumes of a disc set in a single virtual CD-ROM. This is especially useful if virtual CD-ROMs need to shared over a network or when multiple media need to be combined a single widely-compatible format.
Benefits of Virtual CD-ROM
Virtual discs can’t be scratched or broken, and can be customized with software patches, documentation, and expansion packs. Virtual CD-ROM collections can be archived on a laptop computer or a USB hard drive, and can be searched in Windows or from within the CD emulator itself. Other benefits include:
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Optimized playback
Read times for a virtual CD-ROM are up to 200 times faster than those of a physical disc
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Multiple disc play
Pre-load several virtual CD-ROMs and run them simultaneously, swapping them out with hot keys. This is great for multi-volume discs!
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Reduced demand on system resources
There’s no CD-ROM drive to spin, and less drain on laptop batteries
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Accessibility
Virtual CD-ROMs can be shared over a network and transported on a USB key
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Easy disc management for kids
Create desktop shortcuts to favorite CD-ROM titles. Organize virtual CD-ROMs in a Windows-like virtual library
