Bogus Adobe Digital Editions DRM Demand on a Sideloaded Book

ceridwen · 06-01-2021, 12:14 AM

I have an epub that I copied to my Kobo using Calibre. At one point I was able to read it, but now when I try to go back and read it again (to access the notes I took while reading it), I get an error message indicating it's encrypted with Adobe Digital Editions DRM when that is most definitely not the case. (It's an epub created from a Google doc). There's no apostrophe in the title so I don't think the problem mentioned on the wiki is the issue here: https://wiki.mobileread.com/wiki/Kob...h_Adobe_DRM.3F

Is there any hope for fixing this problem short of deleting the book and copying it over again? I'm really hoping the notes I took aren't gone forever.

davidfor · 06-01-2021, 05:38 AM

There are a few reasons for this to happen. Some of which I know of, and some I don't. For me, it is usually an issue with the database. Or a mismatch between the book on the device and the database. In most cases, the solution I use to to delete the book on the device and send the copy again. That usually solves it. But, occasionally, the database is corrupt and cannot import the book properly. In this case, you would need to sign-out of the account on the device and then back in.

There are some other possibilities.

Occasionally, the problem can be fixed by using the "Repair your Kobo account" function on the "Device information" page of the settings. While this is for fixing issues with purchased books, it can solve issues for sideloaded books. I assume it can trigger some of database cleanup that helps. If this works, you should not lose the annotations.

A reason I have seen for this issue is where the book on the device and the details in the database are out of sync. This can happen when using calibre as it can send books to the device in a way that prevents the device from seeing it as a change book. By default, if you replace a book on the device, the device will see it has changed, remove all details of the book from the database and then import the book as a new book. This means you lose the reading status, any collections the book is in, and the annotations (though I will come back to this). As this change is base on the file size, calibre will update the file size in the database to make the device think the book has not changed. Doing this works for most cases.

The case where it does not work is when there has been a change to the internal structure of the file or the ToC. When the book is first imported, the ToC is extracted and stored in the database. This is then used when navigating the book when reading. If the book structure does not match what is in the ToC, it can cause various problems. These can include not being able to navigate in the book, reopening the book always goes to the start of a chapter or the book, and the error about DRM when there isn't any. These are related to the stored reading position not matching to any location in the book. I don't know why sometimes it just opens at the start and sometimes I see the DRM error.

Until recently, the mismatched ToC could only be fixed by removing the book and sending it to the device again. But, I have recently added function to my Kobo Utilities plugin to do this. The function will compare the ToC in the book in the calibre library, on the device and in the database and display the mismatches. It can then send the book or update the database as needed. This is new function, so "recently" means since about 30 minutes ago. But, it has been available as a beta for over a month with no issues found. And I have been using it for a lot longer than that. I don't know if this will fix things for you, but, it is worth the try.

In all the above, there is no guarantee that the annotations can be saved. If you need to remove the book from the device, or, need to rebuild the ToC because it changed, the annotations might be lost. They in the database and are linked to the book and ToC entries. You should be able to view them now by long-pressing on the book and selecting the "Annotations" item in the menu. This will bring up the annotations list for the book. You can also export the annotations to a text file. This requires an entry to be added to the config file on the device. This is:

Code:

[FeatureSettings]
ExportHighlights=true

If you already have a "FeatureSettings" section, add the "ExportHighlights" line after it. When this is done, there will be an "Export highlights" option added to the menu for the book. Tapping this will prompt for the name of a text file to save the annotations in.

As well as the database, annotations for epubs are stored in a file on the device. This is an XML file under the "Digital Editions/Annotations". The file extension is "annot". It contains a XML data but is readable. When you remove a book from the device, the annotations are removed from the database. But, this file is not touched. If you put the book on the device again with the same name and path, when you open the book the annotations are read from the file and loaded into the database.

There are other ways to get the annotations from the device. From calibre, you can use the Annotations plugin or my Kobo Utilities plugin has a function to do it. But, they do not extract the annotations in a way that can be restored to the device. You can take a copy of the database and extract them from there. Restoring this to a new database can be done with a little work.

My apologies if the above seems a bit rambling. I've been writing it with a few interruptions (work, a son, a wife and two cats - all think they are the most important). I think I have covered everything, but, am happy to answer questions or help if I can.

JSWolf · 06-01-2021, 05:39 AM

@davidfor, if the eBook was loaded with Calibre, wouldn't it be possible to load it again with Calibre?

Quoth · 06-01-2021, 08:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

@davidfor, if the eBook was loaded with Calibre, wouldn't it be possible to load it again with Calibre?

Yes, but you lose existing annotations, highlights and bookmarks. Even if Annotations, built-in menu addition or Kobo Utilities reads them, you can't put them back in the new copy transferred?

davidfor · 06-01-2021, 09:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

@davidfor, if the eBook was loaded with Calibre, wouldn't it be possible to load it again with Calibre?

Did you read my post?

06-01-2021, 12:14 AM	#1
ceridwen Enthusiast Posts: 36 Karma: 10 Join Date: Feb 2017 Device: Kobo Aura H2O	Bogus Adobe Digital Editions DRM Demand on a Sideloaded Book I have an epub that I copied to my Kobo using Calibre. At one point I was able to read it, but now when I try to go back and read it again (to access the notes I took while reading it), I get an error message indicating it's encrypted with Adobe Digital Editions DRM when that is most definitely not the case. (It's an epub created from a Google doc). There's no apostrophe in the title so I don't think the problem mentioned on the wiki is the issue here: https://wiki.mobileread.com/wiki/Kob...h_Adobe_DRM.3F Is there any hope for fixing this problem short of deleting the book and copying it over again? I'm really hoping the notes I took aren't gone forever.

06-01-2021, 05:38 AM	#2
davidfor Grand Sorcerer Posts: 24,907 Karma: 47303748 Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Sydney, Australia Device: Kobo:Touch,Glo, AuraH2O, GloHD,AuraONE, ClaraHD, Libra H2O; tolinoepos	There are a few reasons for this to happen. Some of which I know of, and some I don't. For me, it is usually an issue with the database. Or a mismatch between the book on the device and the database. In most cases, the solution I use to to delete the book on the device and send the copy again. That usually solves it. But, occasionally, the database is corrupt and cannot import the book properly. In this case, you would need to sign-out of the account on the device and then back in. There are some other possibilities. Occasionally, the problem can be fixed by using the "Repair your Kobo account" function on the "Device information" page of the settings. While this is for fixing issues with purchased books, it can solve issues for sideloaded books. I assume it can trigger some of database cleanup that helps. If this works, you should not lose the annotations. A reason I have seen for this issue is where the book on the device and the details in the database are out of sync. This can happen when using calibre as it can send books to the device in a way that prevents the device from seeing it as a change book. By default, if you replace a book on the device, the device will see it has changed, remove all details of the book from the database and then import the book as a new book. This means you lose the reading status, any collections the book is in, and the annotations (though I will come back to this). As this change is base on the file size, calibre will update the file size in the database to make the device think the book has not changed. Doing this works for most cases. The case where it does not work is when there has been a change to the internal structure of the file or the ToC. When the book is first imported, the ToC is extracted and stored in the database. This is then used when navigating the book when reading. If the book structure does not match what is in the ToC, it can cause various problems. These can include not being able to navigate in the book, reopening the book always goes to the start of a chapter or the book, and the error about DRM when there isn't any. These are related to the stored reading position not matching to any location in the book. I don't know why sometimes it just opens at the start and sometimes I see the DRM error. Until recently, the mismatched ToC could only be fixed by removing the book and sending it to the device again. But, I have recently added function to my Kobo Utilities plugin to do this. The function will compare the ToC in the book in the calibre library, on the device and in the database and display the mismatches. It can then send the book or update the database as needed. This is new function, so "recently" means since about 30 minutes ago. But, it has been available as a beta for over a month with no issues found. And I have been using it for a lot longer than that. I don't know if this will fix things for you, but, it is worth the try. In all the above, there is no guarantee that the annotations can be saved. If you need to remove the book from the device, or, need to rebuild the ToC because it changed, the annotations might be lost. They in the database and are linked to the book and ToC entries. You should be able to view them now by long-pressing on the book and selecting the "Annotations" item in the menu. This will bring up the annotations list for the book. You can also export the annotations to a text file. This requires an entry to be added to the config file on the device. This is: Code: [FeatureSettings] ExportHighlights=true If you already have a "FeatureSettings" section, add the "ExportHighlights" line after it. When this is done, there will be an "Export highlights" option added to the menu for the book. Tapping this will prompt for the name of a text file to save the annotations in. As well as the database, annotations for epubs are stored in a file on the device. This is an XML file under the "Digital Editions/Annotations". The file extension is "annot". It contains a XML data but is readable. When you remove a book from the device, the annotations are removed from the database. But, this file is not touched. If you put the book on the device again with the same name and path, when you open the book the annotations are read from the file and loaded into the database. There are other ways to get the annotations from the device. From calibre, you can use the Annotations plugin or my Kobo Utilities plugin has a function to do it. But, they do not extract the annotations in a way that can be restored to the device. You can take a copy of the database and extract them from there. Restoring this to a new database can be done with a little work. My apologies if the above seems a bit rambling. I've been writing it with a few interruptions (work, a son, a wife and two cats - all think they are the most important). I think I have covered everything, but, am happy to answer questions or help if I can.

06-01-2021, 05:39 AM	#3
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 73,998 Karma: 128903378 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	@davidfor, if the eBook was loaded with Calibre, wouldn't it be possible to load it again with Calibre? Last edited by JSWolf; 06-01-2021 at 05:41 AM.

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