Save the config.txt file and safely eject the SD card from your computer. Return the SD card to the Raspberry Pi and power up the device.
Adding the licenses via the built-in Raspbmc tool: If you’re running Raspbmc, you can skip the whole manually editing the config.txt step and take advantage of the built-in tool right inside Raspbmc.
To do so, head over to your Raspbmc device and navigate from the main interface to Programs –> Raspbmc Settings. Once you are inside Raspbmc Settings, navigate to the System Configuration Tab and scroll down to the the Advanced System Settings section:
There you can click on MPEG2 and VC1 and input your license number. Don’t type in the entire string provided for you by Raspberry Pi, leave off the leading decode_MPG2= and decode_WVC1= portion. Only input the 10-digit string after the equal sign into each codec’s respective slot.
Once you have added the appropriate codec licenses, head back to the main interface and reboot your device via the power selection menu in the lower left hand corner.
Testing the codecs: The most enjoyable way to test your new codecs is to fire up a media file you know wouldn’t play without it, sit back, and watch it play perfectly.
The more technical way to check, should you run into any hiccups and wish to confirm that your license is recognized by the device, is to head to the command prompt and enter the following commands:
The Pi should immediately return that the codec is enabled. Here’s the output for the MPG2 check on our test machine, for reference:
Everything looks good at the command prompt and the previously audio-only files now play both their audio and video channels. For a few bucks and a few minutes of our time, we’re ready to enjoy the wide variety of videos encoded in MPEG-2 and VC-1 codecs.
