CDMs Empty in Edge Browser on edge://media-internals

Question

CDMs Empty in Edge Browser on edge://media-internals

mediadev 0

There is an issue with playing DRM videos in the Edge browser, as the CDMs section in edge://media-internals is empty, while PlayReady and Widevine are expected to be present.

In contrast, the PlayReady WWA JS Sample App uploaded by Microsoft can play videos with the H.264 codec, including HWDRM and CBCS, suggesting the issue might be specific to the Edge browser.

no_cdm_with_wwa_play

Efforts to resolve the issue include:

Restoring Microsoft Edge via Windows Settings > App.
Toggling the PlayReady and Widevine flags on edge://flags.
Reinstalling the Intel graphics driver.
Checking edge://settings/privacy/sitePermissions/allPermissions/protectedContent

All options related to PlayReady and Widevine in edge://flags have been tried but did not resolve the issue.

edge_flags

Additionally, checking other browsers like Chrome reveals that Widevine is present on chrome://media-internals.

chrome_cdm

Further information includes screenshots of edge://gpu, Windows, and Edge version details.

edge_gpu_1

edge_gpu_2

Device Info:

Processor: 11th gen Intel Core i7-1165G7, Intel Iris Xe

Windows Version:

Windows 10 Enterprise, 22H2
OS Build: 19045.6159
Experience Pack: 1000.19062.1000.0

Edge Version:

139.0.3405.86

edge_version

1 answer

Your answer

Answer 1

Emmanuel Santana 33,000 Independent Advisor

Hello. Appreciate the screenshots. Well, like you mentioned, I can see that Edge isn’t registering any CDMs (empty edge://media-internals), while the PlayReady WWA sample can play protected content just fine, and Chrome loads Widevine without issue. That rules out OS-level DRM failure and points directly to a broken CDM registration in Edge.

Even if the flags are enabled, Edge can’t register the CDMs unless the files are present.

Open File Explorer and go to: C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\Edge\Application\139.0.3405.86\ (Replace with your actual Edge version folder if different)
Look for these folders:
- WidevineCdm
- msedgecdm (used for PlayReady)
Inside each, there should be a subfolder like 1.4.10.xxx\ with files such as:
- widevinecdm.dll
- manifest.json

If either folder or its contents is missing, the module won’t load even if the feature flag is enabled.

mediadev 0 Reputation points

2025-08-11T13:14:15.3833333+00:00

Hi, thanks so much for the quick and detailed reply.I was able to find “WidevineCdm,” although the path was different. Instead of a versioned folder like 1.4.10.xxx, it was under _platform_specific/win_x64, but in any case I could locate the folder containing widevinecdm.dll. However, I couldn’t find PlayReady.

Looking into it further, it seems that PlayReady HW DRM, is going to be supported at the Chromium level. If that’s the case, I expect it will land in Edge soon as well, so I’ll wait for the update.

Thanks again for your response!
Emmanuel Santana 33,000 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2025-08-11T19:09:02.5266667+00:00

If you’re referring to this article: https://windowsforum.com/threads/chrome-to-support-playready-drm-on-windows-11-for-enhanced-4k-streaming.374649/

The underlying work does point toward Edge (being Chromium-based) eventually gaining native hardware-secure PlayReady support, so your expectation is reasonable.

That said, as you noted, Chromium and therefore Edge don’t currently have broad PlayReady HW DRM support. Development is ongoing, but it hasn’t landed in stable builds yet. There’s no ETA yet, though indications suggest it’s on the horizon.

Share via

CDMs Empty in Edge Browser on edge://media-internals

1 answer

Your answer