Company of Heroes - (Series) : Issues pertaining to manual patch the game; display message "Could not verify media"; incorporation of original CoH with expansion pack

Question

In this article I'm going to discuss some of the major and common issues pertaining to installation/running of one of the most renown RTS (Real-Time Strategy) WWII-based game series - Company of Heroes (often abbreviated as CoH). The game was released by Relic Entertainment in collaboration with THQ in 2006 and later its standalone expansion pack "Opposing Fronts" was released in 2007 (abbreviated as CoH:OF) followed by second standalone expansion pack "Tales of Valor" in 2009 (abbreviated as CoH:ToV). The publishers have stringently protected this game series via CD key verification as well as usable media verification system in order to ensure that ONLY legitimate owners can get access to the purchased retail CD/DVD. However, the publishers simply left out of consideration the legitimate owners of retail CD/DVD who wanted to backup their game in image formats (.ISO/.FLT, etc.) or who, in severe circumstances, lost the source media of game (CD/DVD), they won't ever be able to successfully install/run their game again for which they have really dearly paid. 

Having considered one of these issues, this article revolves around the question of running this game via backup image (.ISO/.FLT, etc.) on the system as well as manually patching the game for upgrade purpose. 

NOTE: Owners of Direct2Drive via Steam should not have any issues regarding patching the game as it will be done automatically once got connected to their servers over Internet.

First, let's have a look at the details of retail copy of each game in this series:

Company of Heroes - Original (2006)

CPU:	Pentium 4/Athlon XP or better

CPU Speed:	1.8 GHz

RAM:	512 MB

OS:	Windows XP

Video Card:	Nvidia GeForce 3 or an ATI Radeon 8500 or equivalent with 64 MB of Video RAM. It must also support Pixel Shader 1.1.

DirectX version:	9.0c

Sound Card:	Yes

Free Disk Space:	5 GB

CD-ROM:	8X Speed CD/DVD-ROM

(src: http://www.systemrequirementslab.com/CYRI/Requirements/company-of-heroes/10503?p=r)

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Company of Heroes - Opposing Fronts (2007)

CPU:	Pentium 4/Athlon XP or better

CPU Speed:	2 GHz

RAM:	Windows XP - 512 MB / Windows Vista - 1 GB

OS:	Windows XP or Vista

Video Card:	100% DirectX 9.0c compatible 64MB video card with Pixel Shader 1.1 support or equivalent and latest manufacturer drivers (NVIDIA GeForce3+ / ATI Radeon 9500+)

DirectX version:	9.0c

Sound Card:	Yes

Free Disk Space:	10 GB of uncompressed free hard drive space (We recommend having 1 gigabyte of free space after installation)

DVD-ROM:	Yes

(src: http://www.systemrequirementslab.com/cyri?gameName=company-of-heroes-opposing-fronts&itemId=10663&p=r)

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Company of Heroes - Tales of Valor (2009)

CPU:	2.0 GHz Intel Pentium 4 or equivalent or AMD Athlon XP or equivalent

CPU Speed:	2.0 GHz

RAM:	Windows XP – 512 MB RAM with dedicated memory video cards (1GB RAM required for shared memory video cards). 1 GB for Windows Vista.

OS:	Windows® XP or Vista

Video Card:	100% DirectX 9.0c compatible 64MB video card with Pixel Shader 1.1 support or equivalent and latest manufacturer drivers

Sound Card:	Yes

Free Disk Space:	10 GB of uncompressed free hard drive space (We recommend having 1 gigabyte of of free space after installation)

DVD-ROM:	Yes

(src: http://systemrequirementslab.com/CYRI/Requirements/company-of-heroes-tales-of-valor/10853?p=r)

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

NOTE: Each game from this series are perfectly compatible with Windows 7 (x64) yet before proceeding further it is advisable to have a look at the minimum system requirement (as specified above) of the respective game from the series to be installed on your system. Or you can simply get it checked if your system is compatible enough to accommodate this game by visiting this website http://systemrequirementslab.com/cyri. 

Let's jump to the issues pertaining to this game in the order as they are put in the heading of this article.

Issue 1: Unable to upgrade the game via manual patching (for the owners of legitimate game image such as .ISO/.FLT, etc.).

Discussion: As I have mentioned above the publishers have well protected this game series pretty stringently that only the owners of retail CD/DVD have the only privileges to get hands on their owned games in terms of installation/running the game on their systems. This tight protection method of CD/DVD key verification incorporated with usable media verification system comes into effect via the patching upgrade beyond patch version of 1.71.0 to Company of Heroes Original game. Therefore, not to mention, the standalone expansion packs of this game series will already contain this effect whether or not one tries to avoid patch upgrade to them. Yet, it is always essential to upgrade the game through patching because these patches contain bugs/texture/glitches fix and sometimes add-ons in missions and so on. The resultant issue of "Could not verify media" will be discussed following the resolution of this issue. First, we are going to overcome the problems of manually patching the game from Company of Heroes Opposing Fronts expansion pack onwards. 

Take a note about the retail version of these games when they were first released from this series.

Company of Heroes - Original released withRetail Version of 1.0.0

Company of Heroes - Opposing Fronts released with Retail Version of 2.100.0 (patch upgrade from version 2.100.0 onwards will be applicable)

Company of Heroes - Tales of Valor released with Retail Version of 2.500.0 (patch upgrade from version 2.500.0 onwards will be applicable)

The knowledge of retail version of each game in this series is really essential when one wants to know from what point of patch version they should begin manually patching it otherwise one would simply get stuck on the messages from installation wizard displaying unable to identify the version of the game and that the wizard could not patch it.

Solution: This solution will be beneficial to those who own the legitimate game image in formats such as .ISO/.FLT, etc. in the absence of having the original retail CD/DVD.

NOTE: This is applicable to standalone expansion packs only, i.e., Company of Heroes - Opposing Fronts and Company of Heroes - Tales of Valor.

Step 1: Install the standalone expansion pack either Company of Heroes - Opposing Fronts or Company of Heroes - Tales of Valor using the game image (.ISO/.FLT, etc.) you own via virtual drive emulator (such as Daemon Tools, Alcohol, etc.) or using a burnt CD/DVD containing the game image.

NOTE: DO NOT USE ANY NO-CD/DVD EXECUTABLE IMAGE FIX (CRACK) FOR NOW WHILE YOU FIRST NEED TO UPGRADE THE GAME WITH MANUAL PATCHING SYSTEM.

Step 2: Run the game image (.ISO/.FLT, etc.) one more time either via virtual drive emulator or using a burnt CD/DVD and let the "Autoplay" dialog box appear and instead of doing anything else just explore the contents of the game image or CD/DVD by clicking on "Open folders to view files".

Step 3: Go to "Data" folder and extract a copy of "RelicCoH.exe_NEW_FILE_xxxxxxxxxxxxx" (where xxxxxxxxxxx is denoted as some alphanumerical value in the file), and paste it somewhere on your hard drive.

Step 4: Locate the pasted file "RelicCoH.exe_NEW_FILE_xxxxxxxxxxxxx" on your hard drive and rename it as "RelicCoH.exe".

Step 5: Copy this renamed "RelicCoH.exe" file and paste it into the game installation directory which should replace the existing original "RelicCoh.exe" file.

Step 6: Apply the official patch version 2.100.0_to_2.101.0 (for Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts) or patch version 2.500.0_to_2.501.0 (for Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor) to the game and it should patch the game with no issues.

NOTE: You can download this official patch version 2.100.0_to_2.101.0 (for CoH: OF) from here.

(Download src: https://www.sendspace.com/file/pqgmmb)

Step 7: Now you can sequentially upgrade the game with rest of the official patches available. (Patch version 2.700.0 is not available for manual patching and can be done automatically via Steam server for the owners who have purchased the game from Steam only).

NOTE: For Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts, you can sequentially patch it until 2.301.0 and then apply the no-CD/DVD exe image fix (if you have lost the original retail CD/DVD or backed-and-packed up your CD/DVD). You can retrieve the no-CD/DVD exe image fix version 2.301.0 from here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9El3RHzVu68VkpSY01pVTc0M2c/view?usp=sharing (Before applying this fix, MUST READ the instructions described in Issue-2->Segment-II->Step-2 of this article)

For Company of Heroes: tales of Valor, you can sequentially patch it until 2.602.0 and then apply the no-CD/DVD exe image fix (if you have lost the original retail CD/DVD or backed-and-packed up your CD/DVD). You can retrieve the no-CD/DVD exe image fix version 2.602.0 from here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9El3RHzVu68VXRjQllPMXI0S28/view?usp=sharing. (Before applying this fix, MUST READ the instructions described in Issue-2->Segment-II->Step-2 of this article).

Rest of the official patches for each of the respective game in this series, you can download from here.

(Download src: http://www.patches-scrolls.com/company_of_heroes.php)

Issue 2: Cannot proceed beyond the display message "Could not verify media" when attempting to play the game.

Discussion: This far we have already got to know about the stringent policies imposed by the publishers of this game series in terms of CD key verification incorporated with usable media verification system in order to successfully install and/or run the game. This means if you've initially successfully passed the CD key verification system you'll be put on another test where the usable media verification system will check whether you have loaded a legitimate retail copy of CD/DVD or not. If this verification system won't get satisfied with the CD/DVD quality or any other media loading source is detected being in use such as virtual drive emulators, you will immediately get a small menu-like dialog box popped up with a message "Could not verify media" along with few more options offered so that user may be able to rectify their mistake either taking you to the publishers' server if you opt for Retail Version or redirecting you to the Steam server for Direct2Drive option. In either case, it won't get sorted out no matter how many times you'll enter all the correct details because for Retail Version option the publishers' servers are down or simply spoken are completely "dead" since ages and for Steam server because of the conflict between previous retail-owned copies of CD/DVD and Direct2Drive options offered by Steam which in no way bridges the gap to the satisfaction of publisher. 

Solution: So, to get out of this labyrinth, one may want to follow the resolution divided into two segments of which the first specifies for those who own the retail copy of CD/DVD and for others who have lost/misplaced the retail CD/DVD and have only access to game image in formats like .ISO/.FLT, etc. Therefore, follow the appropriate segment that best suits to you in terms of what source you have available to install and run the game.

Segment-I: This segment focuses on the owners who own the retail copy of CD/DVD of game from this series and still encountering the issue of "Could not verify media".

Step 1: Before loading the retail copy of CD/DVD on your optical drive tray, make sure you DO NOT have any virtual drive emulator (such as, Daemon Tools, Alcohol, etc.) installed and if you have any then you GOT TO UNINSTALL this emulator from your hard drive.

Step 2: If you're using more than one optical drives in any case then you got to disable one of those drives; let's say you have a CD drive separate than a DVD drive then you may want to disable the CD optical drive in the following manner leaving the DVD optical drive intact.

1. Go to "My Computer" and Right-click on the said CD optical drive and select "Properties".
2. Click the "Hardware" tab on the opened dialog box and again highlight the appropriate name of optical drive (in this case, CD optical drive) and then click on "Properties" tab at the bottom of this dialog box.
3. A relative dialog box for this optical drive will open and you got to click on "Change Settings" tab at the bottom of this very dialog box.
4. A replicate of this dialog box will reappear but this time simply click the "Driver" tab and under this section seek for "Disable" (Disables the selected device..) and click on this and then hit "OK" at the bottom of this box and accept the changes.
5. Now, while leaving one optical drive intact (in this case DVD optical drive), you can now load the retail copy of DVD in the respective tray and play the game without any frustrating message display of "Could not verify media".

NOTE: Using retail DVD copy for playing the game of this series, you ought to repeat all the steps mentioned above in order to play this game without any problem if you roll back to the settings for making the disabled optical drive active again.

Segment-II: This segment aids the owners of the legitimate retail copy of CD/DVD who might have lost or misplaced their copy and are left with game image in formats like .ISO/.FLT, etc. For these owners, there's no other way for them than relying on no-CD/DVD exe image fix in order to run the game smoothly and with no hassle.

**NOTE:**NO-CD/DVD EXECUTABLE (exe.) IMAGE FIX IS INTENDED TO BE USED FOR ORIGINAL LEGITIMATE OWNED GAME CDs/DVDs AND NOT TO PROMOTING ANY IDEA OF PIRACY OR UNAUTHORIZED DUPLICATION OF GAMES.

Step 1: After having installed the game from this series on your hard drive, you need to upgrade the respective game with manual patching system until the point of no-CD/DVD exe image fix version you're available with. (The section on how to upgrade the game with manual patching is discussed in this article earlier. Refer to that section above for any help in this regards.)

NOTE: This issue for "Could not verify media" will be encountered only beyond the patch upgrade version of 1.71.0 and even applicable to Company of Heroes: Original. Therefore, this solution applies in this case as well.

Step 2: After having upgrade the game with manual patching in alignment to the same version of no-CD/DVD exe image fix available to you, you simply need to follow the instructions for applying this fix. (If you need help on official patch download for this game series as well as no-CD/DVD exe image fix you may refer to the earlier section of my discussion where relative download links are mentioned).

Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts (patched until: v 2.301.0)

1. Copy the modified rs.dll file (that comes with no-CD/DVD image fix or from the download link as mentioned above in this article) no-CD/DVD image fix folder->v2.3.0.1->validator->rsand then browse to installed Company of Heroes directory and locate folder validators->rs and replace the original .dll with this modified version.
2. Also, copy the modified rspa.dll file (from no-CD/DVD image fix folder->*v2.3.0.1->validator->rspa)*and again then browse to installed Company of Heroes directory and locate folder validators->rspa and replace the original one with this renamed version.
3. Now, paste the no-CD/DVD image fix .exe file that is available for OF expansion pack with v2.301.
4. Run the RelicCoH.exe file from installed game directory.
5. Click on Continue when “Validate CD Key” message appears.

Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor

1. NOTE: Before patching the expansion game to v 2.602.0 browse to installed Company of Heroes directory and locate folder validators->cosh and retrieve the cosh.dll (original v 2.500.0) file and reserve it. Now sequentially patch the expansion pack to v 2.602.0 and locate the folder validators->cosh and replace the cosh.dll with un-patched version (v 2.500.0).
2. Copy the modified udro.dll file (that comes with no-CD/DVD image fix or from the download link as mentioned above in this article) no-CD/DVD image fix folder->v2.6.0.2->validators->udro and then browse to installed Company of Heroes directory and locate folder validators->udro and replace the original .dll file with modified version.
3. Now, paste the no-CD/DVD image fix .exe file that is available for ToV expansion pack with v2.602.
4. Go to Windows firewall, and under Advanced settings allow the RelicDownloader.exe, RelicCo.exe, and RelicCoH_MCE.exe under Inbound rules.
5. Disconnect the Internet and run the RelicCoH.exe file from installed game directory once.
6. Click on Continue when “Validate CD Key” message appears.

Step 3: While running the game as of custom the message will appear again " Could not verify media" but what you all need to do is simply click on "Continue" and the message will disappear from the game screen letting you play the game in old fashion.

Issue 3: How to incorporate the original Company of Heroes game with standalone expansion pack?

Discussion: The next question arises regarding how to incorporate of original Company of Heroes with Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts expansion pack so that one can enjoy playing with all four factions having assimilated them from one game into another. The expansion packs released followed by the original CoH are all "standalone" that means one can simply install these expansion packs in the absence of base pack which is original CoH. But, the problem here is that unless you have original CoH neither you won't be able to play the missions of original CoH nor use the factions from the original game although you would be able to see the deactivated portion of Normandy mission of original CoH while playing CoH: OF. The basic intention of making these expansion packs standalone is to promote sales by not having the buyer rely on the base pack but can simply continue playing the forward missions in the absence of base pack. However, in Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor there is no such requirement for the base pack to be installed in order to play all the four factions in multiplayer mode but of course you still will be devoid of playing the original missions of base pack here too if you don't have original CoH. In any case, this problem can be avoided not with any hit-and-trial method but simply following the sequence of game installation of this series. 

NOTE: Only one expansion pack can be incorporated with the base pack (original CoH). This means you cannot install Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor with the base pack if you have already installed Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts. Similarly, vice-a-versa, Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts cannot be installed with the base pack if Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor already exists on your hard drive.

Let's jump to the solution to this issue.

Step 1: First, install the Company of Heroes: Original on your hard drive without any need to upgrade it with manual patching if you intend to incorporate the original CoH with any of the available expansion packs since once expansion pack is installed it will upgrade the original CoH to the higher version what the expansion pack was released with. 

Step 2: Now, install any of the expansion packs either CoH: OF or CoH: ToV. A warning message will display before installation that a previous version copy of Company of Heroes exists and it will delete in the process of installing the expansion pack; however, be ready with the CD key of original CoH if you want the missions of original version too. DO NOT be afraid and simply let go by clicking OK. However, in custom settings of game installation you can better remove the check mark for launching the game automatically after installation finishes.

Step 3: The expansion pack will be installed successfully.

If you own a retail copy of CD/DVD of both original and expansion pack, you can simply let the DVD of expansion pack stay in the optical tray and run the game from the installation directory on your hard drive. It will prompt you to enter the DVD key for original Company of Heroes in order to incorporate it with the expansion pack you've just installed. (To get help on avoiding "Could not verify media" issue, refer to the earlier section of this article.)

If you're installing the game using a legitimate game image (.ISO/.FLT, etc.) then follow all the steps until you upgrade the game with manual patching version that should coincide with the version of your no-CD/DVD exe image fix available with you. In this case, after having installed the expansion pack over base pack (original CoH), the game wizard won't show any prompt box to enter CD/DVD key of original CoH. Don't run/launch the game yet. You simply have to first follow the steps 1 through 2 and then apply the appropriate no-CD/DVD exe image fix to the game installation directory. Now, you can launch the game via replaced image fix and it will show the message "Could not verify media" which you simply need to ignore and click "Continue" and the game should run smoothly with previous missions of original CoH active along with new missions of the expansion pack. 

Conclusion: All issues resolved to the greatest extent.

I hope this article will be of your interest and help you play this intense Gold WWII war game.

Your comments and further queries will be appreciated.

Answer 1

Hello sammoss,

Exactly this is what you got to do. If it shows v1.5b then it's a beta version - an early untested version of patch than what is the latest and final one and no big deal if it could be buggy especially at the point of the specific mission where it crashes. Yes, in my opinion, simply change the value data back to v1.0 in registry editor and then apply the patch v1.5 what I have sent to you. This way even if your game is already patched with v1.5b with the roll back version to v1.0 in registry editor the game wizard will again let you run the manual patch v1.5. Then simply replace the updated original exe image with no-CD exe fix of v1.5.

I have a feeling this time this shot would be a bull's eye.

With all good regards,

GRV-81

P.S. Mention not for sparing my time to respond you back. I'm also one of you who used to have problems and issues on games. It's good to help people. :)

Answer 2

Once again thanks GRV for taking the time and for all of your posts on the matter and my email is moss8448 at gmail dot com if you'd like to cut the middle man so to speak.

Answer 3

My game flash screen shows version 1.3 on SP and version 1.5 on MP menus at the bottom right hand corner. Just checked the wow6432node as per your post and it is 1.5b so obviously it came patched up from Activision as I bought it in 2011. I looked for and found several no cd .exe 1.0 1.3 1.5 and none of 'em launch the game for some reason. Odd as the other games I have like CoD2 the no cds work as do other games that I have on CD/DVD.

If I read your post correctly I should change the 1.5b to 1.0 then use the patch you supplied if I am still correctly thinking will take it from 1.0 to 1.5  I'm thinking the patch that came with the game is some how different than the stand alone 1>1.5 patch; just thinking out loud. Then the no cd may work I'll try it and get back to ya.

Answer 4

Hello sammoss,

This note is an addendum to the one I wrote you before. One more thing just struck in my my mind that when do you do the fresh install of your Deluxe Edition could you tell me what version it has? As you said when you attempted to patch it with 1.5 you got the display message that "You already have latest version." If you don't know how to check the version, do the following and you'll be able to retrieve the actual retail version of your game.

1. Click Start (Windows Button) at the right bottom side; "Start Menu" will open displaying the preference of the few programs you have on your system.
2. At the bottom of the Start Menu, you'll see a "Search Box" with hint of "Search program and files".
3. Type regedit in it and click OK in User Account Control for permitting it to open Registry Editor.
4. Under the upside down tree of "Computer" follow this path:

   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Activision\Call of Duty.

5. By clicking on this folder Call of Duty you'll see lot of details on the right hand side of pane about Publisher, CD key, etc. and lastly Version.
6. If you see some other version than 1.0 simply right click on the Version heading and then click Modify... on the resultant pop-up dialog box.
7. Another pop-up box will appear with heading Edit String in which under the Value data field change the value to 1.0.
8. Confirm the changes and close the Registry Editor.
9. Now, you can first try to upgrade the game with patch version 1.3 if you want to test and think of later upgrading it to version 1.5 or simply patch it with version 1.5. (Important is that you got to apply the patch preferably version 1.5 as what I think because never tested the game with version 1.3.)
10. Apply the corresponding version of no-CD exe image fix and trying playing the mission where you experience the crash.

I hope this should really get you out of this issue.

With all good regards,

GRV-81

Answer 5

Hello sammoss,

First of all, I can tell you since you started discussing on this game I got initiated one more time and installed this game on my system as well. However, I have not yet reached to the point where you had experienced crash but I remember good when I played this game last time I finished it without any issues of crash as you have mentioned. I can't figure out why you're unable to use the no-CD exe fix. I own independent versions of CoD and its expansion pack rather Deluxe Edition. It's odd that even after having patched the final version patch of 1.5 (which of course would include all the features of previous versions including for SP) you're experiencing the crash. Since you have got the OS as of mine which is Win 7 (x64) Home Premium then all the settings what I have recommended to you should work fine except slight random crashes you might experience only in case if you manually Save the game and then attempt to Load it. Also, I don't think that you may need to replace any *.dll files in the original game installation directory for whatsoever reason. The fact is that we are going to run a game that was released back in 2003 with all outdated resources containing in it and we just need to make it compatible on our OS instead of doubting on the drivers for GFX or whatsoever components needed to run this game.

Anyways, having considered your problem and the prior troubleshooting you already did, I can try to suggest you few things which you may want to work out in order to overcome this hurdle. Proceed in the way as I've numbered the solutions.

1. As I have already mentioned that while trying to run this game on Win 7 (x64) you will experience slight random crashes only due to the reason if you manually Save the point and attempt to Load it. This can be solved simply deleting that unfortunate Saved point through your Save/Load game menu and reload the prior Save or Autosave point that was working fine. Having borne this thing on your mind, try to Load the previous Autosave or Save point on your game prior to the mission where you experience crash (Tirpitz mission) and attempt reaching to this mission freshly. This trick works good on the rationale that you're going to simply eradicate the crash versions of Save points in game. This I often had to use whenever I experienced random crashes in manual Save points. 
2. If the above solution still doesn't work for you then it simply implies you're experiencing an in-built bug in the game that was shipped to you. Here, I can suggest you to get this game in independent versions with its expansion pack if you are really desperate to finish this game. For free help in this regards, you can give me your e-mail and I'll provide you with best and easy resources to get this game. 

P.S. If you want to give a try by upgrading this game with patch 1.3 instead of 1.5 along with relevant no-CD exe image, you can find the download link here: https://www.sendspace.com/file/7wiv8q

I hope this should resolve your problem.

With all good regards,

GRV-81