Alcohol 52% is designed to create disc images, which can then be placed in a virtual drive which allows you to play back previously prepared images without the need to have / insert a CD/DVD. Up to 6 virtual readers can be created using the application. A big advantage of the application is the built-in engine based on the Alcohol 120% tool, which is considered to be one of the best backup programs for CD/DVD discs.

Its effectiveness is evidenced by the fact that it can handle such protections as Laserlock, SafeDisc, SafeDisc2, Securom, Securom, StarForce 1.x/2.x, VOB ProtectCD and VOB ProtectCD v5. However, the program does not have the functionality that allows you to burn the created images on CD/DVD media. Supports CD image file formats:

- Media Descriptor (mds) - CloneCD (ccd/img/sub) - Nero Burning ROM (nrg) - CDRWin (cue/bin) (for one session disc, no subchannel data) - Standard ISO (iso) (for one session disc, no subchannel data) - BlindSuite (bwt/bwi/bws) - DiscJuggler (cdi) Supports CD formats: CD-DA, CD+G, CD-ROM, CD-XA, Video CD, Photo CD, Mixed Mode, Multi-session CD Supports DVD formats: DVD-ROM, DVD-Video, DVD-Audio