You're looking for information on how to play Age of Empires 1 without a CD.

The legacy of Age of Empires 1 (1997) is often tied to the technical hurdles of running the original CD-ROM version on modern hardware. While "No-CD cracks" were common in the early 2000s, today there are safer and more efficient ways to enjoy the game without needing the physical disc. 1. Modern & Legal Alternatives

There are several methods to crack Age of Empires 1 and play it without a CD. Here are some of the most popular ones:

Maintains the original gameplay feel without the DRM headache.

Using unauthorized ".exe" replacements from "warez" or "crack" websites is generally discouraged for the following reasons: Running game without a physical CD drive - Super User

If you tell me which platform and whether you own the game, I can give step-by-step help to install or run it legally on modern Windows.

While effective at the time, this created several issues for modern users: