PC not "seeing" CDs

[cmpgeek]

In the middle of the day Sunday my PC stopped seeing the CDs inthe CD-RW drive. It sees the drive itself and says it is working properly, but no matter what we put in the drive (whether it is software or an audio CD), the drive always lists as being empty. We i click on "RUN" and enter "D:\" it tells me to put a CD in even though there is already one in there... I tried updating the drivers, but it says it has the 'latest and greatest' available... I have run *scan disk* *disk cleanup* & the defrag... i have checked for viruses (none were found)... I have run out of ideas...

any suggestions anyone has would be greatly appreciated...

Thanks...

 

[Lammbock]

Sounds like a hardware problem...
Do you hear the typical "spinning sound" when you insert a CD, there might be some power-trouble.
Otherwise the DMA-Cable might be broken. Try to replace it.

 

[cmpgeek]

I've not really listened for it... i do not typically hear it (maybe because it is not right next to me; but about a foot or so away... i will see if that happens when i get home today...

I saw a suggestion in another list to remove them from the device manager and then restart and let Windows reinstall them... would that be the same as uninstalling just the driver? as I have done that already, but i did not uninstall the actual CD-RW...

thanks again for your suggestions...

 

[KASGPEX]

I had some problems with my CD-RW one'ce like this.. As LammBock said, you might need to replace the DMA cable.. Actually my problem was my cable was loose. ;b

1. Remove All The Drivers For The CD-RW In The System, You Can Do This By Removing The CD-RW From The Device Manager (Which is basically removing the drivers for Windows)..
2. You basically have to open your PC up. Disconnect and Reconnect all the cables to the CD-RW (includes power and sound card cables).. Startup the computer again, and see if it recognizes the CD-RW drivers (Plug&Play). If still doesn't work. Skip to Step 3, if it still doesn't work after that.. Your CD-RW has probibly a bad component in it (burned out or something/dead). If you have experience with a volt tester you can see if everything is connnected properly or working properly too..
3. Buy a new DMA cable, connect it, and throw out the older one.. Then see if it works.

 

[cmpgeek]

Thank you both for your help... if the case needs to be cracked then I will take it back to the store so they can fix it (it is still under warranty)... i was just trying to eliminate any software issues before i went that route in hopes of saving some money...

thanks again

 

[ceh4702]

Sometimes it is just a loose cable. Try unplugging the cables and carefully plugging them back in. A CDROM can make a lot of vibration.

If you do not like my post feel free to point out your opinion or my errors.

 

[nlm9802]

I have noticed this problem with a batch of dell laptops we ordered. it seems certani media just is not recognized by the cdrw drive.
we tried many imation 4-10x cdrw's amd they would not be recognized in any of the 50 or so laptops we received. any other cd cdr or cdrw worked fine.

Nick
Computer Support, no not just hardware.. I support everything

 

[cmpgeek]

the more i think about this, the more i am thinking / hoping it is a loose cable... espically since it was working fine that morning and then all of a sudden it cant read the CDs...

 

[Hainley]

My PC was doing the same thing. Turns out I had a dirty CDRW...cleaned up the optical reader, and it works like a champ.


Cheers!