CD/DVD drive not working.

[Lizardizzle]

Well, i didn't want to make a thread here because no one comes here. But oh well.

Well, I Got Spore a couple days ago, and I was so happy. I pop it in my CD/DVD drive, AAANNNNDDD.................... nothing happens. It just sits there. I open "Computer" and double click on Drive E It sits there for a minute, then opens a window asking to insert a disk into the drive. "Wtf...? It's right there!" I go. After trying many times, to no avail, i ask my dad for help.

After literally EIGHT HOURS of testing and looking for updates and rolling back the computer to when it worked, we find that the drive can read:

any CD-ROM burned
any CD-ROM Stamped
any DVD-ROM Burned (BY THE COMPUTER THAT BURNED THE DISK BUT NOT BY BURNS DONE BY OTHER COMPUTERS)
no DVD-ROM's Stamped.

I have found that the lazer reads disks by using a single laser, but focusing at different lengths for CD's and DVD's (like a magnifying glass on a sunny day).

My hypothesis is that the drive's DVD focusing lens is busted in some way, which keeps it from reading the disk.

However, It CAN read DVD's that the computer itself burned, which creates a large hole in my theory. It's very Frustrating. And I would really like to play Spore.


Any help would be appreciated.

 

[Mc Bane]

Buy a new one.

 

[Druckles]

laser.

Have you tried replacing the drive with a different one?

 

[Unfocused]

Maybe try taking the drive out of your PC case and shaking it a bit (would be probably a good idea to do this without the disc inside). My drive occasionally stops spinning and shaking it fixes the problem. It's currently outside the case, lying on a few DVD boxes, so that it's horizontal and I can 'fix' it anytime easily.

On the other hand you said it reads SOME discs, so I don't know if that will be of help.

Buy a new one.

Holy ****, genius.

 

[Asus]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SecuROM#Known_problems

My guess is it is something with spore. That's when it started right? D:
Didn't a lot of people's drives stop working when they put an audio CD from Sony record label w/their anti-piracy measure on disc and hidden auto install? And since it is DRM it may also be affecting other DVDs from the market. (random speculation)
Or it could be just a bad Spore disc.

If it can read it can read...don't buy a new drive. If anything uninstall the drive and reinstall it.
And I bet the burned discs your drive cannot read are RW discs (if the discs are setup as drop-n-drag on the other computer then your PC would need additional software too otherwise no read).

 

[Higlac]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151173

or try a lens cleaner, but seriously, try swapping the DVD drive with another computer. If the other drive works, then go spend the $25.

 

[Druckles]

try swapping the DVD drive with another computer.

Computers don't fit in DVD drive slots.

 

[Higlac]

It might fit in there if you slide it in diagonally?

 

[Druckles]

Or if you cut the sides out.

 

[Higlac]

Anyways, I think you get that I meant to swap the DVD drive with one from another computer.

 

[Druckles]

Anyways, I think you get that I meant to swap the DVD drive with one from another computer.

Have you tried replacing the drive with a different one?

I think so do you.

 

[Lizardizzle]

hmm...lot's of replies. I'll answer the ones who are GOOD. :|

laser.

Have you tried replacing the drive with a different one?

Buying a whole new drive is our last resort. If you mean by UPDATING the driver, then yes we have tried that, to no avail

Maybe try taking the drive out of your PC case and shaking it a bit (would be probably a good idea to do this without the disc inside). My drive occasionally stops spinning and shaking it fixes the problem. It's currently outside the case, lying on a few DVD boxes, so that it's horizontal and I can 'fix' it anytime easily.

On the other hand you said it reads SOME discs, so I don't know if that will be of help.

ok, but the problem isn't the fact that it doesn't spin, because it can read CD-ROM's fine, along with burn't copies of disks that it made, but no others. Strange,isn't it?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SecuROM#Known_problems

My guess is it is something with spore. That's when it started right? D:
Didn't a lot of people's drives stop working when they put an audio CD from Sony record label w/their anti-piracy measure on disc and hidden auto install? And since it is DRM it may also be affecting other DVDs from the market. (random speculation)
Or it could be just a bad Spore disc.

If it can read it can read...don't buy a new drive. If anything uninstall the drive and reinstall it.
And I bet the burned discs your drive cannot read are RW discs (if the discs are setup as drop-n-drag on the other computer then your PC would need additional software too otherwise no read).

well, first: No, it's not the disk because it did this a week or so ago, but I thought it was just a bad disk. I also Installed spore on our laptop untillwe could get it working. It wastes install, I know, but I really wanted to try it, and I love it. ^-^

Second: Yeah, I [my dad] tried uninstalling it, but it didn't work. And care to re-state that third paragraph? I don't get that, sorry....

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151173

or try a lens cleaner, but seriously, try swapping the DVD drive with another computer. If the other drive works, then go spend the $25.

That's a little too expensive. My mom is all ready angry that I spent so much on spore and the new mouse we got. and lens cleaner... That's the disk you buy with the stuff that cleans the lens somehow, right?

And when you swap the drive, do you mean literally take it out and replace it with another computer, or share two drives using the network?

My dad tried sharing the sharing our two computers together to have one computer read the disk, and install it on the other, but we couldn't get the drives to recognize each other. We we trying to share my dad's XP Laptop's drive with our Vista Desktop and install it that way, But we couldn't do it.

We were able to share the :C drives (main storage) fine, but we couldn't get it to share the two CD/DVD drives at all

 

[Druckles]

Buying a whole new drive is our last resort. If you mean by UPDATING the driver, then yes we have tried that, to no avail.

I meant taking the drive out of someone elses computer temporarily. See if that worked. Or try the same drive in a different computer.[/QUOTE]

 

[Higlac]

I meant taking the drive out of someone elses computer temporarily. See if that worked. Or try the same drive in a different computer.

I should really read posts before I post. But yeah, try that.

 

[Druckles]

Anyways, I think you get that I meant to swap the DVD drive with one from another computer.

This guy should really read posts before he replies.