Can't boot from DVD drive

  • Thread starter Thread starter Flip Wilson
  • Start date Start date
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Flip Wilson

I installed windows 7 a few weeks ago. Now my DVD drive isn't available to
boot from. The drive is detected in my BIOS, and works fine once windows
boots. Any help would be appreciated.
 
Flip said:
I installed windows 7 a few weeks ago. Now my DVD drive isn't available to
boot from. The drive is detected in my BIOS, and works fine once windows
boots. Any help would be appreciated.
Click to expand...

Well, that does NOT mention if you could boot from the DVD drive *before*
installing Windows 7 (assuming you were using some OS on the same host
before you moved to Windows 7). So were you able to boot from that drive
before?

Did you check the boot drive order in your BIOS settings?
 
VanguardLH said:
Well, that does NOT mention if you could boot from the DVD drive
*before* installing Windows 7 (assuming you were using some OS on the
same host before you moved to Windows 7). So were you able to boot
from that drive before?

Did you check the boot drive order in your BIOS settings?
Click to expand...

Yes. I booted from my DVD drive to install Windows 7. As for the boot
order, my DVD drive isn't on the list of devices to select for booting.
 
Flip Wilson said:
Yes. I booted from my DVD drive to install Windows 7. As for the boot
order, my DVD drive isn't on the list of devices to select for booting.
Click to expand...

Is 'CD' or 'CD-ROM' listed as one of the items that you can boot?
 
Is 'CD' or 'CD-ROM' listed as one of the items that you can boot?
Click to expand...

In the CMOS setup utility, my CDROM drive shows up as "SONY CD-RW CRX" under "IDE
Primary Master". My DVD drive shows up as "HL-DT-STDVD-RA" under "IDE Primary
Slave"

As for boot options, there are 9 options:
1) Floppy
2) - 4) Card Reader
5) - 7) Hard drives
8) "CD/DVD: PM-SONY CD-RW CRX216"
9) Disabled

So my CD drive is available to boot from.
 
philo said:
That's the problem then you will need to let your bios re-detect it

Note: it may say CDROM instead of DVD
Click to expand...

I did try unplugging the power and data cables from the drive, rebooting,
then plugging both back in to let the bios re-detect it, but nothing
appears to have changed.
 
Flip Wilson said:
In the CMOS setup utility, my CDROM drive shows up as "SONY CD-RW CRX"
under "IDE
Primary Master". My DVD drive shows up as "HL-DT-STDVD-RA" under "IDE
Primary
Slave"

As for boot options, there are 9 options:
1) Floppy
2) - 4) Card Reader
5) - 7) Hard drives
8) "CD/DVD: PM-SONY CD-RW CRX216"
9) Disabled

So my CD drive is available to boot from.
Click to expand...

So what happens if you choose > 5) - 7) Hard drives and select the
subcategory HL-DT-STDVD-RA ?
 
So what happens if you choose > 5) - 7) Hard drives and select the
subcategory HL-DT-STDVD-RA ?
Click to expand...

I'm sorry, Jan. I'm not sure I understand what you are asking. The list I
was referring to were available boot devices. I don't think there are any
subcategories. 5) - 7) Represent my 3 hard drives.
 
Well if the device is usable from within the OS it's got to be OK

It should be listed somewhere in the bios?
Click to expand...

It is in the CMOS setup utility. Otherwise nowhere that I can find in the
BIOS.
 
Flip Wilson said:
I'm sorry, Jan. I'm not sure I understand what you are asking. The list I
was referring to were available boot devices. I don't think there are any
subcategories. 5) - 7) Represent my 3 hard drives.
Click to expand...


I guess I misunderstood so am sorry for the direction I was trying to lead
you. I thought the HL-DT-STDVD-RA was showing up as a bootable device under
the hard drive category. Another thought to try is disconnecting the Sony
CD-ROM drive and keep the DVD drive attached.

And here goes the stretch thought: check out the mb maker's website to see
if there is an updated bios, and if there is read what their comments are to
what it fixes.
 
Flip said:
In the CMOS setup utility, my CDROM drive shows up as "SONY CD-RW CRX" under "IDE
Primary Master". My DVD drive shows up as "HL-DT-STDVD-RA" under "IDE Primary
Slave"

As for boot options, there are 9 options:
1) Floppy
2) - 4) Card Reader
5) - 7) Hard drives
8) "CD/DVD: PM-SONY CD-RW CRX216"
9) Disabled

So my CD drive is available to boot from.
Click to expand...

There isn't a boot *order* configuration (i.e., what order of drive types to
use)? Try using the following boot device order:

first=#1(floppy)
second=#8(CD/DVD)
third=#5-7(hard disk)

Did you have a disc in the CD-RW drive and not in the DVD-RA drive? That
might've been why the first drive with media was listed. It may also simply
list the first found device but any such device type would work. That is,
if you put a disc in the CD-RW drive then you can boot from that, but there
is no disc in that one but there is in the next device (DVD-RA) then that
device gets used for booting.

What is the current boot *order* now? You said that you were able to boot
using the DVD-RA drive when you installed Windows 7. You sure it was the
DVD drive and not the CD-RW drive?

Did you open the case at any time to change hardware before or after your
install of Windows 7? Maybe you tugged on the data cable going to the DVD
drive and pulled it off or loosened it.

Can you use the DVD drive (not for booting but just reading files off discs
that you put in it)?
 
I installed windows 7 a few weeks ago. Now my DVD drive isn't available to
boot from. The drive is detected in my BIOS, and works fine once windows
boots. Any help would be appreciated.
Click to expand...


Is it with the same install-disc you can't boot ?
or an other bootable disk ?
or not at all possible to boot from any bootable disc ?

It is possible that the format of the un-bootable disk is 'ISO 13346
UDF' standard;
Some older BIOS (maybe +/- 4 years old) don't recognise always this
format and give possible an 'error 15', and take the next bootable
device specified in the BIOS.
If that is the problem, it's possible to boot with a bootable
'workaround BIOS' LINUX floppy, set as first boot,
and then select the ISO/UDF-disc.

Lucas
 
Flip Wilson said:
I installed windows 7 a few weeks ago. Now my DVD drive isn't available to
boot from. The drive is detected in my BIOS, and works fine once windows
boots. Any help would be appreciated.
Click to expand...

DVD drive is detected by BIOS is one thing if you configure BIOS to BOOT
from DVD first is another story.

So, go back to your BIOS and configure it to search/boot from

1. DVD
2. Hard Drive (1st hard drive)
3. Hard Drive (2nd hard drive)

and so on....
 
There isn't a boot *order* configuration (i.e., what order of drive
types to use)? Try using the following boot device order:

first=#1(floppy)
second=#8(CD/DVD)
third=#5-7(hard disk)
Click to expand...

Yes. There is a boot order. I've already tried that boot order, and my
PC always boots from the hard drive. Just for kicks, I tried making my
CD drive my first, second AND third boot device, (with "Boot other
device" set to "NO") and it still booted from the hard drive, which I
wasn't expecting. Looks like my PC boots from one of my hard drive
regardless of the boot device order.



Did you have a disc in the CD-RW drive and not in the DVD-RA drive?
That might've been why the first drive with media was listed. It may
also simply list the first found device but any such device type would
work. That is, if you put a disc in the CD-RW drive then you can boot
from that, but there is no disc in that one but there is in the next
device (DVD-RA) then that device gets used for booting.
Click to expand...

Good point. I've tried booting with a CD in my CD drive and DVD in my
DVD drive. Neither will boot.

What is the current boot *order* now? You said that you were able to
boot using the DVD-RA drive when you installed Windows 7. You sure it
was the DVD drive and not the CD-RW drive?
Click to expand...

Yes. Windows 7 was installed from a DVD, not a CD.


Did you open the case at any time to change hardware before or after
your install of Windows 7?
Click to expand...

Before I installed windows7, I replaced a TV card. I was able to boot
from my DVD drive then because I was able to install windows. After
windows was installed and my DVD drive couldn't boot, I unplugged the
data and power cables to the DVD drive, rebooted, then turned the PC off
and reconnected the cables securely to let the DVD be detected again.

Maybe you tugged on the data cable going
to the DVD drive and pulled it off or loosened it.
Click to expand...
Can you use the DVD drive (not for booting but just reading files off
discs that you put in it)?
Click to expand...

Yes. Once Windows 7 boots, my DVD drive works fine.
 
Well, I've gone as far as I can on a *generic* host since you never have
identified your make and model. Could be you have SATA hard disks and IDE
optical drives and somehow SATA devices get booted first, or you SATA
optical drives and IDE hard disks and the BIOS defaults to using IDE devices
first.
 
VanguardLH said:
Well, I've gone as far as I can on a *generic* host since you never
have identified your make and model. Could be you have SATA hard
disks and IDE optical drives and somehow SATA devices get booted
first, or you SATA optical drives and IDE hard disks and the BIOS
defaults to using IDE devices first.
Click to expand...

My motherboard is an XFX nForce 610I GEFORCE 7050 SOCKET775 DD
 
Flip said:
My motherboard is an XFX nForce 610I GEFORCE 7050 SOCKET775 DD
Click to expand...

IF you installed the OS from the DVD.
AND you didn't change ANYTHING,
I can't see any way windows could have affected the system unless
it reflashed your BIOS. I don't think it did that.

I'm too lazy to reread the thread, so some of this may be redundant...
Did you unplug the hard drive and see if it would boot from DVD?
Did you swap the DVD to the primary port?

I have seen situations where the system would skip the DVD
and boot directly from the HD. But if I removed the HD, it would
boot from the DVD. I'm just guessing that my DVD drive was marginal.
With no other available boot options, it may try more times before
giving up.

There's a thing called PLOP boot manager.
I've used it on older systems where the bios didn't let me boot
the way I wanted. I booted PLOP from a floppy
and used it to select the boot device.

http://www.plop.at/en/bootmanagerdl.html
 
mike said:
IF you installed the OS from the DVD.
AND you didn't change ANYTHING,
I can't see any way windows could have affected the system unless
it reflashed your BIOS. I don't think it did that.

I'm too lazy to reread the thread, so some of this may be redundant...
Did you unplug the hard drive and see if it would boot from DVD?
Did you swap the DVD to the primary port?

I have seen situations where the system would skip the DVD
and boot directly from the HD. But if I removed the HD, it would
boot from the DVD. I'm just guessing that my DVD drive was marginal.
With no other available boot options, it may try more times before
giving up.

There's a thing called PLOP boot manager.
I've used it on older systems where the bios didn't let me boot
the way I wanted. I booted PLOP from a floppy
and used it to select the boot device.

http://www.plop.at/en/bootmanagerdl.html
Click to expand...

That sounds like a terrific utility and a winner if it works.
Earlier in the thread I'd mentioned to the OP to take a look at the support
site for his mb and see if there happens to be a newer bios for his mb, and
if so to see what it fixes. He recently posted the name and number of his mb
and I went to XFX (maker of his mb) but found one had to register their
product before any downloads would be available. That stopped my search as I
had no XFX motherboard serial number to register.
About ten years ago I had an Abit KT7 that at some point in its life
wouldn't allow booting from the CD, even when I chose the CD as the first
device. It had a pretty early bios in the KT7 series and when I flashed it
to the newest I was suddenly re-able to boot from the CD. It was memorable
to me at least, and I thought perhaps the same possiblity could be true of
the OP's mb, should there be a new bios available.
 
Flip said:
XFX nForce 610
Click to expand...

I tried going to their support page but I get:

Why do I need to register to access Support Central? We request that you
register to gain access to Support Central so that we can provide the
drivers, utilities and manuals that apply to your specific product serial
number. By knowing your specific serial number, we can provide you with
support tailored to your specific needs.

Oh yeah, like I'm not supposed to noticed when some perp wants to fondle my
package. No thanks. They don't get my e-mail address. Nor do I have a
serial number to give them. I was going to see if they had a good online
manual but it looks like you'll have to do the reading.
 
It is in the CMOS setup utility. Otherwise nowhere that I can find in the
BIOS.
Click to expand...

I'm just getting used to the ASUS BIOS in my new PC, and also had a
problem booting from other than the 1st hard drive.
At first, I kept having to go into BIOS to change the boot order
if I wanted to boot from e.g. a LiveDVD.

Then I discovered that if I press F8 during the switch-on period, a
Boot Menu would appear, and I could simply select which entry in the
table to use. (This is not mentioned in the manual!)

With my previous PC it was F11 I ahd to hit during P.O.S.T.

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