CDROM Troubleshooting steps:
1.Remove and reseat the drive.
A loose connection can cause the drive not to work properly.
If possible, remove the drive from the system and reseat it making sure it
is firmly and well seated.
2.Remove the drive from device manager.
Removing the drive controllers from device manager and rebooting to let
Windows reload them sometimes helps.
Win2000, WinXP:
Right click on My Computer, click on properties.
Click on the Hardware Tab.
Click the Device Manager button.
Click the + next to DVD/CDROM devices.
Right click the appropriate device entry that appears under DVD/CDROM then
click Uninstall.
Perform this step for any other devices listed under the CDROM category.
Reboot the computer.
4.Install an Antivirus program and run a full virus scan.
A virus will cause the cdrom drives not to work properly to keep you from
cleaning out the virus.
If you already have an antivirus program installed, run a full system scan.
If you don't have an antivirus program installed, try to install one and run
a full system scan.
If you are unable to install an antivirus program because of a possible
virus, get a dos version of the program to run.
5.Reset the bios defaults if applicable on the system.
Resetting the bios defaults resets any bios settings that may have gotten
corrupt.
This should allow the cdrom drive to redetect if the problem is caused by
the bios.
You can find information on how to do so on the following sites:
--How do I restore the Setup Defaults on my DellT InspironT portable
computer?
http://support.dell.com/us/en/kb/document.asp?DN=1035265
--How do I restore the Setup Defaults on my DellT InspironT portable
computer?
http://support.dell.com/us/en/kb/document.asp?DN=FA1035265
--How do I restore setup defaults on my DellT LatitudeT system?
http://support.dell.com/us/en/kb/document.asp?DN=FA1035267
6.Update your bios file to the latest version.
Go to the main Dell Support site:
https://support.dell.com/register.aspx
Input your service tag number and click "Sign in to Standard Support".
Click the Downloads button.
Under the "Select Your Download Category" section, choose "Flash Bios
Updates".
Then click GO.
Click the Dell XXXX XXXX System Bios link that comes up.
Click the Dell XXXX XXXX System Bios link that comes up again.
Click on the file name XXXXXX.EXE for FLOPPY version.
Click Download Now Using HTTP.
Save the file to your desktop.
Put a blank formatted floppy in the floppy drive.
Double click the file to create the bios update boot floppy.
Once that is done, leave the floppy in the drive and reboot the system.
The bios will be updated when the system boots to the floppy.
7.Try upgrading the drives firmware revision.
Find the model type of the drive.
Then go to the Dell downloads page and put in the model type of the drive to
see if there are any firmware updates for it.
Go to the main Dell Support site:
https://support.dell.com/register.aspx
Input your service tag number and click "Sign in to Standard Support".
Click the Downloads button.
Put the drive model in the search box and click GO.
If there is a firmware updated listed, download it, create the update disk,
and update the drives firmware.
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Question:
How do I find out what model of Hard Drive, CDROM, CDRW, DVDROM drive I
have?
Answer:
Win2000 WinXP:
Right click on My Computer, click on properties.
Click the Hardware tab.
Click the Device Manager button.
Click the + next to DVD/CD-ROM drives.
You should see your drive listed, an example would be: Lite-On LTN483S 48X
MAX.
The drive model number would be "LTN483S"
--Another way to tell is to check the system registry.
You can use the steps below that are listed for checking the drives firmware
revision.
An example of a drive listing in the registry would be:
IDE\CdRomLite-On_LTN483S_48x_Max_________________PD03____\5&261012d&0&0.1.0
The drive model number would be ""LTN483S""
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8.Uninstall any 3rd party programs.
If you installed any 3rd party programs before the problem started, (Roxio
Easy CD Creator, Nero Burning Rom, Intel Application Accelerator), then
uninstall the program and reboot the system.
10.Test the drive using the Dell Diagnostics.
You can find information on how to run the Dell Diagnostics on the following
site:
http://support.dell.com/us/en/kb/document.asp?DN=1060550#toc
11.Test another drive if possible.
-Try another drive in your system, does it work?
If so, your old drive is probably bad.
If not, the cdrom connectors on the motherboard are probably bad.
-Try your drive on another system, does it work?
If so, the cdrom connectors on the motherboard for your system are probably
bad.
If not, then the drive is probably bad.
12. Check the Windows XP/2000 Registry.
Click Start and then click Run.
The Run window appears.
In the Open: field, type Regedit and then click OK.
The Registry Editor window appears.
Click the plus (+) sign next to the following folders:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER
Software
Microsoft
Windows
CurrentVersion
Policies
Click to select the Explorer folder.
In the right-pane, check to see if an entry labeled NoDrives is present.
If this entry is listed, right-click the entry and then left-click Delete.
The Confirm Value Delete window appears.
Click Yes to confirm removal.
Close the Registry Editor window.
Restart the computer.
