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Burner died?

Discussion in 'DVD / Blu-ray drives' started by ravens1, Feb 24, 2007.

  1. ravens1

    ravens1 Regular member

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    I have been using my burner for a little over a year now, and now it doesn't work. It will not read, write, or recognize dvds. This all happened today, which is the day after i got back from a vacation. I didn't keep my computer on during my vacation.

    When i go to Start, then My Computer, my dvd drive doesn't show up like it normally does.



    So, is it dead, or is there something i can do to fix it?
    Thanks.


    Should i try a system restore if there isn't a problem with my burner, but some settings?
     
    Last edited: Feb 24, 2007
  2. ravens1

    ravens1 Regular member

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    I bought another dvd drive thinking that the dvd drive was the problem. Well, its not. I put in the dvd drive into my computer correctly and my computer still doesnt recognize it. It wont read/recognize and dvds, cds, nothing.

    This is getting very frustrating!!! So please, does anyone have an answer??!!!!
     
  3. rulisky

    rulisky Regular member

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    Go to your Device Manager under the Control Panel. Uninstall each CD/DVD drive that you have; one or more, all of them. Reboot. The system should automatically reinstall the drivers for each disk drive. They sometimes get screwed up causing the drive to not recognize a disk.

    If this does not cure the problem, post up and some one may have another idea.
     
  4. ravens1

    ravens1 Regular member

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    I was just switching my dvd drive and when my computer is booting up, i get these weird firmware message or something!! And now for some reason i cant login to my computer! I cant even do a system restore because when the screen comes up about what i want to do, like start windows normally, last known good configuration, i cant do them. I will select one and push enter and my computer will restart!!! Its kind of like a loop going nowhere. I cant login!!

    What should i do now??!! Is it an error with an IDE thing or something. I don't want to pay more money to get it fixed.

    Im using my other computer as of now.

    Thanks.
     
  5. rulisky

    rulisky Regular member

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    Try putting everything back to the way it was before you tried to change drive. Carefully look for loose connections. Sometimes REAL easy to knock one just a little; even the ones you did not unplug. Be sure all is snug and power up again.
     
  6. ravens1

    ravens1 Regular member

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    No luck. I checked, then double checked. My new drive left like a firmware thing that crashes my computer at startup.

    There has to be a way to fix it, since a computer store can. Is there software or something i need or hardware?
     
  7. rulisky

    rulisky Regular member

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    The drivers on the computer allow it to work the actual disk drive unit.

    Firmware is a plan for the disk drives to handle the various media you put in the drive in order to read and write to the disk.

    There must be another problem here. This I am unfamiliar with. Hopefully, some one else can provide more info.
     
  8. ravens1

    ravens1 Regular member

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    Thanks for your help. But I have question, about 3 weeks I made a floppy disk that is bootable with some program called Easy Recovery. Can I boot from this floppy disc upon startup?
     
  9. rulisky

    rulisky Regular member

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    Worth a try.
     
  10. ravens1

    ravens1 Regular member

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    Still doesnt work. I press F8 upon startup, then a screen appears asking what boot device i want to boot. My floppy doesnt appear there.
     
  11. ravens1

    ravens1 Regular member

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    I wrote down the message i get since i put in the new drive:

    Novell Netware ready firmware v1.00 (940809)

    SiS 900/7016 PCI Adapters DOS ODI Driver v1.14 (020416)


    RPL-ROM-ADR
    RPL-ROM-IRQ:11

    RPL-ROM-FFC:5




    Ive been doing a lot of researching on the web, and i might know what the problem is, but i dont know how to fix it. Im reading other peoples problems kind of like mine. By reading, i think that i have a problem with something not finding the HD, or something to do with An IDE.


    So if anyone knows what i should do, please post, and i will really appreciate it.




    Ok, i took a few pictures:

    Click here
    This is of the screen right after the normal screen that appears when i turn my pc on.


    This is what i get every time i turn on my computer. Whichever option i choose, my pc restarts giving me this screen again.


    This is how i connect my dvd drive, before and now. I am kind of confused about the master/slave thing though.


    This is a picture of i think a rip or something in my ide. However, i dont remember the rip being there. Or is it supposed to be there? But it doesnt connect to anything, so i guess it doesnt really matter.
     
    Last edited: Feb 25, 2007
  12. ravens1

    ravens1 Regular member

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    bump


    I have decided that i want to reformat, and I have the disc. But when i reformat does it uninstall hardware(like wireless desktop card), or just drivers like the sound card, and printer?

    Second question- I have been doing some reading, and i found out that you need to save "important files" before reformatting. What exactly are those "important files?"

    Third question- how do i set my computer to boot from my cd/dvd drive. And since my cd/dvd drive doesnt really work, will i not be able to reformat?? Or is worth a try?


    Thanks
     
  13. rulisky

    rulisky Regular member

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    Reformating the computer will WIPE out everything; like starting with a new computer. You will need to load all programs again. Any data from any program that you do not save to disk will be lost. So, important files would be something beyond the program(s) you have the disk for. Anything that you installed after buying the computer will need to be installed again. This would be fresh step, but a drastic one.

    I would not be the one to tell you to do this. All too often the reformat adds new problems. Something always seems to turn up missing and is a pain to get back. It would be better to try and solve the issue first.

    You probably need more help than I can give. I have never reformatted my computer. I have reinstalled Win 98 over itself to cure corrupted files. Same with XP.

    Since your CD/DVD drive is not working, you might not be able overwrite files. After a reformat, if the disk drive still won't work you could be screwed. Proceed with caution and additional advice!
     
  14. ravens1

    ravens1 Regular member

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    Yeah, i don't really want to reformat because i have some pictures and documents i really want. I know there just has to be a way to fix it, like skip that firmware screen. I just don't know! I need some good advice! I had a kind of similar problem with another computer. I took it in to the guy and he fixed it, without reformatting. But i just had to pay $170.



    thanks for the advice



    Oh yeah, here are some more pictures because someone might find soemthing wrong with them:

    HERE
    This picture is of my IDE coming out of my floppy drive. I don't know if it should be ripped or not, but it doesnt really matter because the IDE is not connected to anything normally.


    HERE
    This picture is of how i connect my dvd drive. I know that the cables are loose into the drive, im just doing that as a picture. I am kind of confused about the master/slave settings though.


    HERE
    This is just a picture of the choices i can choose from.




    When i have more time i will take a video or something.
     
    Last edited: Feb 26, 2007
  15. hobbit112

    hobbit112 Regular member

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    It sounds to me that you might have either a, heaven forbid, a "nasty" virus, or have had an operating system crash. I don't think your main problem right now is your dvd burner.

    How old is your system?

    Does your hard drive make any interesting noises? Does it seem to "grind"?

    Did you/Do you have an active, up-to-date anti-virus program running? Some viruses can corupt your hard drive and make it unreadable.

    On your boot up screen, did you try booting in "Safe Mode"? If you can't boot in "Safe Mode", you probably have a hard disk problem or a virus which has attacked your hard drive.

    As rulisky said, formating is a last ditch option, try all else first.

    Also, if I was going to reformat my hard drive and have docs, pics & movies I would like to try to keep, I'd BUY A NEW HARD DRIVE, format and put the new operating system on the new drive, install the old drive as a slave and try to recover the files.

    Your best bet might be to take it back to the person who built it for you.
     
  16. rulisky

    rulisky Regular member

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    It is possible that your IDE cable could be bad. They do break down over time. What you call a rip seems to be along the grooves. As long as it is not across the wires it should be ok, but then again it could be bad.

    You originally said it would not do anything with dvds; what about a cd? If it does recognize a cd, I would feel better about the system reinstall to overlay without format. Doing an overlay reinstall preserves your data.

    The first advice I gave about uninstalling drivers and reboot is the usual cure when the drive stops recognizing a disk type (corrupt driver).

    If you put it all back together as original, can you select "Last known good" to boot on?

    One more thing. The pin settings on the back of the disk drive. Master, Slave, and something else (I don't remember the name). If you changed it from one of the 3 positions, put it back to the original.
     
  17. ravens1

    ravens1 Regular member

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    Ok. Thanks for the replies.

    First off, i know i don't have any viruses on my computer because i scan quite often to find no viruses. I have not touched the master/slave thing. Just wondering what it was. Also, before this problem i had trouble getting into safe mode. I had to press the button very fast, but now i cant even get into that screen now no matter how fast i push it, before i get the firmware screen. My anti virus software was and is up to date.

    If you really think that the hard drive is the problem, i might consider buying one. But i don't want to buy one and find the exact same problem.

    I have not tried to do anything with cd's, so the xp disc might work. I know it wasn't the dvd drive that was bad because i put it in another computer, and it still works.

    And, i might consider taking the computer to the guy i bought it from, because the computer was used. He might charge me more than what a new HD costs because its been a long time since i bought it



    "You originally said it would not do anything with dvds; what about a cd? If it does recognize a cd, I would feel better about the system reinstall to overlay without format. Doing an overlay reinstall preserves your data." - this seems to be a good idea. I have a spare cd burner and I will put it in and see if it works. But are there any tutorials, or helpful advice from you that could tell me how to do an overlay?


    Ok. I took a picture HERE. It shows a possible place for the IDE that isn't hooked into anything but the floppy drive. Would that fix my problem; placing the IDE there. I never even touched or unplugged anything like th IDE. Also, i have been doing some research and i found out that the IDE coming out of the Floppy should have a twist.

    Thanks.
     
    Last edited: Feb 27, 2007
  18. rulisky

    rulisky Regular member

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    The overlay procedure is roughly this. Win 98 had a cd and a floppy. XP has a cd. Put the disk in the drive and turn on/restart the computer. The on screen prompts should guide you through the (re)install over the existing program files. Since you did not reformat or uninstall any programs this will put the program OS right over the old (while keeping your data and other programs).

    Some people will say this method is not as "good" as a total wipe out and fresh install. On the other hand, I never wanted all the headaches involved with re doing everything. It has worked for me by clearing up blue screen problems on Win 98 (several occasions) and one time on XP (don't remember reason).
     
  19. hobbit112

    hobbit112 Regular member

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    I've also done the overlay with 98 and XP, had sucess with it and agree that it should be tried first. If I remember correctly, both 98 and XP on the overlay run a scandisk first which should tell you (and fix to a certain respect) if your drive has errors.

    BTW, the motherboard connection and cable to the floppy drive are NOT the same as IDE. The cable to the floppy drive is split and twisted as you show. The floppy connection on the motherboard is labeled FDD or something close if I remember correctly. The IDE connections (there should be 2) are next to the floppy connection and I think labeled IDE0 & IDE1.
     
    Last edited: Feb 27, 2007
  20. ravens1

    ravens1 Regular member

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    Ok. i dont know if this matters but here is better picture.


    I say that whichever option on that screen i choose leads to a reboot of my pc. There is this screen that flickers incredibly fast. I took a video and am playing around with it trying to read what it says. I'm now trying to pause/stop it. Ill see if i can put it on youtube.
     

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