if i'm posting in the wrong area. am new and only a little computer savvy. have toshiba odd-dvd sd-m1802 with windows xp running power dvd and dvd region+css free software. i've played lots of region 1 (usa) dvd movies as well as european region dvds for several months. problem: one day no disk in drive e. i've uninstalled and reinstalled drivers. looked for new drivers. inserted several different dvd, even brand new movies and made sure they are seated properly. done the troubleshooting and even read through some theads here looking for answers. when dvd is inserted the light blinks steadily for some time and then informs me there is no disk in the drive. going through the drive i get a message that windows does not recognize or problem with disc. under device manager it claims device is working properly. sorry if this has been asked and answered before. what do i do? is it time to send away for service, buy a new dvd player (obviously not toshiba from what i've seen here) or call it a day? thanks so much for any direction you can offer. - ikarian girl
no. it's an internal dvd. one day i took the two side covers off, but couldn't see into the drive. it would require more screw drivers and i'm not that comfortable with dismantaling my computer.
Ok no worries. By uninstalling the drivers do you mean uninstalling the drive through Device Manager? If you haven't tried this it may be worth a shot Go to Device Manager > Expand the tree for DVD/CD ROM Drives > Find the drive in question, right click it and go to Properties > Under the Driver tab, select Uninstall then OK. Now reboot and Windows should detect and reinstall the drive. If this doesn't help try the same steps as above except expand the tree for IDE ATA/ATA Controllers and uninstall either the Primary or Secondary controller depending on which one the drive in question is attatched to. Nero Info Tool can tell you which chain the drive is on under the Configuration tab. http://www.afterdawn.com/software/cdr_software/cdr_tools/nero_info_tool.cfm
Nephilim - I actually did uninstall through the device manager previously, saw it in a thread here and tried. I downloaded the Nero tool, saw the dvd drive under the secondary and uninstalled. Restarted, still no disk in drive E. Does this mean it's a lost cause? If so, I appreciate all your help and would seriously value your opinion on what brand to invest in this time around. I'm in Greece, but assume they have the same brands as in the states. thanks again - ikarian girl
i highly doubt it's a lost cause. don't worry; the guys around here are pretty intelligent and will probably have you all straightened out soon. do you know anyone who would be comfortable enough to take the drive out and try it in another computer? if you did, that could help eliminate a lot of possibilities; if not, trust in Nephilim. he's like the AD God or something...at least a Bishop, lol.
Bishop Nephilim. That sounds odd doesn't it? Hmmmm. If you're comfortable taking the side of the case off you might want to do that and check that the cables are firmly seated in the back of the drive. As Auslander suggested if you know someone that you trust to remove the drive to test in another PC that would be the best way to tell if it's the drive or something to do with your system but, again if it's not possible don't sweat it. Do you have an ASPI layer installed? If you do, it may be corrupted and need reinstalling or if you don't we may want to install one to see if that helps us out. ASPI is a small driver layer that sits between your drives and the rest of your system that lets them communicate. So let's start by first finding out if you have an ASPI layer or not using ASPICHK: http://www.adaptec.com/worldwide/su...oduct/EZ-SCSI_5.0&filekey=aspichk.exe&sess=no
Biship Nephilim - (i like that, not that i know you, but . . .) Ok, used your link to download, but saw the following: "Caution: Do NOT install ASPI32.EXE with Windows 2000, Windows ME, Windows XP, Easy CD Creator 4.x, or with Windows Media Player 7.0. If you have one of these applications (or operating systems), you will be using a different aspi layer that will conflict with the one provided in this file. Use the new ASPI 4.70 driver found under SCSI Software downloads instead." Since I have Windows XP and Windows Media Player (although properties doesn't tell me which version) downloaded the following version: "This version of the ASPI Check utility will not work with the ASPI 4.70 layer, and will report false errors with the ASPI layer. Use the version of ASPICHK included in the ASPI 4.70 package instead." Reported: ASPI32.sys Version 4.5.7 WOWPOST.exe Version 4.5.7 WINASPI.dll Version 4.5.7 WNASPI32.dll version 4.5.7 Below all that is greyed out: ASPI is properly installed and fully operational Since it is grey, does it mean it's not installed or operating? I hope I got the right download and note a false report. Since I was born and bred on Mac, I'll defer to your god-like knowledge and download whatever you say. I won't be able to check on another computer as I don't have access to another one. If I work up the courage today, I'll unscrew the side panels again and see what I can see on the inside. You say there will be cables on the back of the drive? Bless you for your kindness - ikarian girl
Ok, your version of ASPI is an older one that can cause problems so lets install ForceASPI 1.8 in order to update your ASPI to 4.71.2 which is a very compatible one. Here's a link to the download and instructions: http://club.cdfreaks.com/showthread.php?t=101614
Ok. ASPI updated and cables checked. No disk in drive E. Any other suggestions? Thanks - ikarian girl
Bummer. It's beginning to sound like the drive may be dead. What firmware version is installed on your drive? If it's an older one we may try flashing the firmware to the newest version and see if that doesn't get your drive back online. Nero Info Tool will list the firmware version for you so if you don't have it here's where to get it: http://www.afterdawn.com/software/cdr_software/cdr_tools/nero_info_tool.cfm Just so you know firmware is a small set of instructions that reside on a small chip in your drive and tell the drive what to do and how to do it. This chip is sort of the "brain" of the drive
