How to Diagnose CD-ROM Problems




These are some symptoms that may be caused by the CD-ROM. Other components may also cause these same symptoms, check the general diagnosis page for more information.
Symptom
Check
Click on underlined items for further information
I cannot access the drive and the light does not go on
  • Check that the power and controller cables are securely attached to the drive.
  • Verify that pin #1 of the controller cable is matched to pin #1 on the drive and on the motherboard.
  • The operating system may not be configured to use or "see" the drive.
  • If it never worked, verify that the jumpers on the drive are set correctly.
I cannot access the drive but the light does go on
  • The CD may be damaged or unreadable.
  • Try removing and reinserting the disk.
  • Try cleaning the CD.
  • Verify that pin #1 of the controller cable is matched to pin #1 on the drive and on the motherboard.
  • If it never worked, verify that the jumpers on the drive are set correctly.
The drive drawer will not open
  • Press the button once and wait at least a minute.
  • In Windows, go to "My Computer", right click on the CD-ROM drive and choose "Eject" from the menu.
  • With the computer unplugged, you can open most CD-ROM drawers with a unwound paper clip. Poke it, as straight as possible, into the hole and push with moderate force (the paper clip may bend a little) to force the drawer open a half inch. Now pull the drawer the rest of the way open.
  • If the problem persists, check that the power connector and controller cable are securely connected to the drive.
  • A CD may be jammed or broken inside the drive. Access may require the removal of the drive's outer case. If this is necessary, it is very likely that the drive will have to be replaced.
I hear it spinning and then stopping repeatedly
  • The CD may be damaged or unreadable.
  • Try removing and reinserting the disk.
  • Try cleaning the CD.
  • Verify that pin #1 of the controller cable is matched to pin #1 on the drive and on the motherboard.
  • If it never worked, verify that the jumpers on the drive are set correctly.
The drive seems to transfer data too slowly
  • Is the drive on the same controller cable as the primary hard drive? If so, performance will be slowed because only one device can communicate at a time. Move it to the second IDE controller.