CD drive won't open...HELP!

[Rknot]

So, I fire up the old computer and attempt to pop a disc out of the cd drive this morning. Nothing. I'm pressing the little button, holding the little button, again - nothing. Looked for a little paper-clip sized hole like the 3.5 floppy's have to eject stuck discs - no dice.

The computer is a Dell manufactured in 2001, I'm not sure of the model. It's running Windows 2000 Professional. One thing I think may have been the culprit is that I ran Spybot (tm?) recently and I don't know if that may have deleted something out of my registry.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

[Berkut]

Can you do it by going to My Computer, right-clicking on the drive, and choosing eject?

How about if you turn the computer on and try to open it before Windows gets a chance to load?

[KneadToKnow]

If it doesn't open when you press the button on the player, chances are that it's not getting power. I'd double-check that before doing anything else. Watch for the light to blink during startup. If it does, then it is getting power. If it doesn't, it almost certainly isn't.

If it's not the power, try reloading the drivers.

[Urban Ranger]

Originally posted by Joey G
How about if you turn the computer on and try to open it before Windows gets a chance to load?

That should do it. If not, boot into command prompt and try.

[Servo]

Pressing the button on the front of a CD drive should open it regardless of software. I don't believe there's anyway for anything software related to lock a CD drive.

What is the mechanism like? Is the tray one piece that just slides in and out, or is there a door that's hinged and gets pushed out the way when the tray comes out? I've had many problems with the door on the latter type getting dirty and sticking.

The things are so cheap today that it's probably best just to replace it. If you need to get the CD out you can usually just force the tray open by prying it with your fingers or a flat screwdriver. [It'll be stiff, but should open.]

[Rknot]

Okay, right-clicking on the drive in My Computer didn't work. I looked for a light on my cd drive but there only appears to be a light for the HD and the floppy. Pressing the button during startup (b/f Windows loaded) had no effect. I will try booting to the command prompt next. The drive type is the sliding tray kind. I don't have the drivers with me - anywhere you can suggest to find them online, maybe dell.com? I'm not quite desperate enough to pry it open - that'll be later this afternoon.

Thanks for all the suggestions so far!!

[Q.E.D.]

Older CD-ROM drives did indeed come with software that allowed one to lock the drive tray, normally by typing LOCK at the C:\> prompt. There was also an UNLOCK command.

[bcullman]

i *think* all CD/DVD players have the little hold for you can use a paperclip with to open the player...But on some players, this hold is obscurred by plastic molding to make your computer look *cool*.

That might be your situation. Perhaps some mild computer case disassemply is in order.

[SC_Wolf]

Before you go prying things appart with screwdrivers and hunting down a replacement drive, examine the front of the drive, to see if you can find a small (less than 1mm) hole somewhere on the front. If your drive has such a hole, get yourself a paper clip, bend it straight, and insert into the hole. This should manually eject the tray.

[KneadToKnow]

Before you get desperate enough to pry the drawer open, open the case and take the drive out. There almost certainly is a pinhole for manual release, it's probably just covered by the faceplate of the machine.

I still think it's not getting power. While you have the case open, try swapping the plug it's using with another one. There are usually one spare of each size to make upgrades easier.

[KneadToKnow]

Re-read the OP, SC. :)

[Berkut]

Originally posted by KneadToKnow
I still think it's not getting power. Looking more and more like this. Can you even access the CD drive? Does it work except for the fact that you can't get it open?

[ftg]

I strongly advise against the "jam a screwdriver" approach in Servo's post. There is so much wrong with doing this I can't begin to tell you...

For a last ditch way of getting a CD out, power off & unplug the computer, take the CD drive out, dissassemble it. There's usually 4 screws holding the top on. It might be interlinked with the faceplate and you will need to "uncatch" the hooks in that. Get to the spindle clamp holder. A couple screws will take that off. Tada. If you don't care about the drive (it is a loss to you), you don't have to worry about putting it back together.

Do not ever stick an object like screwdriver into an electronic device where it doesn't belong.

[Rknot]

Hmm. I can't pry apart the case right now. I am able to access the cd drive normally with explorer and manipulate its contents. However, it still won't open.

[prisoner6655321]

I'm suffering from a similar problem. But mine is a new DVD/CDRW drive on Windows XP. Sometimes it opens with the button, sometimes it doesn't. And whenever it doesn't open, using the eject entry in the context menu doesn't work either.

I know mine is getting power because when I restart the computer it starts working again. Then when I start swapping out CDs it shuts tight.

I also know there is a hole for a paperclip but I want the thing fixed. Using the paper clip is a real pain.

[Berkut]

Is it a CDRW or CDR stuck in the drive? On some Dells, you have to leave DirectCD running in the taskbar for the drive to work properly. Did you recently disable DirectCD?

[Q.E.D.]

You can try this. (http://downloads-zdnet.com.com/3000-2086-10164235.html?tag=list)

Hope it helps. This software, among other things, says it can lock, unlock and eject the drive tray. Worth a shot, maybe.

[Servo]

Originally posted by ftg
I strongly advise against the "jam a screwdriver" approach in Servo's post. There is so much wrong with doing this I can't begin to tell you...

I hardly said "jam a screwdriver."

I will admit to forgetting a warning about turning off the power, but this isn't removing a plug from a 120V wall outlet. These drives run on 12VDC -- there is nothing anywhere near the front opening of the drive that could hurt you. The very worst that could happen would be further damage to the [already broken] CD drive.

Using your finger nail or a screwdriver to pry open the tray on a CD drive will not cause any more damage [apart from scratching the plastic] than using the paper clip method if the drive has a hole for one.

I've done it many times to retrieve a stuck CD, and would always recommend it before I would recomment disassembling the drive.

[prisoner6655321]

Oh, no. Asamatteroffact it doesn't work. Usually, I am trying to re-open the drive because XP didn't recognize that there is a CD in the drive. I wonder if maybe the power cable IS loose. I'll have to check it when I get home, but frankly I'll be suprised if that is the cause. Hope so, maybe. Hopefully it's a cable or at worst he drive and not the MOBO. The MOBO cost me $700. The drive cost me $50.

[Reeder]

With my CD-ROM..if I'm burning and Nero errors, it won't let me open my tray unless I reboot. So it may very well be some program not letting you open it.

[Rknot]

Okay, I'm holding off on the "screwdriver solution." I ran adaptec and attempted to eject the disc- no dice. The disc is a data disc created after moving files in windows explorer to the disc. I still suspect Spybot may have cooked something important.

Thanks again for all the suggestions so far!

[KneadToKnow]

Originally posted by Rknot
I am able to access the cd drive normally with explorer and manipulate its contents. However, it still won't open.
Well, so much for no power. :) Reboot into safe mode (hold down F5 while booting, the menu should appear) and try it then. If it works, you've probably got a software conflict somewhere; if not, something in your registry probably has been smoked. You can try reinstalling the drivers at that point.

[X~Slayer(ALE)]

Have you tried trying to pop the thing out while the computer is still putzing with the bios?

Its too bad you dont have the XP feature of going back to the last time your computer was working right. That would prove whether or not that Spybot was the culprit.

[pipper]

You all are so lucky to have computers with cd drives. All mine came with is this silly cup holder......

[astro]

At the risk of being repetive I would recommend (as others have) that you look again for the eject pinhole somewhere, on or around the front bezel. I have dealt with dozens and dozens of different CD drives and they all had an eject pin hole. You might want to call DELL and ask them where it is if it has a non-standard location.

[ftg]

Originally posted by Servo
[B]I hardly said "jam a screwdriver."

I will admit to forgetting a warning about turning off the power, but this isn't removing a plug from a 120V wall outlet. These drives run on 12VDC -- there is nothing anywhere near the front opening of the drive that could hurt you. The very worst that could happen would be further damage to the [already broken] CD drive.

No, the 2nd worst that can happen is you fry some other part of your computer. You can easily cause a short in the CD drive, fry the PS and then get a cascade effect while things are going down. Since many computers have stuff crammed next to the CD drive you risk both electrical and physical damage when things go "oops".

Note that once a PS is damaged, the you do have a real danger to you. These things are frequently made so unbelievably cheaply that there is no guarantee of behavior once damaged. A fusible resistor and a cheap transformer can add up to a real danger.

There is also the risk of damaging the CD in the drive itself.

Why take any risk whatsoever?

[Q.E.D.]

Sometimes the emergency eject hole is located on the CD tray face itself, and sometimes it's near or even in the gap between the tray face and the bezel, making it tough to spot at a quick glance. I've built dozens of PCs and worked with probably hundreds of others, and have never once seen a CD-ROM drive that didn't have one.

[Rknot]

Latest update: I am able to eject the cd IF I do it from the system boot screen (hold down F12 while starting). I replaced the physical drive itself with another that I found scrounging around.

NOW the drive opens and closes normally, but it doesn't recognize any cd in the drive, even when one is in there. Also, I cannot copy or move files to or from the cd. When I said earlier that I could manipulate the drive, I had not checked to see whether I could copy to it. Darnit.

I've beaten the damned thing, said a prayer, did a dance (the chicken-dance, hey - it coulda worked), and left some sweets out for the elves last night in an attempt to coerce a little help. And get my shoes resoled. None of it worked but something ate the sweets.

I'm going to reinstall the drivers and see if that helps - more updates as they occur.

[Ethilrist]

I hate to have to say this, but [b]I've done it myself[b], so don't yell at me--now that you've swapped out the CD drive, it's getting power and can eject the CD, since it's not being seen by the OS, have you checked the data cable to make sure it's connected properly?

[merge]

<-------inserts Apple Ad.... :)

[Joe Mahma]

Is there a reason this couldn't happen with an Apple, merge? Just asking.

[RedDawgEsq]

Replace the ribbon cable.

[handy]

I got a dell & it's case was a little tight one time so that there wasn't enough room for the door to open (got caught on the case). So I put it in another bay & its okay now.

[Number]

Originally posted by ftg
No, the 2nd worst that can happen is you fry some other part of your computer. You can easily cause a short in the CD drive, fry the PS and then get a cascade effect while things are going down. Since many computers have stuff crammed next to the CD drive you risk both electrical and physical damage when things go "oops".Doesn't this scenario strike you as just a little far-fetched? Prying open the tray on a CD-ROM drive is not like poking through the innards of a TV set.


Originally posted by ftg
Why take any risk whatsoever? One wonders if the OP should own any electrical appliances. After all, one could explode without warning. That car is looking pretty dangerous too. Perhaps it would be best if he never left the house.

There are risks inherent in any activity. The ones described in this thread are about as unsafe as flipping a light switch.

[merge]

Originally posted by Joe Mahma
Is there a reason this couldn't happen with an Apple, merge? Just asking.

Well of course it CAN happen with an apple.... It was a joke...
All the dumb switch adds.... the whole they just work thing...

I do prefer mac... I don't like slot loading drives... CD's have a much better chace of getting stuck in a slot...
Apple has a few machines with Slot Drives... I prefer my iBook...

but I have had CD's stuck in my PC... paperclip worked..
and I have had a CD stuck in the server here at work...
a slot loading DVD... but the paperclip would not work... nothing worked... We had a tech come in to take it apart and replace it...