Windows Explorer crashing when putting files on discs

Might be a Windows problem, rather than DVD issue. Scanned thoroughly for malware lately?

What version of Windows? If you have a Windows Reinstallation CD/DVD with the exact, same version of the OS (including Service Packs) that's on the hard drive, you could try running a system file check (sfc).  (Directions are slightly different if this is XP.)

1. Click Start and type cmd in the Start Search box.
2. Right-click cmd in the Programs list, and then click Run as administrator
3. If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, enter it or click Continue
4. At the command prompt, type in sfc /scannow  (Note: put one space between sfc and /scannow)

Insert the Windows disk if requested. sfc may take a long time, so be patient. sfc also doesn't say anything when it finishes so just reboot and see if that helps. If not, you may need to run a Repair of Windows.

BTW: I've recently had a nasty experience with Memorex 8x dual layer DVDs too. They fail when I try to access files written on the disks and Windows freezes. Wasted 8 of the 10 I tried so far.

Yes I have scanned for malware and everything is clean. I have Windows Vista Home Premium. I did the scan and it said "Windows Resource protection did not find any integrity violations". I'll restart right now.

If the problem persists, you might try using DVD burning software instead of drag/drop to create your disks. There are a number of free apps available.

Some antiviral software (eg, Avast) has been known to cause drag/drop freezes with Vista, so you also might try disabling your antiviral/antimalware suite and then try to create a disk. If that helps, you may need to reinstall the antiviral/antimalware suite or try a different one. There are lots of free ones, eg Microsoft Security Essentials etc. But be sure to reenable it before you forget and go on line. :emotion-5:

Well I disabled Avast and tried opening a disc and it still does it. I'm not sure if this will help but before the problems started when the cd would format it would take at least a half an hour. Now with these problems occurring when i format a cd it takes less then 20 seconds. I'm starting to think that windows is formatting my discs wrong which is causing the issues when I attempt to do anything with them. I will try and download a program. My new disc drive also came with some programs i may be able to use. i am also going to see if there are any bugged updates i need to remove.

You've confused me. You started out talking about DVD-R now you're saying "CD".

Can you try to format a blank disk from this same batch on a different PC to see if this is a problem with the media, the software or the new drive?

Are you sure the new drive uses the same type media as the old one?  

Sorry,yeah they are DVD Rs i just have a habit of calling discs cds. Try using another computer tomorrow.

As a rule of thumb. NEVER use windows explorer. The only time it comes in handy is downloading something like chrome or firefox.

I am aware of that but its besides the point. Windows Explorer and Internet Explorer are two different things.

Well I tried opening the discs I have attempted to burn on another computer and they opened fine. No problems whatsoever. Although it doesn't show the videos I tried to place on them most likely because the problem occurs during burning process. So the discs are probably messed up. The other computer I used was an emachine from early 2000s with a sort of newer drive. The new drive I got for my studio is the same media as the old one,maybe even better. I figured for now I would just use my other comp and my newe disc drive to put my videos on discs(DVD Rs) but the emachine doesn't have sata connections and also doesn't have sd card ports for transferring my files. I am getting so aggravated with this. i also joined a vista forum and placed my problem there.Hopefully I can get this fix. I'm sure other people are dealing with this as well.

You might consider upgrading to Windows 8, which is available for $40 through the Microsoft store. Clean-install, don't upgrade, and I suspect your problem will go away.

I so want to but I have no way of backing up files besides using discs.haha! At the moment I am trying a different method. I took all of my video that need to be burn and dropped then into the default sample movies folder. Now I am using windows Media Player to burn the videos to disc. It just ejected...SUCCESS! But yes rdunnill I am considering it very much.thankyou for the help everyone! Hopefully this works for now on.

Glad to hear you found a way around the problem. If Media Player is working, there's probably an issue with the Drag/Drop function that might be be fixed if you Repair Vista.

Hi Smellslike1974,

When you format the disc and drag and drop files, you are using the Live File System (LFS). I recommend Mastered for best performance and compatibility.

Just a note that Maxell, like a lot of other media companies, no longer manufacture their own discs. Some of their discs are junk just like Memorex. The only way to know is to check with DVD Identifier. I recommend you avoid discs made by manufacturers such as CMC and Ritek. If you find one of these, I'd return the entire stack to the store.