DVD/CD-RW drive read errors

Can some Dell rep respond to this please, or someone who knows what's going on

 

Cam,

Thank you for using the Dell Community Forum.
Does the drive read software cds?
Does the drive read music cds?
Are these copies or store purchased cds it cannot read?

Here are some general troubleshooting steps that may help.
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CDROM Troubleshooting steps:

--Remove and reseat the drive.
A loose connection can cause the drive not to work properly.
If possible, remove the drive from the system and reseat it making sure it is firmly and well seated.

--Remove the drive from device manager.
Removing the drive controllers from device manager and rebooting to let Windows reload them sometimes helps.

Win95,98,ME:
Right click on My Computer, click on properties.
Click the Device Manager tab.
Click the + next to CDROM
Click the appropriate device entry that appears under CDROM then click the REMOVE button.
Perform this step for any other devices listed under the CDROM category.
Reboot the computer.

Win2000, WinXP:
Right click on My Computer, click on properties.
Click on the Hardware Tab.
Click the Device Manager button.
Click the + next to DVD/CDROM devices.
Right click the appropriate device entry that appears under DVD/CDROM then click Uninstall.
Perform this step for any other devices listed under the CDROM category.
Reboot the computer.

--For Windows95,98,ME Check for the NOIDE Error.
Click on Start, Run and type in: Regedit.
Then click OK.
You will get a Registry Editor window.
Click on Edit, Find.
Type in: NOIDE
Click Find Next.
If the search finds any icons with NOIDE, delete those icons.
Then close all windows, and reboot the system.

--Reset the bios defaults if applicable on the system.
Resetting the bios defaults resets any bios settings that may have gotten corrupt.
This should allow the cdrom drive to redetect if the problem is caused by the bios.
You can find information on how to do so on the following sites:
--How do I restore the Setup Defaults on my Dell™ Inspiron™ portable computer?
http://support.dell.com/us/en/kb/document.asp?DN=1035265
--How do I restore the Setup Defaults on my Dell™ Inspiron™ portable computer?
http://support.dell.com/us/en/kb/document.asp?DN=FA1035265
--How do I restore setup defaults on my Dell™ Latitude™ system?
http://support.dell.com/us/en/kb/document.asp?DN=FA1035267

--Update your bios file to the latest version.
Go to the main Dell Support site:
https://support.dell.com/register.aspx
Input your service tag number and click "Sign in to Standard Support".
Click the Downloads button.
Under the "Select Your Download Category" section, choose "Flash Bios Updates".
Then click GO.
Click the Dell XXXX XXXX System Bios link that comes up.
Click the Dell XXXX XXXX System Bios link that comes up again.
Click on the file name XXXXXX.EXE for FLOPPY version.
Click Download Now Using HTTP.
Save the file to your desktop.
Put a blank formatted floppy in the floppy drive.
Double click the file to create the bios update boot floppy.
Once that is done, leave the floppy in the drive and reboot the system.
The bios will be updated when the system boots to the floppy.

--Try upgrading the drives firmware revision.
Find the model type of the drive.
Then go to the Dell downloads page and put in the model type of the drive to see if there are any firmware updates for it.
Go to the main Dell Support site:
https://support.dell.com/register.aspx
Input your service tag number and click "Sign in to Standard Support".
Click the Downloads button.
Put the drive model in the search box and click GO.
If there is a firmware updated listed, download it, create the update disk, and update the drives firmware.
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Question:
How do I find out what model of Hard Drive, CDROM, CDRW, DVDROM drive I have?

Answer:
Win2000 WinXP:
Right click on My Computer, click on properties.
Click the Hardware tab.
Click the Device Manager button.
Click the + next to DVD/CD-ROM drives.
You should see your drive listed, an example would be: Lite-On LTN483S 48X MAX.
The drive model number would be "LTN483S"

--Another way to tell is to check the system registry.
You can use the steps below that are listed for checking the drives firmware revision.
An example of a drive listing in the registry would be:
IDE\CdRomLite-On_LTN483S_48x_Max_________________PD03____\5&261012d&0&0.1.0
The drive model number would be ""LTN483S""
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8.Uninstall any 3rd party programs.
If you installed any 3rd party programs before the problem started, (Roxio Easy CD Creator, Nero Burning Rom, Intel Application Accelerator), then uninstall the program and reboot the system.

--Test the drive in dos.
If your floppy drive is external, attach it to the system.
Have your cdrom drive in the media bay in the system.
Put in your Windows CD in the cdrom drive.
Boot to a Win98 or WinME dos boot disk using the floppy drive.
You can download a dos boot disk from http://www.bootdisk.com
I like using the "Windows ME non-OEM" boot disk.
Once you have booted to the dos boot disk, A:\> try accessing the cdrom in dos.
If you can access the Windows CD, the drive is working and you probably have a Windows problem.
If you cannot access the cd in dos, then the drive is probably bad.

--Test the drive using the Dell Diagnostics.
You can find information on how to run the Dell Diagnostics on the following site:
http://support.dell.com/us/en/kb/document.asp?DN=1060550#toc

--Test another drive if possible.
-Try another drive in your system, does it work?
If so, your old drive is probably bad.
If not, the cdrom connectors on the motherboard are probably bad.
-Try your drive on another system, does it work?
If so, the cdrom connectors on the motherboard for your system are probably bad.
If not, then the drive is probably bad.

--Check the Windows XP/2000 Registry.
Click Start and then click Run.
The Run window appears.
In the Open: field, type Regedit and then click OK.
The Registry Editor window appears.
Click the plus (+) sign next to the following folders:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER
Software
Microsoft
Windows
CurrentVersion
Policies

Click to select the Explorer folder.
In the right-pane, check to see if an entry labeled NoDrives is present.
If this entry is listed, right-click the entry and then left-click Delete.
The Confirm Value Delete window appears.
Click Yes to confirm removal.
Close the Registry Editor window.
Restart the computer.

--If all else fails, contact tech support to get a replacement drive.
If you are out of warranty, you can purchase another drive from Dell Spare Parts.
Dell Spare Parts Phone# 800-372-3355 Ext:6-9937
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