topic My CD drive doesnt work anymore in PCs & Accessories

My CD drive doesnt work anymore

Akanksha — Wed, 20 Apr 2005 23:58:20 GMT

Ok, so I have a PCV-V1. The CD/DVD drive has stopped working for some reason.
I last remember playing a CD yesterday and I took it out of the slot this afternoon. But on re-attempting to play another Audio CD it doesnt work. Here is what I have tried to far:

1. Tried numerous different CDs/DVDs, none of them work.
2. Uninstalled and re-installed the driver. Device Manager shows that the device is working properly.
3. Tried different softwares to see if it works on one them. it doesnt.
4. Checked for driver updates on e-support. None there.

And I am running out of ideas. Any suggestions on what could have happened?
The only things I can think of is that I took the CD off whilst the computer was going on standby, I know it sounds stupid, but may be its somehow related to the fact that it couldnt shut down the device properly or something. Also I notice that when I re-start the computer, the lights on the CD-thing doesnt come on, even on POST. But I can from the computer say eject and it ejectst the CD.
I am getting frustrated, I need to try the new Kelly Clarkson album. URGH.

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

Akanksha — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 00:48:28 GMT

And I have to say that I just realised that this bugger automatic update tells me that it has updated something.
Which has probably caused it?
But this thing doesnt even read the Sony recovery disk. I have an inkling that it may be something to do with the lens? Right, now that I can drive, I off to buying a Head cleaner, another $20 going down the drain, but at least I can strike off another thing from my troubleshooting list.

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

jammold — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 01:45:36 GMT

Akanksha,

This is a real long stab in the dark but here goes...

Go to Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > System Restore

Choose Restore my computer to an earlier time.

Pick a date from about one week ago and it will do its thing. After restarting your PC it should have removed the dodgy update that affected your CD/DVD drive...

Hopefully it will start working again after this is done.

Good luck.:smileygood_luck:

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

Akanksha — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 01:54:40 GMT

I did actually restore it back to yesterday, hoping that it'd work but it doesnt. I will try a week earlier. Contacting the live support here in the USA, I have no idea what they will be able to do for me, probably nothing is what my expectation will be.

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

jammold — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 03:37:14 GMT

The only other solution is a very messy one...

1. Backup your hard disk partitions (C and D normally).

2. Restore your computer to factory default.

3. Install each update including Service Pack 2 until you find the one that stops your CD/DVD from working at all.

4. Remove the faulty update.

I don't blame you if this is NOT an option, it is certainly not attractive, but I bet Sony will ask you to restore your computer from the DVD Disk or Partition before they can do anything...

Their updates need to be tested before they post them, this is beyond a joke!!!

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

Akanksha — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 04:02:11 GMT

James you are up at like 4.30 at night.
Ok, I contacted the sony US support they tried troubleshooting over the internet chatroom, didnt work.
I got the CD cleaner, the drive doesnt recognise it in it, and then I took a chance and just put the VAIO recovery disk in while booting, nothing happens. It doesnt feel anything in it.

Me thinks, the drive has gone, Needs replacement. Whats funny is what could have caused this, I mean there is nothing very apparent except that I tried forcing the CD out this afternoon while the system was going on Stand By, I had known that the CD-drive was so vulnerable, I would have been more careful.

Bugger its out of warranty but guess that wouldnt have helped coz I am not in the UK. Turning it in tomorrow or on Friday to get an instant replacement or alike. I did take a backup few days ago coz I had lost all my 894 e0mails on hotmail and as a precautionary measure I did this but I guess now I just need another one on my memory stick may be!

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

seb21__ — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 07:03:47 GMT

Maybe you must reinstall the Firmware of the drive.

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

Akanksha — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 11:48:11 GMT

By that you mean driver? or is it something obvious which I am missing here>?:smileyconfused:

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

jammold — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 12:15:50 GMT

Lol Akanksha went out on one of then wild student parties, as you do and got very drunk... I decided to wait up until I felt more sobre!:smileylaugh:

Anyway onto your problem. Look on VAIO-Link for the firmware updates (if any) and try applying those.

Otherwise in Device Manager, click the CD/DVD Drive Entry and pick Uninstall. Reboot your computer and test the CD/DVD drive.

If nothing works then the drive is buggered beyond all hope (foobar).:smileysad:

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

Akanksha — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 13:04:17 GMT

lol James, Wednesday night! Ahhh I miss being a student, only five more months and then the normalacy will resume!

I think the drive has gone, I tried what you suggested. No luck.

*scoffs* I am looking for replacements to this machine, it'll be a laptop this time and not a Sony, oh no!

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

jammold — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 13:08:52 GMT

ROFL Yeah, being a student does have its perks!:smileylaugh:

Awwe sorry to hear its dead. Pity you will be getting something non-Sony this time, but you will probably have more luck!:smileywink:

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

kee-lo_ — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 13:32:11 GMT

Scratching my head here.
Did you have a recovery partition on that machine?
I wonder if a cable has come loose when you opened it?

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

Akanksha — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 13:44:16 GMT

How do you mean? If I did pull the wire off, I shouldn't be seeing the internal light (orange coloured) as soon as I insert something in it right? And then I shouldn't be able to eject it from using the drag and drop CD software right?
Also when I insert the CD in, the mouse goes into reading CD mode, but I can tell from the sound it makes that as I insert a CD into a drive, it goes loads and goes round and round(look at the terminology I am using), my CD drive is not doing that.

You think I should open it myself? And see whats really going on inside or pay for a sony authorised centre to do it for me?

James: Its actually a Matshuita, so a non-sony anyway!

OH. BTW I just remembered that yesterday while shutting down, an Ending programme thing came up, and all the letters were in mandarin or it could have possibly been Japanese. Is that possible, messed up driver?

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

kee-lo_ — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 13:49:01 GMT

Ignore that then, if the lights coming on and Windows sees it....

Any idea what updates it tried to install?

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

Akanksha — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 14:04:01 GMT

There is no update available, apparently everything is up to date.
But anyway, I think I will try something different this afternoon when I go home for lunch, apparently the CD drive should be ejected when attempting updates so I am going to uninstall it, eject the CD drive, shut down and start again and then use the new driver I have downloaded to update it.

BTW, I can see that there is a dual layer firmware update for 750 thing on their US support site, nothing similar on the UK support. Athough it may be all so irrelevant to think of!

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

kee-lo_ — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 14:06:36 GMT

Europe are behind with the updates byu the looks of things.

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

jammold — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 14:06:55 GMT

James: Its actually a Matshuita, so a non-sony anyway!

Agh, well than Matsush*ta strikes again!

Yeah by the sounds of it a buggered driver could be causing the problems. Have you tried opening Device manager, opening the properties page for the CD/DVD, and tried rolling back the driver to the last successful driver?

LOL It could well be Japanese, because of Sony being Japanese and all (lol I am such a genius! :smileytongue:)

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

kee-lo_ — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 14:09:29 GMT

Damn matshita

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

Akanksha — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 14:17:34 GMT

There was no roll-back driver, there has only ever been ONE driver ahem!

And I vaguely remember that the windows update was Malicious virus removal, which I asked it not to download but then all of a sudden it came up saying that it had installed it for me, how very efficient!

I am getting increasingly sure that its a driver thing, a. because the hardware cannot go off just like that right?
b. because that ending programme thing, said something in Japanese, saying that it wasnt responding. So what could have happened is that when I was putting the system on stand-by, it was doing something with the CD drive, and I just ejected the drive, which caused the drive to hang and then when later on in the evening I tried to play a CD, the drive was still hanging. And then I tried shutting it down, the Ending programme thing tells me that the computer forced the drive to shut down and now it doesnt come up again.
So this is the diagnosis, I dont know what the solution might be! Incurable cancer may be?
:smileygrin:

Re: My CD drive doesnt work anymore

jammold — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 14:28:06 GMT

Lol yeah incurable cancer!

Looks like the only solution is to try reinstalling Windows XP, but this is impossible without a functioning drive.

Have you got an external CD Drive?