DVD Drive -- "No Disc" error

[John]

There's a problem that I've had several times with my DVD drive, and
it just happened again yesterday.

Basically, the system gets into a state where it says there is no disk
in the drive, even though there is. I've tried using different disks,
both new and previously-written, both CD and DVD, and it won't see any
of them Rebooting sometimes helps, sometimes not. Then after several
hours of doing nothing, it works again.

I've used Device Manager to check the drive and it says the device is
working properly. I tried removing it from device manager and letting
Windows rediscover it, and it announces that it has found new hardware
and properly identifies the make and model and seems to install it,
but still it doesn't work. I've even tried flashing the drive with
the latest firmware from the manufacturer's site (LITE-ON) and that
doesn't help either.

Has anybody else ever seen this sort of behavior or have an idea
what's going wrong? I've tried Googling around and found others
reporting similar problems, but the proposed solutions all seem to
involve installing some third-party software. Since Windows
eventually recovers and starts working again, I'd rather not clutter
up the system with add-on software that I don't need.

The system is using XP, SP2, kept current with Windows updates.

Reply-to address is real
John

 

[Malke]

There's a problem that I've had several times with my DVD drive, and
it just happened again yesterday.

Basically, the system gets into a state where it says there is no disk
in the drive, even though there is. I've tried using different disks,
both new and previously-written, both CD and DVD, and it won't see any
of them Rebooting sometimes helps, sometimes not. Then after several
hours of doing nothing, it works again.

I've used Device Manager to check the drive and it says the device is
working properly. I tried removing it from device manager and letting
Windows rediscover it, and it announces that it has found new hardware
and properly identifies the make and model and seems to install it,
but still it doesn't work. I've even tried flashing the drive with
the latest firmware from the manufacturer's site (LITE-ON) and that
doesn't help either.

Has anybody else ever seen this sort of behavior or have an idea
what's going wrong? I've tried Googling around and found others
reporting similar problems, but the proposed solutions all seem to
involve installing some third-party software. Since Windows
eventually recovers and starts working again, I'd rather not clutter
up the system with add-on software that I don't need.

The system is using XP, SP2, kept current with Windows updates.

Usually when this happens it means the drive is in the process of dying.
DVD-RW drives are now cheap. Swap this one out for a known-working one and
if all is well, discard the original one. FWIW, I've completely stopped
buying Lite-On drives as I have found they have a high rate of failure.

Malke

 

[Kelly]

Hi John,

How to Fix a No-Disc Error
http://www.ehow.com/how_2036277_fix-error-dvd.html

How to Troubleshoot Issues with Reading CD, CD-R, CD-RW, and DVD Discs
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q321641

--

All the Best,
Kelly (MS-MVP/DTS&XP)

Taskbar Repair Tool Plus!
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/taskbarplus!.htm

 

[John]

Usually when this happens it means the drive is in the process of dying.
DVD-RW drives are now cheap. Swap this one out for a known-working one and
if all is well, discard the original one. FWIW, I've completely stopped
buying Lite-On drives as I have found they have a high rate of failure.

Malke

Actually, I chose this one because it was well-rated at Newegg. But
for about $30 I can replace it if that's what it takes. (Do you have a
favorite brand in lieu of Lite-On?) I guess I'll try cleaning it
first and if that doesn't do the trick, I'll replace it. Thanks.

Reply-to address is real
John

 

[Big Al]

Actually, I chose this one because it was well-rated at Newegg. But
for about $30 I can replace it if that's what it takes. (Do you have a
favorite brand in lieu of Lite-On?) I guess I'll try cleaning it
first and if that doesn't do the trick, I'll replace it. Thanks.

Reply-to address is real
John

I love my lite-on drive, but they are the cheapest drives out. Maybe
there is a reason for that. I did burn 45 DVD's out of a 50 pack only
to find that the last 5 would not burn. Tried a friend's Lite-on and
same issue, tried a Memorex or Iomega drive and the dvd's worked.

I'm looking at some of the samsung on newegg for a second drive to cover
this problem in the future.

 

[Anna]

(Apologies to John, the OP if we're slightly off on a tangent here, but I
assume he's rec'd sufficient responses to resolve his problem)...

(SNIP)

FWIW, I've completely stopped buying Lite-On drives as I have found they
have a high rate of failure.

Malke
--
MS-MVP
Elephant Boy Computers
www.elephantboycomputers.com
Don't Panic!

Malke:
I was interested in your comment re Lite-On optical drives. The computer
shop I was associated with over the past couple of years dealt nearly
exclusively with Lite-On optical drives during that period (having gotten
some attractive pricing incentives from our distributor re that brand). I'm
no longer associated with that shop but to the best of my knowledge they're
still carrying & recommending that brand.

I would guess that during that time we installed a few hundred or so of
various Lite-On models including both IDE & SATA interface units and I'm
under the impression we experienced remarkably few problems with those
units. Certainly not to any significant degree that it would cause us to
discontinue using those units.

(I'm not considering DOA units since, as I'm sure you know, that's an
unfortunate occurrence with virtually any major PC component, but even there
I can't recall that we experienced any significant DOA defect rate with
Lite-On units.)

Was your negative experience re Lite-On optical drives confined to any
particular model or group of models?
Anna

 

[Malke]

Anna wrote:

Was your negative experience re Lite-On optical drives confined to any
particular model or group of models?

No, and it wasn't a particularly scientific survey either. I just noticed
that new Lite-Ons I was installing in my own boxen weren't lasting very
long, maybe only a few months. I can't remember if I bought them all at one
place or not, but I usually buy hardware at NewEgg. I mentioned this to my
tech buddy/sometime-partner and he said he had the same experience, too. So
we don't buy Lite-Ons any more.

Sorry I can't be more precise for you.

Malke

 

[John]

(Apologies to John, the OP if we're slightly off on a tangent here, but I
assume he's rec'd sufficient responses to resolve his problem)...

Malke:
I was interested in your comment re Lite-On optical drives. The computer
shop I was associated with over the past couple of years dealt nearly
exclusively with Lite-On optical drives during that period (having gotten
some attractive pricing incentives from our distributor re that brand). I'm
no longer associated with that shop but to the best of my knowledge they're
still carrying & recommending that brand.

I would guess that during that time we installed a few hundred or so of
various Lite-On models including both IDE & SATA interface units and I'm
under the impression we experienced remarkably few problems with those
units. Certainly not to any significant degree that it would cause us to
discontinue using those units.

(I'm not considering DOA units since, as I'm sure you know, that's an
unfortunate occurrence with virtually any major PC component, but even there
I can't recall that we experienced any significant DOA defect rate with
Lite-On units.)

Was your negative experience re Lite-On optical drives confined to any
particular model or group of models?
Anna

Anna:
I don't mind because your comments are relevant if I have to replace
the drive. I wonder: have you ever heard of a problem like the one I
described in my original post? If so, do you know what the cause was?

Reply-to address is real
John

 

[Anna]

Usually when this happens it means the drive is in the process of dying.
DVD-RW drives are now cheap. Swap this one out for a known-working one and
if all is well, discard the original one. FWIW, I've completely stopped
buying Lite-On drives as I have found they have a high rate of failure.

Malke
--
MS-MVP

Anna:
I don't mind because your comments are relevant if I have to replace
the drive. I wonder: have you ever heard of a problem like the one I
described in my original post? If so, do you know what the cause was?

Reply-to address is real
John

John:
Well, as far as ever hearing about a problem like the one you described -
yes, many, many times...

As you've heard from Malke and I guess from others it certainly sounds like
a defective optical drive. The fact that Device Manager indicates the drive
is "working properly" is virtually irrelevant. That indication will
frequently appear in DM even when a component (it need not be an optical
drive) is defective.

You could try installing the drive on the other IDE channel (I'm assuming
your motherboard has both Primary & Secondary IDE channels) and/or changing
its position on its present IDE channel from Master to Slave (or the
reverse) just to see what happens. I'm not particularly hopeful that will
resolve the problem but I suppose it's worth a try. Also, might you have
another data cable you could substitute for the present one? And you have
checked to determine that all the current connections (data & power) are
secure, right?

I don't suppose you have another machine available in which to install the
drive. When all is said & done the only reliable way to tell if you're
simply dealing with a defective component is to replace it with a known
working one.

As you probably know, optical drives are relatively cheap nowadays so at the
worst your replacement cost won't be terribly onerous. My general experience
with Lite-On optical drives has been quite positive - unlike the experiences
you have heard from Malke and I believe others. But obviously the choice is
yours.
Anna