DVD-RW shows up as CD Drive in Windows Explorer (WinXp)

[Wisconsin Help?]

Hey Gang,

Long time reader, first time poster....

I normally would consider myself relatively computer saavy, however, I've
got a problem that I haven't been able to fix... even after a complete and
destructive WinXp Re-install.

I have 2 DVD Burners, one an external DVD burner and the other is a brand
new Sony DRU-190A that are both showing up as CD Drives in Windows Explorer.
However, with Nero, they show up as DVD Burners/Drives.

I am running Win Xp Media Center 2005 with a new, clean install. I need to
fix this because I use the Media Center software to record shows during the
week for work and from what I've been able to read, only Media Center can
burn the recorded shows off of media center.

Is there some way of getting these 2 drives to recognize correctly? I've
already uninstalled the drives from the Device Manager and they still didn't
come back correctly.

Thanks all...

 

[R. McCarty]

In Device Manager, DVD/CD-Rom Drives how are the two devices
shown ? Do they appear with their correct Vendor/model description.
Are these drives PATA and sharing a M/S connection on the same
IDE channel ? Some combination of drives causes interaction issues.
Do both drives have the latest firmware loaded ?

 

[Wisconsin Help?]

They show up just fine and in working order in the device manager. I put the
new firmware updates yesterday in hopes that it would work. The Sony is
hooked up as the Master on the secondary IDE channel (there's nothing on
after that as slave) and the external is hooked up through a firewire port on
the back of the computer.

Nero recognizes the drives fine, but nothing that is windows software does
as DVD Drives.

Is there something in the registry that can reset the way they are looked at
by windows? Is there a .sys file some where that can be deleted or modified?

It's funny that they don't work correctly after a destructive re-install of
XP Media Center 2005. So I'm not sure how that would be possible... or what
else to try.

Thanks!

 

[David Webb]

Check your registry for the presence of upper and lower filters per the article
cited below. Delete if found.

http://support.microsoft.com/?scid=kb;en-us;314060&x=12&y=13

 

[Wisconsin Help?]

I found that article on a website and there was only lowerfilters.bak and I
deleted that with no avail.

 

[Xandros]

Are you trying to burn to DVD media? If so you will need third party burning
software as no versions of Windows, prior to Vista, can burn natively to DVD
media. What file format does MCE save the files in? I don't use it but I'd
suspect WMV. If so you should be able to use Nero or Nero Vision to burn WMV
files to DVD.

 

[Wisconsin Help?]

Before I did the reinstall of Win XP Media Center 2005, Media Center has a
CD/DVD burning option and it would recognize the DVD burner and do the
burning through the Media Center Program itself.

I'm not sure what the media center file extension is... I'll have to check
once I get back home... but I know that Nero doesn't burn the files as
something readable by any DVD player... tried that in the past because I
wasn't happy with how SLOW Media Center was when burning a DVD through it.

 

[M.I.5¾]

Hey Gang,

Long time reader, first time poster....

I normally would consider myself relatively computer saavy, however, I've
got a problem that I haven't been able to fix... even after a complete and
destructive WinXp Re-install.

I have 2 DVD Burners, one an external DVD burner and the other is a brand
new Sony DRU-190A that are both showing up as CD Drives in Windows
Explorer.
However, with Nero, they show up as DVD Burners/Drives.

This is a common problem with XP. It doesn't seem to make any difference as
to what you can do with the drives. My own PC has a super multi DVD burner
showing as a CD drive in My Computer for several months, but nevertheless I
can still read and write to DVD-RAM discs (something the XP supports
natively).

 

[Tom [Pepper] Willett]

:
: This is a common problem with XP. It doesn't seem to make any difference
as
: to what you can do with the drives. My own PC has a super multi DVD
burner
: showing as a CD drive in My Computer for several months, but nevertheless
I
: can still read and write to DVD-RAM discs (something the XP supports
: natively).

This also occurred on my computer about a week ago, after 4 years. My two
burners used to show up as DVD-RAM, but now show as CD Drive. However,
everything works just fine, and all firmware is up to date, and device
manager lists them fine.

It bugs the crap out of me, but as long as it works, everything is fine.
When I upgraded to SP3, they still didn't change.

Ironically, if I reboot the PC, they show up as DVD-RAM, until I use them,
then they revert.

Go figure.

Tom
:
:

 

[Wisconsin Help?]

If I wasn't stuck with the Media Center thing doing lots of recordings from
cable tv, I could care less about the whole thing. But since I haven't been
able to burn Media Center files to a DVD that worked and played in a DVD
player, then it's kind of crappy.

I've been all over the microsoft sites and still haven't seen a fix for it.
Seems a bit ridiculous... especially since a lot of people have problems with
it.

 

[Joe Janecka]

That's the nature of the XP Beast!
When it is empty, it will show up as a DVD-RW Drive. Put in a blank DVD-ROM
and XP changes it to a CD-RW Drive. That's because XP cannot natively write
to a DVD. It takes Nero or some other third party software to write to
DVD's. It should work just fine with Nero.

 

[David Webb]

Did you restart the computer after deleting? If not, try it and report back any
change in Explorer.

 

[Wisconsin Help?]

Hey Gang,

I'm going back to another reinstall of XP... I spoke too soon... Nero would
read the drive as a burner, but I couldn't do anything with the software and
it would lock up and freeze. I couldn't even get the task manager to unhang
teh program.

So, I'm doing another XP install/recovery with a full format. If that
doesn't do it, what other option is there? I borrowed a 3rd DVD burner from
a friend that is a USB hookup and that doesn't work either.

Why would XP suddenly not be able to recognize a DVD burner... even tho just
a few weeks ago it could?

 

[David Webb]

In a previous response to McCarty you said, "The Sony is hooked up as the Master
on the secondary IDE channel (there's nothing on after that as slave) and the
external is hooked up through a firewire port on the back of the computer."

You may want to configure the Sony as a single unit rather than a master since
you don't have a slave unit on the IDE channel.

 

[Elmo]

They show up just fine and in working order in the device manager. I put the
new firmware updates yesterday in hopes that it would work. The Sony is
hooked up as the Master on the secondary IDE channel (there's nothing on
after that as slave) and the external is hooked up through a firewire port on
the back of the computer.

Nero recognizes the drives fine, but nothing that is windows software does
as DVD Drives.

Is there something in the registry that can reset the way they are looked at
by windows? Is there a .sys file some where that can be deleted or modified?

It's funny that they don't work correctly after a destructive re-install of
XP Media Center 2005. So I'm not sure how that would be possible... or what
else to try.

Thanks!

Maybe this:

CD repair for XP
http://aumha.org/downloads/cdgone.zip

Also try the following. You should back up the registry before making
changes:

Click Start, Run, type Regedit, click OK.
Locate this Registry Key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Class
Key Name: {4D36E965-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318}
Value Data: [Delete All Value Data from UpperFilters and LowerFilters]
Note: Do not delete the Key or the Multi-String Values. Delete only the
data values.
Exit Registry and Reboot

 

[M.I.5¾]

That's the nature of the XP Beast!
When it is empty, it will show up as a DVD-RW Drive. Put in a blank
DVD-ROM and XP changes it to a CD-RW Drive. That's because XP cannot
natively write to a DVD. It takes Nero or some other third party software
to write to DVD's. It should work just fine with Nero.

That is not quite the intended behaviour. A DVD burner drive (that doesn't
support DVD-RAM*) should show up as just a DVD drive. Although, as you
note, XP doesn't natively write the DVD formats, it can nevertheless
recognise them. If you insert a blank (or recorded but open) DVD-R, the
drive icon should change to a disk with 'DVD-R' on a black label. Inserting
a DVD-RW does more or less the same thing but with 'DVD-RW' on the label.
However, inserting a DVD+R or DVD+RW produces a similar icon but with
'DVD-ROM' on the label because the '+' format appeared late in the
development of XP. However, as many have noted, the actual behaviour is a
bit hit and miss and often the whole thing is just reported as a CD drive.

*If the drive supports DVD-RAM then the drive should be reported as a
'DVD-RAM', though often, again, is reported as a CD drive.

 

[Wisconsin Help?]

I did delete the filters and restarted the system and that did not help.

I will try pulling the jumper setting off the back since I no longer am
using the slave drive... or am I better off re-connecting my slave drive
(which is a standard cd burner).

THanks for all the help!

 

[David Webb]

Whether you reinstall the other burner or not, the installed drive(s) should be
configured correctly. If no slave is installed, then the single drive should be
configured as such and connected to the first connector of the data cable.

Sometimes you can get away configuring drive(s) using the cable-select setting,
but I've found that to be a trial-and-error routine which I only attempt when
removable trays are involved.