major problems after insert defective disc

[Jud McCranie]

Whenever I insert a defective disc, I have major problems and have to
use the power switch. For instance, yesterday I was installing data
from a 5-DVD set. The fourth one must be defective - the usual stuff
doesn't come up when I insert the disc. If I go to MyComputer the
drive doesn't show the name of the disc. If I right click on it,
nothing comes up and Explorer "quits responding". Then nothing will
work. I can bring up some things such as shutdown, but it won't
shutdown. I have to turn the power off. This happened three or four
times with that disc - the others were OK.

I've always had major problems in Windows XP when a disc is defective,
for instance when trying to write to one.

Is there something I can do to prevent this type of lockup from
happening or is it a bug in Windows?

 

[Shenan Stanley]

Whenever I insert a defective disc, I have major problems and have
to use the power switch. For instance, yesterday I was installing
data from a 5-DVD set. The fourth one must be defective - the
usual stuff doesn't come up when I insert the disc. If I go to
MyComputer the drive doesn't show the name of the disc. If I right
click on it, nothing comes up and Explorer "quits responding".
Then nothing will work. I can bring up some things such as
shutdown, but it won't shutdown. I have to turn the power off.
This happened three or four times with that disc - the others were
OK.

I've always had major problems in Windows XP when a disc is
defective, for instance when trying to write to one.

Is there something I can do to prevent this type of lockup from
happening or is it a bug in Windows?

CTRL+SHIFT+ESC, kill the offending task/process.

Why do you have som many defective discs?

 

[olfart]

Whenever I insert a defective disc, I have major problems and have to
use the power switch. For instance, yesterday I was installing data
from a 5-DVD set. The fourth one must be defective - the usual stuff
doesn't come up when I insert the disc. If I go to MyComputer the
drive doesn't show the name of the disc. If I right click on it,
nothing comes up and Explorer "quits responding". Then nothing will
work. I can bring up some things such as shutdown, but it won't
shutdown. I have to turn the power off. This happened three or four
times with that disc - the others were OK.

I've always had major problems in Windows XP when a disc is defective,
for instance when trying to write to one.

Is there something I can do to prevent this type of lockup from
happening or is it a bug in Windows?

Yes...quit using defective discs....DUH

 

[Tim Meddick]

When Explorer encounters a defective area of a disk (such as a scratch
on a cd-rom) Windows tries to read it over and over again - effectively
locking up Windows. Usually, if you eject the offending cd (or other
defective removable media) control is returned to the system within a
minute or so.

Thus, the best thing to do, if you think that a defective disk is
causing problems, would be to eject it as quickly as
possible to avoid any further disruption to system stability.


==

Cheers, Tim Meddick, Peckham, London.

 

[Jud McCranie]

CTRL+SHIFT+ESC, kill the offending task/process.

That brings up a list and I don't always know what the problem is.
Often it is "my computer", etc.

Why do you have som many defective discs?

I don't know. This is a commercial 5-DVD set of data. The last time
I installed it, it was OK. Less than a week ago I had a similar
problem writing a routine backup to a DVD+RW that I've used for 2+
years. I've had that problem with other DVD+RW I repeatedly use for
backup - usually I can find no way to recover when it can't access the
disc and I have to power down.

 

[Homer J. Simpson]

Usually if I encounter an unsually high number of read errors, I start to
suspect the drive itself. Are the same discs readable on other machines?

 

[Jud McCranie]

Thus, the best thing to do, if you think that a defective disk is
causing problems, would be to eject it as quickly as
possible to avoid any further disruption to system stability.

I seem to have trouble with the eject button when that happens.

 

[Jud McCranie]

When Explorer encounters a defective area of a disk (such as a scratch
on a cd-rom) Windows tries to read it over and over again - effectively
locking up Windows.

Wouldn't it be a good idea to stop trying after say 5 tries?

 

[Jud McCranie]

Are the same discs readable on other machines?

I'm trying the one I had a problem with yesterday in another machine,
and it is working. But the other four of the set worked in my main
computer. Maybe the disc and the drive in my main computer are both
marginal (it worked before though).

 

[Jud McCranie]

Usually if I encounter an unsually high number of read errors, I start to
suspect the drive itself. Are the same discs readable on other machines?

It works on two computers and doesn't work on two. I've got the
problem disc installing on another computer. Since it is only data,
I'll be able to copy it over.

 

[Jud McCranie]

It works on two computers and doesn't work on two.

Well, it starts on the other computers but gets part way and fails.

 

[Tim Meddick]

People have said this should be the case, but it seems to be an
oversight that Windows does not have a 'timeout' and *will* attempt to
read a section over and over and will only stop once any read requests
have ceased i.e. you close explorer (if you can) or eject the media.



==

Cheers, Tim Meddick, Peckham, London.

 

[Jud McCranie]

Well, it starts on the other computers but gets part way and fails.

But it would read on the fourth computer (a laptop), which is on the
network. So I installed the files there. But the main computer
(where I want the files) and the laptop can't see each other on the
network so I copied the files from the laptop to another computer, and
from that computer to where I want the files. That is working.

 

[Jim]

But it would read on the fourth computer (a laptop), which is on the
network. So I installed the files there. But the main computer
(where I want the files) and the laptop can't see each other on the
network so I copied the files from the laptop to another computer, and
from that computer to where I want the files. That is working.

It is a marginal disk. The drive electronics evaluates the readability of
disk sectors according to the signal strength. The drive electronics reject
disk sectors when the signal strength is marginal. But, the signal strength
on another drive may be slightly more than marginal. Hence, a marginal disk
may be rejected on one computer but not another. You should note that the
drive electronics rejects a sector long before it is completely unreadable.
Jim

 

[Mark Adams]

But it would read on the fourth computer (a laptop), which is on the
network. So I installed the files there. But the main computer
(where I want the files) and the laptop can't see each other on the
network so I copied the files from the laptop to another computer, and
from that computer to where I want the files. That is working.

Make a copy of the disk on a computer that can read the disk and then try it
in the computer that hangs. Use a program like iso Recorder or the Copy CD
feature of Nero or Roxio. Using fresh media may solve the problem.

 

[Jud McCranie]

People have said this should be the case, but it seems to be an
oversight that Windows does not have a 'timeout' and *will* attempt to
read a section over and over and will only stop once any read requests
have ceased i.e. you close explorer (if you can) or eject the media.

At least it could check 5 or 10 times and then ask if you want it to
keep trying, and then ask again after 5 or 10 failures. These lockups
are so bad that explorer often quits responding (and everything else).

 

[Jud McCranie]

Make a copy of the disk on a computer that can read the disk and then try it
in the computer that hangs. Use a program like iso Recorder or the Copy CD
feature of Nero or Roxio. Using fresh media may solve the problem.

I did that and it works. I should have done that to begin with,
rather than copying over the network twice.

It is probably prudent to make a copy of every new disc anyway. (I
should have done that with my child's game discs - many of them got
damaged.)