Questions tagged [optical-drive]

An optical drive is a kind of drive that can read (and usually write) optical media like CDs, DVDs, or Blu-Ray discs.

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4 votes
4 answers
7k views

What is the best way to clean your dvd-burner?

What is the best way to clean your dvd-burner?
1 vote
1 answer
5k views

On VirtualBox, how to to access the host CD drive from the virtual machine?

In VirtualBox (6.1) on macOS (10.12), I have Windows XP as a guest OS. I can't find how to access the physical CD drive from the guest OS. I've found on the web that in the storage settings of the ...
0 votes
0 answers
24 views

How can there be different tracks from optical media exposed to the PC? [duplicate]

Ok so bear with me. An Audio CD has different 'tracks', right? Not the songs, but like an audio track, a data track etc. Only the data track contains a proper filesystem (and normal block sizes) as we ...
7 votes
1 answer
3k views

How to disable CD-ROM/DVD-ROM polling during boot in Linux?

I have a Dell XPS L501X laptop dual-booting Linux Mint 12 "Lisa" (x64) and Windows 7. It has a TSSTcorp DVD+-RW TS-L633J DVD drive, which generates a lot of vibrations and noise whenever data is being ...
11 votes
9 answers
49k views

How to close the Optical Drive tray in Windows?

I've always wondered why Windows has an Eject option but doesn't include a corresponding Close / Close Tray option in the context menu of optical drives. Is there a way of closing the optical drive ...
0 votes
1 answer
701 views

MacBook Pro - how do I stop DVD player from autoplaying?

I've tried the following to disable this behaviour: System Preferences -> CDs & DVDs -> When you insert a video DVD: set to Ignore (actually moved all of them to Ignore) Neither of these ...
30 votes
1 answer
119k views

Change drive letter for CD drive on Windows 7

How to change the drive letter for CD drive on Windows 7? I want to map network location to the letter that is currently used by my CD drive.
7 votes
3 answers
15k views

Can you paint on the label side of a CD? If so, what kinds of paint would be safe for the drives?

I sometimes make demo CDs for artists as a kind of sideline from maintaining their websites. While working on one of these demo discs, I began to wonder whether it was possible for an artist to paint ...
54 votes
10 answers
385k views

How do I remove a MyBook's "WD SmartWare" virtual CD from my desktop?

I recently got a Western Digital MyBook external hard drive to enable Time Machine. It has its software installed on a "virtual CD" called "WD SmartWare" which shows up on the desktop any time the ...
20 votes
2 answers
15k views

How do I disable DVD auto eject in Windows 7?

I just discovered an incredibly annoying "feature" of Windows 7 tonight. If you click on your optical drive in Explorer, and there is no disc in the drive, Windows 7 is kind enough to open the tray ...
1 vote
0 answers
147 views

When trying to record backup files to my BD-R burner, I get "media is not recognized as recordable DVD" on two different drives that worked before

My Fedora 36 based server (fully updater) has a SATA BD-R drive and a USB BD-R drive. I am trying to spool some backup files out from HDD to BD-R (really Verbatim M-Disc 100GB BDXL media) using ...
0 votes
0 answers
22 views

Optical drive failing at specific disc locations: bad drive or bad disc?

I have an issue with my optical drive (DVD/Blu-Ray). It fails to read specific discs always at specific points on those discs. For example one disc always fails at the 49.5% point. Some other discs ...
0 votes
0 answers
113 views

How do I redirect the virtual disk drive to open the program which requiring physical optical drive

Refer to this Q: Copy program from CD to USB but can't launch program after installation in window-10 I observed that I needed to put the CD into the physical optical drive after installation. ...
12 votes
6 answers
12k views

disable cd/dvd button on linux laptop (ubuntu)

My todler is continuosly pushing the cd/dvd button and trying to destroy the tray. I know it should be possible to let her life harder, disabling the eject button. How to do that? This is ubuntu (...
26 votes
9 answers
10k views

Why are optical disc drives slower than hard disk drives?

I know that hard disks have faster access times and transfer rates and when I searched why it appeared that: Hard disk drives spin much faster If filled with helium this can decrease the energy ...
17 votes
5 answers
66k views

How can I copy files from a scratched CD/DVD?

I have so far tried the following software solutions without success. Windows Explorer Copy (default) TeraCopy Roadkil's Unstoppable Copier Unstoppable Copier stops copying as a whole, it keeps ...
0 votes
0 answers
67 views

Computer freezes during POST with new CD drive

I work with older computers and received a Compaq Presario 2275 with a non-working CD drive. After cleaning up the computer and testing it (it works fine), I swapped the original 32x CD drive with a ...
0 votes
1 answer
108 views

"BOOTMANAGER is missing" when optical drive connected

My computer fails to boot from SSD when optical drive is connected. It has worked perfectly for something like a year without it and now I have the same issue again when trying to connect it with ...
3 votes
2 answers
33k views

Can I disable the optical drive in my Macbook Pro through OSX?

The drive is broken and makes angry noises when it spins up, the noise is becoming a problem when using my computer in class. I'd like to disable it. For reasons that aren't important I'd rather not ...
0 votes
1 answer
132 views

Add context menu item for optical drive

What is the registry key(s) that controls the PC's optical drive right click context menu. Assume that I have a program called Erase.exe that would erase a RW/RE media (or any other exe for that ...
0 votes
1 answer
388 views

Installing SATA3 SSD in HDD or SATA Optical drive

I have Dell Inspiron 5458 and want to replace my storage with SSD. The HDD is 6Gbps SATA 3 interface which is perfect for my new 6Gbps SATA 3 SSD. But my question is will I get same performance/speed ...
0 votes
1 answer
489 views

Can a laser damage an optical disc?

I have an optical BD drive writer (Pioneer 209DBK) that has its open mechanism possibly compromised, since when I press the eject button or right click and eject from Explorer, sometimes it opens ...
5 votes
2 answers
16k views

Replacing laptop optical drive (DVD, blu-ray) - what do I need to know?

Are laptop optical drives always compatible? Do they come in different physical sizes? Are there any specs I need to match on the new drive, such as whether it has SATA? If so, how would I find ...
1 vote
1 answer
7k views

How to format a write protected DVD RW

I recently brought a motherboard, with which i got a DVD for installing the drivers.Now that i had installed all the drivers i want to format it for personal use.But when I try to do so an error pops ...
0 votes
1 answer
279 views

Determining motherboard's optical drive SATA interface using SiSoftware Sandra

The problem is very simple: I plan to replace my optical disk drive with an SSD. The question is if the SSD would be bottlenecked more if installed in the optical disk drive's bay instead of the ...
0 votes
1 answer
274 views

CD/DVD drive won't operate after installing Linux

I'm not sure if this problem is related to installing Linux, but I have a Dell desktop from many years ago (I can look up the model number if it's important) on which I installed Bodhi Linux a few ...
1 vote
1 answer
56 views

What is the best way to use an external drive with a double USB plug on a laptop with only USB-C ports?

I have an external optical drive that has a double USB connector, presumably to supply more power to the drive. I have a 2019 16" Macbook Pro with only USB-C plugs. Is there any risk of harming the ...
0 votes
1 answer
3k views

Installing Windows 98 using a USB CD-ROM drive

I'm trying to install Windows 98 on an old Dell Optiplex FX160 thinclient that does not have an optical drive. Because it doesn't have one, I'm using a cheap Lite-On DS8ACSH optical drive in a USB ...
0 votes
0 answers
224 views

USB File Explorer stops recognizing discs in external Blu-Ray drive after hibernation

This is my first question on this website. I hope it's the right place to ask this type of question here. I have a problem with an external USB 3.0 Blu-Ray drive (ASUS BW-16D1H-U PRO). If I hibernate ...
0 votes
3 answers
3k views

DVD ROM not working only in windows?

I have an Asus N53SV laptop, and my DVD ROM doesn't read any type of DVD in Windows. I just installed Windows 7 from a bootable DVD, I think this problem occurred after I tried to change my ...
1 vote
0 answers
965 views

Can't write DVD disks on Matshita drive built into ASUS laptop: error 0x80040275

I have an ASUS N552VW laptop with the built-in MATSHITA BD-CMB UJ172 S drive. At some point I found that I can no longer write any DVD disks on this drive - DVD-R, DVD-R DL, DVD-RW, etc. The burn ...
0 votes
0 answers
67 views

One particular DVD drive is not detected in one particular PC

I have several PCs running Windows 10 and several optical drives. One of the drives is not detected on one of the PCs. The same drive works fine in other PCs, and other drives works fine on the "bad" ...
3 votes
1 answer
9k views

CD drive detected by BIOS but not by Windows

The CD-ROM drive is detected in the BIOS. It says it's connected on SATA_0. It's not detected by Windows, not in my computer, not in disk management, and not in Device Manager. I tried reconnecting ...
9 votes
3 answers
4k views

How can AnyDVD destroy a DVD drive?

Reading this reminded me of when someone I know (not me) completely destroyed his optical drive using AnyDVD. He did it by (successfully) playing (in VLC media player) a copy-protected region 1 DVD ...
4 votes
3 answers
2k views

How is a hard-drive a bottleneck when burning a CD or DVD?

I have always wondered why people keep blaming hard-drives for causing buffer underruns when burning a CD or DVD. I’ve read many people saying to use a faster hard-drive or to make sure to defragment ...
3 votes
2 answers
14k views

Will an external USB DVD writer perform the same like an internal SATA DVD Writer?

Will an external USB DVD writer perform the same like Internal SATA DVD Writer? I'm going to purchase a new PC with a very sleek cabinet. If I buy an external USB DVD writer will it perform the same ...
3 votes
5 answers
36k views

DVD drive doesn't recognize blank dvds only!

My dvd-rom works fine because I can play dvds on it, however when the dvd is a blank one the drive refuses to recognize it. So I can't burn dvds anymore because the drive shows up as empty in my disk ...
1 vote
2 answers
553 views

How to prevent access to DVD and USB ports in Windows 7?

How do I prevent access to the DVD drive and USB ports in Windows 7 unless an admin password is entered? Also, if I could, I would like users to connect an Apple iPod without needing to enter a ...
0 votes
1 answer
4k views

Is it better to replace to my optical disk drive with SSD or HDD?

I just realized I can replace my optical disk drive with a hard disk drive or an SSD but I have some questions regarding the idea. First I should indicate that my SATA controller supports 6 Gb/s (my ...
1 vote
1 answer
574 views

VMware ESXi 6.0 - How can I pass-through (add) my Mac Pro's optical drive to a VM (running OS X Mountain Lion)?

Bit unconventional I know, but I am running VMware ESXi 6.0 on my old Mac Pro 1.1. If you don't know what that is then (no offense, but) you won't be able to help me. The Mac Pro host has a "super ...
0 votes
1 answer
2k views

Can the system boot from HDD connected with Optical Drive Caddy?

I have a Dell Vostro 3546 Laptop, which is now 3 yrs old. It was not powering on (4 to 5 months back) and I had it repaired by a local technician though, the power issue was fixed but a new issue ...
2 votes
2 answers
266 views

disc drive markings indicating ability to write to mini-DVDs?

I recently decided to follow the best practice of storing backups at a different site (a safety deposit box). I only backup up my personal data, and the zip files are in the order of 100MB. Multiple ...
2 votes
1 answer
159 views

Best long term storage solution? [closed]

What's the best device I can store data on for an extremely long time hundreds or thousands of years? Only planning on writing the data on to it once as it's going to be a time capsule kinda basically ...
1 vote
3 answers
9k views

Burning mutiple discs at the same time

I'm trying to "mass produce" a DVD so I thought that by hooking up multiple burners to my computer and running multiple instances of Imgburn I would be able to reduce the amount of time I spent ...
0 votes
1 answer
113 views

My laptop CD-DVD disc drive (reader) not displayed in "My Computer" and does not open when try to open

I have used my DELL 3521 laptop running on Windows 8 Professional for 1 year now. But it stopped showing CD-DVD reader in My Computer (on pressing WINDOWS+E). It is not working. I don't know what ...
14 votes
2 answers
2k views

What is the name for the plastic piece on the end of a 5.25" optical drive tray?

I have a PC set up with 3 optical drives (to rip compact discs). One of the drives was salvaged from a pre-built machine that had a cover to hide the optical drive. As a result of this, the plastic ...
37 votes
8 answers
7k views

Will there ever be faster CD and DVD discs and writers?

I was thinking about the fact that in the last years I have never seen CDs and DVDs supporting writing/reading speeds higher than 52X and 16X, respectively. Is this a commercial choice (i.e. ...
1 vote
3 answers
4k views

What is causing the CD Tray to open & close randomly?

I have a freshly completed install of Ubuntu 11.04, and the CD tray opens and closes all by itself. I cannot detect any pattern to when, or why. I've rebooted, and disconnected all networking (both ...
0 votes
1 answer
241 views

SSD in optical bay vs SSD in HD bay – Mac Pro 2012 (Westmere)

Wondering if there's any benefit/speed difference by plugging an SSD into the cable where the optical drive was or if one of 4 hard drive bays connection is faster on a Mac Pro 2012 (Westmere)?
0 votes
0 answers
133 views

Does an adapter from "disk bay" to 3.5" exist?

I bought a new HDD, but without the foresight of checking if I even had physical space in my case. There is some, but only above the optical reader. However those bays are way larger than the HDD, ...

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