Damaged DVD or CD drive in laptops is the most common flaw in devices that have worked for more than 2-3 years. Dust that will definitely settle on the focusing lens after many years of operation, for sure, if it does not lead to a complete failure of the drive, then it will make its work less reliable and faster. The reason for the complete failure to perceive or write information from a computer to an optical medium may lie in both hardware and software malfunctions of the system. Remember: the optical disc drive in laptops can refuse to read information from DVD discs for a lot of reasons.
First, it is necessary to 100% eliminate the possibility of a software failure in the operating system. You can simply insert a disc into the drive that can be used as a bootable one. Either an installation distribution kit with Windows, or some kind of service disk designed to work with a hard drive, as well as to treat viruses, banners, prepare the system for installing an operating system from scratch, etc. will do. The main thing is to put in the BIOS that the DVD drive is the first to boot, i.e. it is from it, and not from the hard disk, that you need to boot. Probably, many who independently installed the operating system either from a disk or from a flash drive know what this is about. If such a disk is loaded quite successfully, then the problem should be looked for in the installed operating system, namely: in drivers, as well as in software products that can somehow change the system configuration of virtual and physical optical drives. Remove all dubious software for burning, copying DVD discs, and also check in the device manager whether your drive is correctly identified or not. Of course, it is almost impossible to describe all software malfunctions within the framework of one article, but you can give universal advice: do a system restore.
Secondly, if the drive refused to accept the boot disk, then most likely there is a hardware problem. Often the whole solution to the problem comes down to the fact that it is necessary to clean the focusing lens. Dust getting on this lens prevents the laser head beam from transmitting the signal reflected from the DVD disc normally. If at any stage of operation this led to read or write errors, then one “fine” day, the drive may simply refuse to read a completely blank and new disc. The most correct way to solve such a problem is to clean the focusing lens.
Now the so-called cleaning discs have become very widespread. The idea of such discs is certainly good, but the technical execution is not always acceptable. Some samples can generally, instead of being useful, simply “finish off” the sensitive mechanisms and optics of the laser head. Also, improper use of cleaning disks can lead to the fact that the user himself will simply finally “finish off” the drive. Instructions for such discs are often written either in English or in Chinese, which makes understanding the principle of operation, purpose and use of such a disc simply inaccessible to a Russian-speaking person. The main mistake of users is the incorrect application of cleaning fluid. As a rule, you need to apply it only to certain cleaning bumps, and very little, placing the disc at an angle of about 45 degrees relative to the horizon. An excessive amount of this liquid simply floods the laser head, making reading information virtually impossible.
If we talk about Chinese cleaning discs from the category of 100-150 rubles, then their purchase will not be justified both from the practical and from the economic side. And if your problem is not in the lens, then this is money thrown to the wind. To protect the reputation of cleaning discs, we note that new non-contact cleaning discs have now begun to appear. Their main difference is that they work like wind turbines, that is, they blow through the laser head without direct contact. It is these cleaning discs that we recommend purchasing without fear of damaging the sensitive elements of the optical drive.
How to clean a DVD drive without a cleaning disc
Many master repairmen, although they themselves sometimes recommend the use of cleaning discs, but never use them. The cleaning disc is a solution for novice users and housewives. You can clean the drive much more professionally and better only when you take it out of the laptop and disassemble it. To disassemble the drive, you do not need any complex equipment and conditions. All you need is a table, a set of screwdrivers, a paperclip, a needle, a syringe, ear sticks, and isopropyl alcohol.
How to remove a drive
First, you need to turn off the laptop. Turn it face down, remove the battery.
No matter how ridiculous and unreliable it may seem, the fact remains: on all modern laptops, all fastening of the drive to the laptop is done with the help of 1 screw. Take a thin Phillips screwdriver and remove it.
Also, this method can be adopted when you urgently need to pull out the disk, and the electricity is turned off and the battery is low. After threading a needle or a paper clip into the technological hole, the drive will obediently open, and you can pull it out completely by pulling on the disc tray.
How to disassemble a drive
Turning the opened optical drive face down reveals the rear panel cover, which hides many important elements of the laser system.
You remove the 4 retaining screws, and the cover will obediently be removed without the slightest effort on your part. After removing the cover of the rear panel of the laser drive, we have access to the back of the laser diode, as well as the optical system.
Then you can put on the cover, and also tighten the 4 fixing screws.
How to clean a focusing lens
The lens is very sensitive to touch, so it is better not to touch it again with your hands or tools. For starters, you can try to limit yourself to purging from a can of compressed air.
If this does not help, then we recommend using an ear stick previously moistened with 90% isopropyl alcohol to wipe the lens. The second dry and clean end of the stick must remove the remaining alcohol. Remember that it is simply unacceptable to use cologne, moonshine, vodka for these purposes. You will only do harm. Isopropyl alcohol evaporates quickly, is relatively non-toxic, and does not leave marks on glass and lenses, which is very important within the framework of the technical task. Then it is necessary to dry everything again from a can of compressed air. It remains only to assemble everything, insert the drive and screw in the mounting screw. Assembly is simple and intuitive.
Finally, we note that in some cases, it will still not be possible to eliminate the breakdown, since it can lie in a burned-out LED laser, in worn-out mechanics, in burned-out driver microcircuits, etc. Therefore, the last repair option is to completely replace the DVD drive.
As I wrote earlier in other articles, the biggest problem for a computer is dust. It is clogged wherever possible in such quantities that sometimes you are simply amazed. The DVD optical drive is no exception.
Dust, if the device is not cleaned, affects the operation of the drive tray, reduces the accuracy of the laser mechanism and affects the quality of the clamping mechanics. In general, a DVD drive should be cleaned at least once a year. Ideally, once every six months.
To clean and maintain your DVD drive, you will need lubricant, cotton swabs, and alcohol. After removing the DVD drive from the system unit, you need to remove its front panel. First of all, you need to pull out the drive tray. This is done with the help of any long and thin object (needles, paper clips, a piece of wire 3 cm long).
There is a small hole on the front panel of any DVD drive (item 2 on the bottom photo). Behind it (on the inside of the panel) is a mechanism for manually opening the tray. It is necessary to press this mechanism with a little effort through the hole and the tray will extend 1-2 centimeters, after which it can be pulled out manually to the end.
Next, remove the dust cover from the tray. To do this, turn the drive over and, bending the cover with your fingers, pull it down. On the cover, as a rule, there are two latches (item 1 on the bottom photo) and two guides on which the cover is held. It comes off without much effort.
Next, you need to drown the latches on the front panel. There are usually four (two on the bottom, two on the sides), or five (two on the sides, three on the bottom). After removing the front panel, the bolts (4 or 5 pieces) on the bottom cover of the DVD drive are unscrewed and the cover is removed.
Then you need to take the DVD drive by the top cover and shake it slightly. The plastic drive mechanism will fall out of the top cover (see photo below). After removing the covers, the optical disc tray itself is removed. It extends to the stop, then the latches located on the back of the tray at the corners are bent (see photo below) and the tray is removed.
All unnecessary parts have been removed from the DVD drive, you can start cleaning. The main body of the DVD drive has many notches, grooves and recesses. They must be thoroughly blown to remove accumulations of dust. Even a small amount of it at the back wall or in the grooves of the tray can cause the tray to stop opening (closing).
The tray is driven by a motor, which communicates with the mechanics with a rubber strap (belt). Remove the belt carefully so as not to stretch it. The mechanical operation of the drive tray depends on the condition of the belt. By the way, problems often arise with the tray after a long (more than two years) operation without maintenance. First, dust gets into the guides and the tray does not get into the extreme position because of this, and then the belt is stretched due to the fact that the drive mechanism cannot open the tray due to the incorrect position of the tray.
Following the belt, we remove the mechanics control board (1 or 2 latches). Also, be careful not to damage the motor control cable coming from the main board. On inexpensive models, the cables may well be fragile or poorly soldered. We remove dust from the mechanics with a soft brush or air from both sides (top and bottom). Ideally, it is advisable to go over the entire DVD drive first with a brush, and then blow it with air (for example, using a rubber bulb, which is sold in any pharmacy).
After all dust is removed from the drive housing, the rubber parts are degreased with alcohol and the old grease is removed from the guides (usually by the time of maintenance there is a mixture of fine dust and dirt with a small amount of remaining grease).
Finally, the movable rubbing mechanical parts are lubricated with a small (negligible) amount of grease just to form a film (no longer desirable). There should be no visible accumulation of grease.
The final touch is blowing (only with a rubber bulb) the lens of the laser mechanism (in no case should it be wiped) and the drive is assembled back.
It may happen that we bought a film, watched it and gave it to our friends or acquaintances to watch. Then, after returning the disc, it suddenly stopped being read.
What happened? We open the drive, carefully look at the disk and see with disappointment that scratches have appeared on it, which were not there before, but what is even more strange: it is somehow all dirty, smeared with something, covered in some kind of dried spots. How can he read to the poor? It's just that the child of friends acted carelessly with him: for example, he threw the disk face down on a dirty table, and, God forbid, put some object on top of it and moved it around the table.
In no case don't wipe the cd some napkins or rags - you can scratch (damage) the working surface of the disk even more ...
Well, with scratches, nothing can be done. If they are insignificant, then the disc will be read. But you can remove dirt from the disk by washing it in warm water with soap. Yes, like a regular plate, only with your hands, not with a rag or sponge.
We moisten with plain water and gently distribute the soapy solution over the surface with a soapy hand. Simply put, thoroughly wash with your hands until the dirty stains are completely removed.
Done, washed:
Then you can just shake it well and let it dry, but if the water is hard, after drying, traces of hardness salts may remain. For drying, we simply blot with a well-absorbing matter, for example, a terry towel:
It is advisable to gently blot, wipe (rub) the CD / DVD disc, it is not worth it. Any friction on the working surface of the disk is fraught with its scratching, what if a grain of sand remains in the matter? So it's safer to get wet:
And do not touch the work surface with your hands if possible:
Let the disk dry completely for a few tens of seconds and that's it. Disk ready to eat. Try it, it may happen that those discs that were not read before will be successfully read in your drive.
By the way, if most of the discs from your collection are not readable in a CD / DVD drive, then check it on another drive, let's say with friends or acquaintances. It may happen that it is time to change the drive due to the mechanical displacement of the reading head relative to the surface (they say that “the eye has gone astray”).
Hello everyone. In addition to cleaning CDs with soap and water, there are many other effective ways. This article will tell you how and how to clean compact discs (CDs and DVDs).
Often, many people have a situation where they put a disc into the drive of a computer or player, and it freezes and “does not want” to be played, or plays, but “snippets”. What caused it? First of all, by improper handling of the disk or by the fact that the disk has been in use for a very long time. If scratches form on the surface of the disc, then it is likely that it will not play correctly. In such cases, cleaning can help, although the success of this case will largely depend on the degree of damage to the disc coating. There are many "folk" ways to clean CDs and DVDs, some of them are able to surprise even experienced and experienced users with their invention.
How to clean a CD or DVD?
Use water and a soft cloth.
First of all, rinse the CD thoroughly. This is done in order to remove dust, adhering particles and grease stains from the surface. Immerse the CD or DVD in warm water, soak it there for a while, then take a soft, lint-free cloth and wipe the surface of the CD. Do not rub the surface too thoroughly and harshly. In order not to damage the data on the disk, there is a certain "pattern" of cleaning actions. When cleaning, you need to start from the center of the disc and move towards the edge. Never use towels, toilet paper, paper towels, or any other material or item that may cause minor scratches on the surface of the disc. Let the drive dry completely, and then check whether data is read from it correctly, whether it works without failures and pauses.
Cleaning the disc surface.... banana.
Most users don't even know that a banana can be used to clean a scratched drive. Take a fresh banana and cut it in two. Wipe the surface of the CD/DVD with it in a circular motion. The next step is to clean the disc surface with a soft cotton cloth. Before playing a disc, it is best if you use a cleaning spray and then wipe the disc with a dry and soft cloth.
Applying toothpaste or Vaseline.
The surface of the disc can also be cleaned with some household items such as toothpaste or petroleum jelly. However, this method can be used if the scratches are not too deep. Place an appropriate amount of any of these products on the surface of the disc and wipe gently with a soft cloth. Then, for the final cleaning, use a cleaning spray, wipe the disc dry and try to play it.
Use a polish or special disc cleaner.
If the above tools were powerless, you can use a metal polish or a set of cleaning products for disks. After wiping the disc with a polished cloth, then wipe the disc with a soft, clean cloth, let it dry, and then try to play it. If it still does not work properly, try the last option, use specialized disk cleaning fluids.
These are just a few of the tools that can effectively clean the surface of CD/DVD discs. There are other ways, such as using alcohol, soda, etc. as a cleanser.
A regularly used CD-ROM or DVD drive likes to collect dust and other "junk stuff". If you are looking for a way to effectively clear disk reader without having to disassemble the computer into parts, here is the instruction.
When the CD-ROM Drive Needs Cleaning
The most obvious signal is when your DVD drive fails. work fine. It can be caused by many things, but disk cleanup may I help.
Another sign is when your computer has difficulty reading discs. The third signal is strange sound when the drive is trying to open the disc or even during the extension and retraction.
Another sign is when used disk twitches(although then it might be the drive's fault). These are just the most common symptoms.
The general conclusion is: if your CD-ROM/DVD doesn't work, clean it up. If this does not help, try cleaning it again, and if this does not help, the drive is probably defective and you should replace it with a new one or send it in for repair.
What you need to clean the drive
Of course, do not use the blowing method. Your breath contains a lot of moisture, which can cause even more damage, up to and including irreversible destruction of the actuator.
How to prepare a drive for cleaning
Turn on the computer and remove the drive baffle. Then turn off the computer again, leaving the baffle pulled out. Remove the disc from the drive if it was in the computer.
How to clean a DVD drive
Insert a "straw" into the opening of a can of compressed air. If you have a laptop, place it on the edge of a table with the CD-ROM/DVD compartment hanging in the air.
Hold the can of air perpendicular to the floor (i.e. upright) and be careful not to pump it as the gas it contains can damage your CD-ROM/DVD. Insert a straw into the drive slot and lightly press the canister deflate button.
Repeat the procedure two or three times, and then turn on the computer and see if the drive works.
What to do if it does not lead to the desired result
Some tutorial videos or web pages recommend that you completely remove the drive from your computer. Do not do this. In many cases, performing this operation may be worth voiding the warranty, and even if not, it may damage the drive.
what can you do
Call a service technician or bring your computer in for service. You can also contact the manufacturer and ask for advice. If your computer is under warranty, then, of course, you have a recorded phone number to call in such cases.
A few tips for cleaning the drive
The CD-ROM / DVD drive is a very delicate part of a computer that needs good care. You can clean it before the alarms appear.
Use compressed air carefully and responsibly to avoid damaging your computer. When the container is empty, do not throw it in the trash. Compressed air cans often contain toxic substances, so we must dispose of them in special waste containers representing
