DVD/CD-RW problem [Moved from XP by chauffeur2]

keylh001 · 01-29-2008, 05:50 PM

I am hoping someone can help me with a frustrating problem. I recently tried to run an auto racing game called GTR. Unfortunately for me it came with the Starforce protection program. After many attempts to get the game running on my laptop, I tried to use the starforce removal tool thinking that my laptop would be able to finally read the game disk. All that managed to do was screw things up so that my Teac DW 224e DVD/CD RW drive won't read any disks. I uninstalled the game, still didn't work. Ran the SF removal tool again & rebooted, still didn't work. I have even uninstalled my DVD drive through the device manager & rebooted so the laptop would recognize the drive & set it up fresh, still didn't work. I can see the drive in Windows explorer but it can't see anything on the disk. In the Device Mgr I can also see the drive & it doesn't show any yellow conflict/problem flags for the device. Oh, I've also noticed that the little green light on the drive door keep flashing.

I have heard stories about what starforce can do to optical devices, has SF killed my Teac drive? Sorry to be so longwinded, but I wanted give a complete picture of my problem. Any suggestions on how to get my DVD/CD RW drive working again would be most appreciated. Additional system info:
Sager laptop
Windows XP pro
2GB RAM
Intel 3.0GHz processor

thanks in advance!
Harold

**mack1** · 01-29-2008, 07:28 PM

Try this.
start>programs>accessories>system tools>system restore
When the screen comes up, pick 'restore my computer to an earlier time'. The next screen will give you a calendar. The bold numbered days are the earlier restore points.
Pick one before you installed the game and tell it to restore.
When finished, it will reboot to the settings of that earlier date. This should fix the problem. Note that other software that was installed after the game was installed will have to be reinstalled. If this doesn't work, just go back to system restore and tell it to undo the last restore. This will get you back to where the computer is right now.

Hope it works for you.

keylh001 · 01-29-2008, 07:52 PM

Thanks for the suggestion, unfortunately the drive still will not read disks.

chauffeur2 · 01-29-2008, 08:55 PM

G'Day keylh001,

There are a couple of ways that might help you with this issue.

Method One: Remove the registry entry

Warning: Serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly by using Registry Editor or by using another method. These problems might require that you reinstall your operating system.

Please Note: If you had installed multiple CD-writing software products on your computer, you need to uninstall the software products before you remove the registry keys.

1. Click Start, and then click Run.
2. In the Open box, type regedit, and then click OK.
3. Locate and then click the following registry subkey:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/System/CurrentControlSet/Control/Class/{4d36e965-e325-11ce-bfc1-08002be10318}
4. On the File menu, click Export.
5. In the File name box, type savedkey, and then click Save.
6. Click the REG_MULTI_SZ data type UpperFilters, and then click Delete on the Edit menu. When you are prompted to confirm the deletion, click Yes.
Note: If this data type is missing, go to Method 2.
7. Click the REG_MULTI_SZ data type LowerFilters, and then click Delete on the Edit menu. When you are prompted to confirm the deletion, click Yes.
8. Quit Registry Editor, and then restart the computer.

Method 2: Replace the existing driver
1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
2. If Control Panel is in Category view, click Performance and Maintenance, and then click System.
(If Control Panel is in Classic view, double-click System.)
3. On the Hardware tab, click Device Manager.
4. Click the drive with the question mark (?) next to it.
5. On the Action menu, click Uninstall. When you are prompted to confirm the removal, click OK.
6. Repeat steps 4 through 5 for any other drives with question marks.
7. On the Action Menu, click Scan for hardware changes.
Close all windows and reboot the computer.

Please give these two methods a try and post back with the results.

Kind Regards,

keylh001 · 01-29-2008, 09:15 PM

chauffeur2,

Method 1 looks pretty intimidating, I have taken the steps in Method 2 & uninstalled my DVD/CD RW drive and rebooted my laptop so windows could recognize and reinstall it. The drive was found on the reboot & I got the device is ready message, but it still will not read any CD's and the green light continues to flash on the device door. No ofense but I'd rather not try Method 1, I'm really worried that I'll mess up my system even more & would have to reinstalling Window XP again. Does sound like starforce has killed the drive's ability to read disks? I'm very tempted to just take it to a laptop repair shop & have them install a new DVD/CD drive. Any other possible solutions?

Thanks again to everyone for
the help so far!
Harold

chauffeur2 · 01-29-2008, 09:43 PM

Hello Harold,

I would suggest that you ask a friend or colleague to help you with Method 1, as I sincerely believe that it should work.
If you are intimidated with going into the Registry; then, create a Restore Point before yo try the 'fix', this way at least you will be able to go back to before the Registry was altered.

Regards,

keylh001 · 01-30-2008, 03:44 PM

Ok, I'll set up a restore point & give it a try. Where are the reg_multi_sz upper & lower filters? I don't see any in my registry, there lots of reg_sz's.

-Harold

chauffeur2 · 01-30-2008, 07:29 PM

G'Day again Harold,
If you carefully navigate to this key in the Registry, you will be able to see the upper and lower filter listed in the right hand panel.

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/System/CurrentControlSet/Control/Class/{4d36e965-e325-11ce-bfc1-08002be10318}

I'll be around for a while now..so have a go and let me know how you get on.

Kind Regards,

keylh001 · 01-30-2008, 07:39 PM

Dave
Thanks for checking on me. I was feeling lucky & tried methods 1 & 2 on my own. For method 1, I only found the lower filter which I deleted per your instuctions. I then tried method 2. Once my laptop rebooted, it recognized the dvd drive, but alas it still has the green light flashing on the drive door & doesn't recognize that there is a disk in the drive. What do you guys suggest next?

Harold

chauffeur2 · 01-30-2008, 07:47 PM

Harold,

How old is this Laptop and DVD Drive?

keylh001 · 01-30-2008, 07:50 PM

It is a Teac DW 224e DVD/CD RW drive. The drive & laptop are 4.5years old.

chauffeur2 · 01-30-2008, 07:54 PM

Ok Harold,
It's my gut feeling that the DVD Drive may have decided to desert you and take a hike.
Having said that, and before we jump off a cliff, or turn the beloved lappy into a boat anchor, I will transfer you over to the able bodied hands of the talented guys/girls in our Laptop Support Forum in the Hardware section, so that they can assess it too.
Good Luck with it!

Kind regards,

keylh001 · 01-30-2008, 07:59 PM

Dave,

Thanks very much for your help. I don't think I'd have to dump the laptop just for a bad DVD drive, I'd think I could find a replacement drive to install.

Harold

chauffeur2 · 01-30-2008, 08:06 PM

Indeed....The Laptop Support guys/girls will give you a good assessment though.

**TriggerFinger** · 01-30-2008, 11:49 PM

how about trying to reboot via that CD/DVD drive of yours... pop in a bootable CD like a linux or an XP installer and try rebooting... try for both formats. If it can reboot then you can rest assured that your laptop hardware-wise can see the drive.

Hmmm... forget how Windows sees it first (as Windows gets confused sometimes

)... be concerned if BIOS cannot recognize it anymore.

Try to boot from it and let us know...

keylh001 · 01-31-2008, 05:42 PM

I guess I'll have to go the closet & try to track down the Windows XP disks. Hopefully I can find them & let you know if I can boot from them or not. I suspect that the laptop still won't recognize that there's a disk in the drive. Funny thing is that in Windows explorer, the dvd drive shows up but doesn't show that there's a disk in the drive. It will let me right on the drive icon & allow me to eject the disk from the drive. Anyway I'll get back to soon.

-Harold

dai · 01-31-2008, 07:34 PM

look at the second last post here by dirk gross
http://www.gamehourz.com/steps-remov...ict136689.html

keylh001 · 02-01-2008, 05:18 PM

Fixmypc,

Tried booting my laptop with my XP recovery disk & didn't change anything. It booted up straight from the HDD as usual, never read the DVD drive. It still shows up as a listed drive in Explorer & is removed if I uninstall the drive in the device manager.

Dai,

I checked those 3 locations to remove the items you suggested & they must have been removed completely by the SF Removal tool I used. So at least I can be assured that it is no longer on my laptop. I'm going to try physically removing the drive to see if that help when I reconnect it.

Not looking like there's a happy ending in store.

-Harold

keylh001 · 02-01-2008, 06:03 PM

Ok, I removed the disk & then reinstalled it. Still doesn't read any disk that is in the drive. When I click on the drive in Explorer, I get a message saying Windows can't read from this disk, & that the disk is incompatible or corrupt. I get this message now with any disk I put in the drive now. Any more thoughts or ideas?

-Harold

**mack1** · 02-01-2008, 07:16 PM

Have you tried to access the drive after booting in the safe mode? It seems odd to me that the green access light blinks, as if some malware was trying to access the drive. If you can't access it in safe mode, try safe mode with command prompt and see if you can access it that way.
Also, try setting the boot sequences in the BIOS to ONLY cdrom. That way you won't end up booting in windows, but will just hang up if it can't access the windows cd. I feel like the BIOS sees the drive since the task manager lists it in windows, but you should make sure while you are setting up the boot sequence.

01-29-2008, 05:50 PM	#1 (permalink)
keylh001 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 24 OS: winxp	DVD/CD-RW problem [Moved from XP by chauffeur2] I am hoping someone can help me with a frustrating problem. I recently tried to run an auto racing game called GTR. Unfortunately for me it came with the Starforce protection program. After many attempts to get the game running on my laptop, I tried to use the starforce removal tool thinking that my laptop would be able to finally read the game disk. All that managed to do was screw things up so that my Teac DW 224e DVD/CD RW drive won't read any disks. I uninstalled the game, still didn't work. Ran the SF removal tool again & rebooted, still didn't work. I have even uninstalled my DVD drive through the device manager & rebooted so the laptop would recognize the drive & set it up fresh, still didn't work. I can see the drive in Windows explorer but it can't see anything on the disk. In the Device Mgr I can also see the drive & it doesn't show any yellow conflict/problem flags for the device. Oh, I've also noticed that the little green light on the drive door keep flashing. I have heard stories about what starforce can do to optical devices, has SF killed my Teac drive? Sorry to be so longwinded, but I wanted give a complete picture of my problem. Any suggestions on how to get my DVD/CD RW drive working again would be most appreciated. Additional system info: Sager laptop Windows XP pro 2GB RAM Intel 3.0GHz processor thanks in advance! Harold

01-29-2008, 07:28 PM	#2 (permalink)
mack1 TSF Articles Team Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Texarkana, Texas Posts: 1,245 OS: xp sp3 My System	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem Try this. start>programs>accessories>system tools>system restore When the screen comes up, pick 'restore my computer to an earlier time'. The next screen will give you a calendar. The bold numbered days are the earlier restore points. Pick one before you installed the game and tell it to restore. When finished, it will reboot to the settings of that earlier date. This should fix the problem. Note that other software that was installed after the game was installed will have to be reinstalled. If this doesn't work, just go back to system restore and tell it to undo the last restore. This will get you back to where the computer is right now. Hope it works for you.

01-29-2008, 07:52 PM	#3 (permalink)
keylh001 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 24 OS: winxp	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem Thanks for the suggestion, unfortunately the drive still will not read disks.

01-29-2008, 08:55 PM	#4 (permalink)
chauffeur2 Manager Emeritus Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Adelaide, South Australia Posts: 10,180 OS: Xp Sp3 with all updates + Vista™ Ultimate SP1. My System	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem G'Day keylh001, There are a couple of ways that might help you with this issue. Method One: Remove the registry entry Warning: Serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly by using Registry Editor or by using another method. These problems might require that you reinstall your operating system. Please Note: If you had installed multiple CD-writing software products on your computer, you need to uninstall the software products before you remove the registry keys. 1. Click Start, and then click Run. 2. In the Open box, type regedit, and then click OK. 3. Locate and then click the following registry subkey: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/System/CurrentControlSet/Control/Class/{4d36e965-e325-11ce-bfc1-08002be10318} 4. On the File menu, click Export. 5. In the File name box, type savedkey, and then click Save. 6. Click the REG_MULTI_SZ data type UpperFilters, and then click Delete on the Edit menu. When you are prompted to confirm the deletion, click Yes. Note: If this data type is missing, go to Method 2. 7. Click the REG_MULTI_SZ data type LowerFilters, and then click Delete on the Edit menu. When you are prompted to confirm the deletion, click Yes. 8. Quit Registry Editor, and then restart the computer. Method 2: Replace the existing driver 1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel. 2. If Control Panel is in Category view, click Performance and Maintenance, and then click System. (If Control Panel is in Classic view, double-click System.) 3. On the Hardware tab, click Device Manager. 4. Click the drive with the question mark (?) next to it. 5. On the Action menu, click Uninstall. When you are prompted to confirm the removal, click OK. 6. Repeat steps 4 through 5 for any other drives with question marks. 7. On the Action Menu, click Scan for hardware changes. Close all windows and reboot the computer. Please give these two methods a try and post back with the results. Kind Regards, __________________ Dave T. Submit New Articles If it works, Don't fix it! Especially if Bill Gates had anything to do with it!!

01-29-2008, 09:15 PM	#5 (permalink)
keylh001 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 24 OS: winxp	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem chauffeur2, Method 1 looks pretty intimidating, I have taken the steps in Method 2 & uninstalled my DVD/CD RW drive and rebooted my laptop so windows could recognize and reinstall it. The drive was found on the reboot & I got the device is ready message, but it still will not read any CD's and the green light continues to flash on the device door. No ofense but I'd rather not try Method 1, I'm really worried that I'll mess up my system even more & would have to reinstalling Window XP again. Does sound like starforce has killed the drive's ability to read disks? I'm very tempted to just take it to a laptop repair shop & have them install a new DVD/CD drive. Any other possible solutions? Thanks again to everyone for the help so far! Harold

01-29-2008, 09:43 PM	#6 (permalink)
chauffeur2 Manager Emeritus Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Adelaide, South Australia Posts: 10,180 OS: Xp Sp3 with all updates + Vista™ Ultimate SP1. My System	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem Hello Harold, I would suggest that you ask a friend or colleague to help you with Method 1, as I sincerely believe that it should work. If you are intimidated with going into the Registry; then, create a Restore Point before yo try the 'fix', this way at least you will be able to go back to before the Registry was altered. Regards, __________________ Dave T. Submit New Articles If it works, Don't fix it! Especially if Bill Gates had anything to do with it!!

01-30-2008, 03:44 PM	#7 (permalink)
keylh001 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 24 OS: winxp	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem Ok, I'll set up a restore point & give it a try. Where are the reg_multi_sz upper & lower filters? I don't see any in my registry, there lots of reg_sz's. -Harold

01-30-2008, 07:29 PM	#8 (permalink)
chauffeur2 Manager Emeritus Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Adelaide, South Australia Posts: 10,180 OS: Xp Sp3 with all updates + Vista™ Ultimate SP1. My System	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem G'Day again Harold, If you carefully navigate to this key in the Registry, you will be able to see the upper and lower filter listed in the right hand panel. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/System/CurrentControlSet/Control/Class/{4d36e965-e325-11ce-bfc1-08002be10318} I'll be around for a while now..so have a go and let me know how you get on. Kind Regards, __________________ Dave T. Submit New Articles If it works, Don't fix it! Especially if Bill Gates had anything to do with it!!

01-30-2008, 07:39 PM	#9 (permalink)
keylh001 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 24 OS: winxp	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem Dave Thanks for checking on me. I was feeling lucky & tried methods 1 & 2 on my own. For method 1, I only found the lower filter which I deleted per your instuctions. I then tried method 2. Once my laptop rebooted, it recognized the dvd drive, but alas it still has the green light flashing on the drive door & doesn't recognize that there is a disk in the drive. What do you guys suggest next? Harold

01-30-2008, 07:47 PM	#10 (permalink)
chauffeur2 Manager Emeritus Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Adelaide, South Australia Posts: 10,180 OS: Xp Sp3 with all updates + Vista™ Ultimate SP1. My System	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem Harold, How old is this Laptop and DVD Drive? __________________ Dave T. Submit New Articles If it works, Don't fix it! Especially if Bill Gates had anything to do with it!!

01-30-2008, 07:50 PM	#11 (permalink)
keylh001 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 24 OS: winxp	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem It is a Teac DW 224e DVD/CD RW drive. The drive & laptop are 4.5years old.

01-30-2008, 07:54 PM	#12 (permalink)
chauffeur2 Manager Emeritus Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Adelaide, South Australia Posts: 10,180 OS: Xp Sp3 with all updates + Vista™ Ultimate SP1. My System	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem Ok Harold, It's my gut feeling that the DVD Drive may have decided to desert you and take a hike. Having said that, and before we jump off a cliff, or turn the beloved lappy into a boat anchor, I will transfer you over to the able bodied hands of the talented guys/girls in our Laptop Support Forum in the Hardware section, so that they can assess it too. Good Luck with it! Kind regards, __________________ Dave T. Submit New Articles If it works, Don't fix it! Especially if Bill Gates had anything to do with it!! Last edited by chauffeur2; 01-30-2008 at 07:56 PM.

01-30-2008, 07:59 PM	#13 (permalink)
keylh001 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 24 OS: winxp	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem Dave, Thanks very much for your help. I don't think I'd have to dump the laptop just for a bad DVD drive, I'd think I could find a replacement drive to install. Harold

01-30-2008, 08:06 PM	#14 (permalink)
chauffeur2 Manager Emeritus Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Adelaide, South Australia Posts: 10,180 OS: Xp Sp3 with all updates + Vista™ Ultimate SP1. My System	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem Indeed....The Laptop Support guys/girls will give you a good assessment though. __________________ Dave T. Submit New Articles If it works, Don't fix it! Especially if Bill Gates had anything to do with it!!

01-30-2008, 11:49 PM	#15 (permalink)
TriggerFinger Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: USA Posts: 11,851 OS: Vista SP1, XP SP3, PCLinuxOS2007	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem [Moved from XP by chauffeur2] how about trying to reboot via that CD/DVD drive of yours... pop in a bootable CD like a linux or an XP installer and try rebooting... try for both formats. If it can reboot then you can rest assured that your laptop hardware-wise can see the drive. Hmmm... forget how Windows sees it first (as Windows gets confused sometimes )... be concerned if BIOS cannot recognize it anymore. Try to boot from it and let us know...

01-31-2008, 05:42 PM	#16 (permalink)
keylh001 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 24 OS: winxp	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem [Moved from XP by chauffeur2] I guess I'll have to go the closet & try to track down the Windows XP disks. Hopefully I can find them & let you know if I can boot from them or not. I suspect that the laptop still won't recognize that there's a disk in the drive. Funny thing is that in Windows explorer, the dvd drive shows up but doesn't show that there's a disk in the drive. It will let me right on the drive icon & allow me to eject the disk from the drive. Anyway I'll get back to soon. -Harold

01-31-2008, 07:34 PM	#17 (permalink)
dai Manager, Hardware Forums Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: west australia Posts: 56,784 OS: win 7 32x 64x rtm	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem [Moved from XP by chauffeur2] look at the second last post here by dirk gross http://www.gamehourz.com/steps-remov...ict136689.html __________________

02-01-2008, 05:18 PM	#18 (permalink)
keylh001 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 24 OS: winxp	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem [Moved from XP by chauffeur2] Fixmypc, Tried booting my laptop with my XP recovery disk & didn't change anything. It booted up straight from the HDD as usual, never read the DVD drive. It still shows up as a listed drive in Explorer & is removed if I uninstall the drive in the device manager. Dai, I checked those 3 locations to remove the items you suggested & they must have been removed completely by the SF Removal tool I used. So at least I can be assured that it is no longer on my laptop. I'm going to try physically removing the drive to see if that help when I reconnect it. Not looking like there's a happy ending in store. -Harold

02-01-2008, 06:03 PM	#19 (permalink)
keylh001 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 24 OS: winxp	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem [Moved from XP by chauffeur2] Ok, I removed the disk & then reinstalled it. Still doesn't read any disk that is in the drive. When I click on the drive in Explorer, I get a message saying Windows can't read from this disk, & that the disk is incompatible or corrupt. I get this message now with any disk I put in the drive now. Any more thoughts or ideas? -Harold

02-01-2008, 07:16 PM	#20 (permalink)
mack1 TSF Articles Team Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Texarkana, Texas Posts: 1,245 OS: xp sp3 My System	Re: DVD/CD-RW problem [Moved from XP by chauffeur2] Have you tried to access the drive after booting in the safe mode? It seems odd to me that the green access light blinks, as if some malware was trying to access the drive. If you can't access it in safe mode, try safe mode with command prompt and see if you can access it that way. Also, try setting the boot sequences in the BIOS to ONLY cdrom. That way you won't end up booting in windows, but will just hang up if it can't access the windows cd. I feel like the BIOS sees the drive since the task manager lists it in windows, but you should make sure while you are setting up the boot sequence.