# Any Techs Around?



## Shin Ji Ka Mi (Jul 7, 2009)

Damn, I WILL GIVE A FREE DRAWING TO WHOEVER CAN HELP ME FIX UP MY ISSUE.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/2449048

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/2411768

On this style =[.

My CD / DVD is NOT working properly. Or at all. It won't show up even on the BIOS of my motherboard.  I was messing up with Daemon Tools and it deleted my actual drives. I've tried everything: From deleteing the upper and down filters, from using a diversity of programs and nothing works.

My drives are fully functional on other computers. Maybe it messed up with my IDE controllers?

Anyone can help?


----------



## Xaevo (Jul 7, 2009)

try reinstalling your drivers, and try to run an Registry cleaner/ repairer such as CCleaner

and don't forget to re-plug it


----------



## Shin Ji Ka Mi (Jul 7, 2009)

TechieWolf said:


> try reinstalling your drivers, and try to run an Registry cleaner/ repairer such as CCleaner
> 
> and don't forget to re-plug it



I've installed them all over again. And I can't format since my motherboard won't recognize the DVD I wouldn't have a way to reinstall windows! : (.

CC Cleaner didn't work either.


----------



## Rigor Sardonicus (Jul 7, 2009)

You could possibly try updating the firmware. What brand is it?

Otherwise, you might have to replace the drive.


----------



## Shin Ji Ka Mi (Jul 7, 2009)

Satan Q. Jones said:


> You could possibly try updating the firmware. What brand is it?
> 
> Otherwise, you might have to replace the drive.



That's one of my main problems, I HAVE replaced the drive. And it still won't show up on my motherboard BIOS. The Daemon Tools thingy did something to my motherboard. SIGH. I need to format my damn thing. But I can't. : (.

EDIT: Damn you FA FORUMS. But I can't since then I wouldn't be able to reinstall my OS.


----------



## Xaevo (Jul 7, 2009)

try to download an new BIOS version from you Mobo's retailer, and flash it via a) floppy b) windows


----------



## Rigor Sardonicus (Jul 7, 2009)

Shin Ji Ka Mi said:


> That's one of my main problems, I HAVE replaced the drive. And it still won't show up on my motherboard BIOS. The Daemon Tools thingy did something to my motherboard. SIGH. I need to format my damn thing. But I can't. : (.
> 
> EDIT: Damn you FA FORUMS. But I can't since then I wouldn't be able to reinstall my OS.


This is why I recommend Alcohol 120% or PowerISO :V


----------



## ToeClaws (Jul 7, 2009)

Some motherboard BIOS's don't show ATAPI devices like they do a hard drive.  Can you boot from a bootable OS on it (IE, put in any type of bootable CD and have it work)?  If so, then BIOS is seeing and using it, whether or not it says it is.  Also if so, if you boot up the system fully on a LiveCD that preloads the whole OS into RAM (like Puppy Linux), you should be able to test and see if the CD remains accessible within the OS for other things.  If so, you have an issue with the primary OS and how it sees/addresses the unit.

If you can't boot from it at all, then it is more basic.  TechieWolf's BIOS update idea is a good one - sometimes bugs do appear in the BIOS to cause such issues.  You may also want to scroll through the various BIOS options to see if there are specific Chipset controls related to the onboard ATA/IDE controllers.  make sure the controllers are both turned on (there's usually two of them), and note the current settings.  If LBA is turned on, try turning it off to see if it changes the acccess capabilities, and vice versa (it's known to cause issues from time to time).  If the settings are hard coded too a certain DMA mode or UDMA mode, try upping them to the highest mode or "Auto" if the option exists.  You can also try resorting to PIO mode 4 (if available) which is sort of a fail safe mode that works with pretty much everything right back to a 486.

Another thing you can try in the BIOS is to "Set BIOS to Defaults".  Before doing this, if there are any special timing and/or voltage settings for your CPU, write them down first just in case the board doesn't auto-detect them when you do this (though pretty much all modern boards nowadays do).  This will reset the BIOS back to factory default can clear any settings that might be potentially interfering with the IDE/ATA controllers.


----------



## Carenath (Jul 7, 2009)

Satan Q. Jones said:


> You could possibly try updating the firmware. What brand is it?
> 
> Otherwise, you might have to replace the drive.


Upgrading the firmware on a CD/DVD drive cant be done if its not being detected by the system.



Shin Ji Ka Mi said:


> That's one of my main problems, I HAVE replaced the drive. And it still won't show up on my motherboard BIOS. The Daemon Tools thingy did something to my motherboard. SIGH. I need to format my damn thing. But I can't. : (.
> 
> EDIT: Damn you FA FORUMS. But I can't since then I wouldn't be able to reinstall my OS.


If you replaced the drive, and the new drive is not showing up, then the issue is with the host system or the way you have connected the drive.



TechieWolf said:


> try to download an new BIOS version from you Mobo's retailer, and flash it via a) floppy b) windows


Doubtful this will make any difference, if the host system is not detecting the drive, its more likely to be something more simple, especially since the OP has stated he replaced the drive.

OP:
Does the drive power up when you power on the computer? The activity light should come on during the power-on self test.
If it doesnt, check the power cable is fully inserted.

Check that you have connected the data-cable the right way around, the single red wire should line up with Pin 1 on the drive. While most data-cables have a notch to prevent them being connected the wrong way around, some cables don't. Check that its in fully too.

Is the DVD drive, the only drive you have on that cable? If so, change the jumper on the drive to set it to MAster.

Edit: Clearing the BIOS settings might help too, if a software utility has messed with them.


----------



## Rigor Sardonicus (Jul 7, 2009)

Carenath said:


> Upgrading the firmware on a CD/DVD drive cant be done if its not being detected by the system.


At this time, I would like to point out that the BIOS can be considered firmware as well >_>;


----------



## Runefox (Jul 7, 2009)

I can assure you that Daemon Tools didn't modify anything on your motherboard. I'm fairly sure the program doesn't operate on that level.

Since you already did the UpperFilters/LowerFilters troubleshooting, let's skip to something else. As has been said, a lot of the time, especially older motherboards don't show optical drives/ATAPI devices as being present during bootup, as they are programmed to merely show information about attached hard drives, specifically.

So, does the optical drive show up in Device Manager under Windows? If this is the case, it may just be a matter of setting the drive letters back to where they should be under Disk Management (right-click My Computer, click Manage, click Disk Management, find optical drive, right-click, Change Drive Letter and Paths, choose drive letter, OK). Also, if it complains about not being able to load the driver, you may have done the UpperFilters/LowerFilters troubleshooting on the wrong device - Try it again and pay careful attention to which keys you're looking at.

If not, does it eject? Does it spin up when a disc is inserted? If not, it could be that the power connection is bad, or alternatively, if it does and the above doesn't work, it could be that the port the optical drive is plugged into is disabled in the BIOS (or the cable is frayed or not fully inserted).


----------



## Sassy (Jul 7, 2009)

if you could kindly download Everest Free as a start, and then let me know the model # of your motherboard as displayed within i may be able to help more. my suspicion is that daemon tools has ruined your IDE controller drivers and that if we can find the model # of the motherboard; we ought to be able to find a relevant chip-set package and reinstall the drivers. fingers crossed!


----------



## AshleyAshes (Jul 7, 2009)

Have you just tried checking the internal connections?  Maybe something came loose.


----------



## ZentratheFox (Jul 7, 2009)

Jeez guys. The jumpers are probably set wrong.

There are two ports on an IDE cable. If there's another device (hard drive) on the cable, make sure the hard drive is set to master, and the CD drive is set to slave. If it's the only device, make sure that the device is set to master.


----------



## ToeClaws (Jul 7, 2009)

ZentratheFox said:


> Jeez guys. The jumpers are probably set wrong.
> 
> There are two ports on an IDE cable. If there's another device (hard drive) on the cable, make sure the hard drive is set to master, and the CD drive is set to slave. If it's the only device, make sure that the device is set to master.



Doesn't matter - ROMs will work as either.  Though you might have a point - if the jumper is on CS (Cable Select) that would likely cause issues.


----------



## AshleyAshes (Jul 7, 2009)

But the jumpers would have to be OK for the drive to have worked before.  So it's unlikely that now they are magically wrong.

It's possible that something came loose.

It's also possible that the drive just up and died.


----------



## Rigor Sardonicus (Jul 7, 2009)

^ Good point. Optical drives _are_ known to do that.

In any case, DVD drives are fairly cheap nowadays, right?


----------



## Runefox (Jul 7, 2009)

ZentratheFox said:


> Jeez guys. The jumpers are probably set wrong.



Yeah, that's one thing I thought of, but then the idea that they worked before kind of cancelled that out.

In my mind, it's nothing to do with the motherboard, really, unless the cable is bad or not fully inserted. Again, it could be a bad power connector if the drive isn't getting power, or more likely a purely software affair. If it's there in Device Manager, it's either a matter of assigning the drive letters or performing the UpperFilters/LowerFilters troubleshooting steps again (if it's complaining about drivers).

If it's a chipset driver problem, more than likely the hard drive will be running in PIO mode, and there should also be several devices with problems in the Device Manager. If that were the case, though, the computer shouldn't be booting, since it wouldn't be able to mount the hard drive(s), either, if it truly were a chipset driver issue that was severe enough to cause an entire controller to disappear.


----------



## AshleyAshes (Jul 7, 2009)

Satan Q. Jones said:


> ^ Good point. Optical drives _are_ known to do that.
> 
> In any case, DVD drives are fairly cheap nowadays, right?


 
A DL DVDRW will run you $40 tops.  Less if you shop around.  *checks his local non-big brand store*  Yeah, $40-$27, and that's in Canadian funds.


----------



## Runefox (Jul 8, 2009)

> *checks his local non-big brand store*


That's really the key, too. The big box stores tend to sell them for about twice what the ma and pa shops or online retailers will. At least, Future Shop does.


----------



## ZentratheFox (Jul 8, 2009)

Runefox said:


> Yeah, that's one thing I thought of, but then the idea that they worked before kind of cancelled that out.



Pick up drive, loose jumper falls out. I blame "chip creep".

I just know it's happened to me, just by jostling the case/drive a bit.

It's worth a check...

Important: if the BIOS can't detect the drive, it's NOT anything related to drivers. It's either the BIOS, the motherboard, the cable, or the drive. This includes problems with all of them.

PS: check the power. Just a thought.

Here's another...


Shin Ji Ka Mi said:


> That's one of my main problems, I HAVE replaced the drive.


So, I think that rules out the drive.


----------



## Carenath (Jul 8, 2009)

ZentratheFox said:


> Jeez guys. The jumpers are probably set wrong.
> 
> There are two ports on an IDE cable. If there's another device (hard drive) on the cable, make sure the hard drive is set to master, and the CD drive is set to slave. If it's the only device, make sure that the device is set to master.





ToeClaws said:


> Though you might have a point - if the jumper is on CS (Cable Select) that would likely cause issues.





Runefox said:


> In my mind, it's nothing to do with the motherboard, really, unless the cable is bad or not fully inserted. Again, it could be a bad power connector if the drive isn't getting power...


I covered these points already I believe.

@ToeClaws.. I have yet to find a motherboard, that fails to show optical drives during POST if it shows that information at all.
Almost every system, asside from Dells and Compaq's used motherboards with Award or Phoenix BIOS's and they always showed the CD/DVD ROM's they detected during POST.



ToeClaws said:


> Doesn't matter - ROMs will work as either


Not always.. I've delt with a few systems, where I had to explicitly set the drive to master for it to be detected by the system.


----------

