Unable to play cd/dvd on my laptop

You can install or reinstall DVD driver onto your laptop.
1. Open Device Manager using devmgmt.msc command and enable "View -> Show hidden devices" option. Now locate the DVD/CD-ROM drives and IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers items.
2. Right-click on each entry present under both "DVD/CD-ROM drives" and "IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers" sections one bye one and select Uninstall.
3. Once all have been removed, right-click again and select Scan for hardware changes.
The drives will be rediscovered and when the drivers are loaded back, the drives will re-appear in My Computer window.
You can also try to restart your computer.
Then you should also have a DVD player program on your laptop. You can try Leawo Blu-ray Player which can play both Blu-ray and DVD movies.

If it can read any other disk, you should burn your disk again because burning process was incorrect. your computer can't recognize the disk. In this case, probably you can't do anything, no way to try to read a bad disk if computer can't even "see" it.
By the way, you should test to read the disk on some other computer.
If happens with ALL your disks, your optical player is defective.
Again test reading with other computer if record was made correctly
As for your device, you should check if worth to repair and decide if repair or replace it.
How to Replace DVD CD Drive in Computer Tower

How To Install Computer CD DVD or Bluray ROM Drive Ep 7

Replace Laptop DVD CD Optical Drive Complete Tutorial

How To Replace the Optical Drive HP Pavilion DV6 Laptop HD

Check your computer drivers for that drive. It may be a driver error. It has happened to me before and I fixed it by reinstalling the drivers. It should be a software issue if you can still read CD disks.

Does it not acknowledge dvd disc only or cd or dvd both. If it doesn't read the dvd disc, or able to play dvd disc, but able to exlpore regular cd's, then you have a codec error, and you need to download a dvd codec like powerdvd for it for your system to play dvd disc. Check to see if your dvd-rom drive appears in the "my computer" window, if it is there, but wouldn't be able to play anything, then it could be a driver issue. so make sure in the hardware , the drivers is installed and working properly. If it is working properly and driver is installed, then you got a bad drive, the optical laser lenses isnt reading or the spindle ain't working anymore if you don't hear disc being loaded when inserting the disc.

You can follow these methods to try to isolate and resolve the problem. Use these methods in the order in which they are presented.

Method 1: Clean the disc

When you have problems with a CD or DVD drive, always check the disc first to see whether it is damaged or dirty. To clean the disc, follow these steps:

1. Remove the disc from the drive.
2. Clean the disc with a disc cleaning kit or by gently wiping the silver side of the disc from the center outward with a dry, soft, lint-free, cotton cloth.

Note Do not use a paper cloth, and do not use a circular motion to clean the disc. These can scratch the disc.
3. Reinsert the disc in the CD or DVD drive.
If the computer can read the disc, you are finished.
If the computer still cannot read the disc, go to step 4.
4. Try again to clean the disc by using a cloth dampened with water, or dampened with a commercial CD or DVD cleaning solution.
5. Dry the disc thoroughly, and then reinsert it in the CD or DVD drive.
6. If the computer can read the disc, you are finished.
If the computer still cannot read the disc, go to method 2.

Method 2: Check the disc for damage

If the disc is clean, check whether it is damaged. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Remove the disc from the drive, and then examine the disc for scratches or cracks.
2. If the disc is damaged, try another disc to see whether the CD or DVD drive can read it.
3. If the computer still cannot read a disc, there may be a problem with the drive. Go to method 3 to troubleshoot the CD or DVD drive.
If the computer can read the other disc, there is a problem with original CD or DVD. Contact the manufacturer of the damaged disc to obtain a replacement.

Method 3: Try a different disc drive

If the disc is clean and undamaged, check whether there is a problem with the drive. To do this, follow these steps:

1. If the computer has more than one disc drive, insert the disc in a different CD or DVD drive to see whether it can read the disc.
If your computer does not have more than one disc drive, you can insert the disc in a different computer.
2. If the other CD or DVD drive can read the disc, there may be a problem with your CD or DVD drive. Go to method 5.
If the other CD or DVD drive cannot read the disc, the disc may not be compatible with the drive. Go to method 4.

Method 4: Make sure that the disc is compatible with the drive

Check the following list to make sure that the disc that you are trying to use is compatible with your CD or DVD drive.

* A DVD disc is incompatible with a standard CD drive.
* A CD-RW disc is incompatible with a CD drive that does not support CD-RW discs.
* A DVD disc is incompatible with a drive that does not have a DVD logo on the front.

If the disc is compatible, go to method 5.
If the disc is incompatible, use a compatible disc or contact the vendor for a compatible replacement.

Method 5: Use Windows Update to check for updated drivers
If the disc is compatible with your CD or DVD drive, check for updated drivers that the CD or DVD drive may be missing.

Good luck

If this is a Desktop computer it is in..
Make sure 1st it is recognised in "My computer" (icon present)
Check it will play / read other discs
Check the connectors (SATA or IDE) are plugged into the back of the DVD and the power rail is tight.
Also if there is a CD to Mobo lead from the back of the DVD make sure it is plugged in
If it spins the discs, and there is no rattling etc, the drive is probably working ok.
If you are trying to play movie DVD's, software such as Cyberlink or similar is required

If this is a laptop DVD, check it is seen in "my computer" (Icon present)
Check as for Desktop with regard to the correct DVD player software being present

Finally, check that you have the sound drivers installed (will show under the speaker icon in control panel). If still stuck, repost wioth more info

Hello,

the fault is from the lens (laser) of your drive, that's why its not reading discs. The lens is weak such that it cannot load discs.

How long have you been using this drive? I think its high time you got another one.

Good luck.

kindly check this link for resolution on your problem. it actually applies on both windows xp or windows vista.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929461
i hope this helps.

Unable to read a CD-R or other recordable disc. DVD recordable discs - If you have a DVD recordable disc and are unable to get it to read verify that the DVD drive is not a Gen 1 DVD drive and/or that it .


Computer DVD Support The DVD technology is very different from the technology used in standard CD-ROM drives. DVD uses shorter wavelength lasers to read smaller pits and lands.


Computer CD-ROM drive help and technical information. However, DVD-RAM discs cannot be read by standard DVD-ROM drives because of the differences in both reflectivity of the medium and the data format.

Read & follow instructions/Please dont for get to Vote/Thank You.

Unable to read a CD-R or other recordable disc. Question: Unable to read a CD-R or other recordable disc.
Answer: Unfortunately this can be a difficult question to answer because of the amount of potential reasons for this issue to occur. Below is a listing of several steps and recommendations that can be taken to help identify the cause of the issue and/or resolve this issue.
Drivers Verify you have the latest drivers installed for the CD-R or recordable drive. There are numerous driver related issues that may cause a CD-R drive or other recordable to stop reading a CD-R disc. If you are running Microsoft Windows verify your drive is properly detected and listed in Device Manager with no conflicts or errors.
If Windows Device Manager detects an error on the drive or if it has other drives listed in Device Manager with errors on them remove the device from Device Manager and reboot the computer to let Windows re-initialize the drive.
If Windows shows no errors, the above steps did not resolve the issue, or you are running a different operating system check with the drive manufacturer for updated drivers. A listing of disc drivers can be found here.
CD-R disk Not all CD-R disks are compatible with all types and speeds of CD-R drives or other recordable drives (especially earlier CD-R drives). Verify the manufacturer gives 100% guarantee for supporting all drives and disc speeds, for example, TDK discs often give a 100% guarantee.
Pre-mastering/Mastering Software Pre-mastering software can sometimes produce incorrect tracks due to bugs. An incorrect ISO image could be generated, or incorrect sub header codes could be recorded in the case of Mode 2 discs. A good way to check whether the incompatibility problems lie with the originating software or with one of the other causes listed above is to test the same disc on several CD-ROM drives. If one drive is capable of reading the disc back correctly, chances are that the problem was not in the mastering, but is one or more of the other factors listed.
Disc is a recordable disc that the drive or player does not support Verify the drive supports the recordable media you are attempting to read. Below are some situations to watch out for.

• Old CD-ROM or early DVD drive - Some early CD-ROM drives and Gen 1 DVD drives (some of the first DVD drives released) do not support CD-R discs and/or CD-RW discs. Not only does this apply to computers but also home entertainment DVD players.
• CD-RW in CD-R or CD-ROM drive - CD-R drives are incapable of reading CD-RW drives. If you are using a CD-RW disc verify the drive is a CD-ROM or CD-R drive is capable of reading the disc.
• DVD recordable discs - If you have a DVD recordable disc and are unable to get it to read verify that the DVD drive is not a Gen 1 DVD drive and/or that it supports reading the DVD recordable media you are using. Additionally a standard CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW, etc drive is not able to read DVD discs.

Disc was created incorrectly Make sure you're creating the disc properly. For example, a common mistake users make when creating audio CD's that they can listen to in their computer, car, or home stereo is burning the MP3 files or other files directly to the CD as a Data disc and not an Audio disc. All this will do is burn the data files to the disc and not create an audio disc. This may allow you to listen to the audio files in the computer but will not allow you to listen to the music in the majority of other CD players unless they support MP3 format.
Disc or DVD contains media content not supported by the player Not all home entertainment DVD players are capable of supporting and playing all the different formats movie files and audio files are stored in. Make sure the format or codec of the movie or audio file you're saving to the CD or DVD is supported by the DVD player. If you're computer is capable of playing the files off the DVD but your home entertainment DVD player is not able to play the file it's likely you're encountering this issue.
Bad disc If after reading through the above recommendations you still continue to have the same issue it's possible that the disc is a bad disc. Try re-burning the disc and if possible try a different type of recordable disc.

Computer DVD Support

Click on the above link should get ya back up and going/Good Luck....Please dont for get to Vote.Thank you.