How to reload operating system when the cd drive won't read any disks

[starfish6340]

Hello,
I am very stressed out trying to figure out how to get my cd/dvd rom to show that it exists. I ran the device manager and it came up with an exclamation mark in yellow and a code 39 saying that the drive is either corrupt or missing. I spoke to someone who said I need to reload the disks for the operating system but can't do that since the drive is messed up. Please help. I don't have almost $200 to take it to the geek squad or anyone to have them do it for me.

 

[house70]

You can try to restore the system to an earlier point. Or,
try to uninstall the driver, then refresh and install again.

 

[starfish6340]

Thanks house. I did all that and it still didn't help. I even looked to see if there was an update but it is already up to date. I don't know what on earth is going on with it.

 

[house70]

OK, you need to load Windows on USB drive, then.
After that, you can try to run sfc /scannow, see here:
http://pcsupport.about.com/od/toolsofthetrade/ht/sfc-scannow.htm
and if needed you can point to the USB drive for the missing files.
Or, one more option, if you can get your hands on an external CD/DVD drive, you can try to install from there (it will need it's own drivers, though).
Just a few ideas. Problem is NOT without a solution.
After all, if BIOS can see the CD/DVD drive, it's all good. BIOS does not need drivers; just make sure you select that drive as first booting device in the boot Sequence/Order. You can do a repair/install of Windows from there, where in the install wizard you choose to repair an existing installation. That will do what SFC does, only easier (somewhat). This will keep your installed programs, but will re-install some default settings and drivers (which is the part you want). If you want to do a clean install, you can choose that option, as well. Maybe the driver got corrupted by some malware.
If the CD/DVD drive is NOT seen in BIOS... we have a problem. The system will need to be opened up and all power and data cables that go to that particular drive will need to be re-checked. It might be that the drive itself is failing (although, that would have given you a different error).
Again, try the above methods and check with us if any issues. BTW, what system do you have? Is it easily serviceable (desktop) or not so easily (laptop)? Even in that case, if it is a hardware issue, a CD/DVD drive can be replaced easily if you have a minimum of technical inclination. Let us know.

 

[starfish6340]

Wow, not sure if my brain can figure all that out. lol I have an external cd/dvd drive, but when I try to use it I also get the same darn message for it. The problem is a darn laptop regretably. I am using Windows XP for operating system. Not sure on how to check to see if BIOS can see the drive. Do you mind helping me with that? I really appreciate everything you are doing for me. Not sure how technically inclined I am but hopefully with your help I can figure this out.

 

[starfish6340]

Okay, I opened BIOS and it shows ATAPI Device MATSHITAUJ-840D which is my cd/dvd rom drive. Thank God. Now, my question is, if I enter in BIOS and put in my Recovery CD in the cd drive, will it be able to dectect the cds and do the recovery? It also says that I will lose all my data when doing this. Is there a way around losing my data? If not, I will just have to deal with it. lol I just want this darn thing fixed. Again, thanks so much for all your help. I can't begin to tell you how very much I appreciate it.

 

[starfish6340]

Thank you so much for all your help. My cd drive is back up and running your help was so much appreciated. Now trying to put on my external cd drive, but keeps saying I don't have enough space but my d drive is almost empty. So now with another issue. lol

 

[house70]

So, the internal CD drive is OK. Go ahead and do a repair-install of the OS. Start the install wizard and when you get to the point where it asks you where to install, it should detect an existing installation. After that, it should ask you if you want to repair an existing installation, or do a clean install. Select the repair route; you will not lose the data, but the drivers should be restored, along with other system files that might have gotten corrupted.
When you say you put on an external cd drive and get that error message about the D drive, what exactly do you mean? These two things should be separate. Please provide exact details in regard of this new issue.