Help! DVD and CD Writers and Readers both gone!!

Question

Hi all- I am having the same trouble that some of you have been having, namely that my 17" iMac will no longer write or read my DVDs and CDs. At the present time, it will play pre-recorded cds amd Dvds. I will not be surprised if that goes also. I seem to have had a progressive loss of function. I have read the threads that deal with this and have tried some of the solutions but no go! I am on:
17" iMac
Running OS 10.4.7.
Have Pioneer but have checked the device and do not need the update called for--I have DVD-105 A506.
I went ahead and downloaded the update and tried to run it and it said that I did not need it. This was to just confirm for myself that I did not need it.
So far, I have used Tech Tool to check out things and it only found some minor things with the finder. I am going to run the repair in a little while but I can't imagine that minor things could cause such a problem as I have.
Am I going to have to redo my hard drive and drop back to Panther?? I will do that if I must but I am hoping for a solution as of now with Tiger.
Thank you in advance for any suggestions.

Answer 1

Hi, Gloria.
1. I presume the optical drive in your Mac is the one that shipped with it from the factory. True?
2. What is the exact text of any error messages you see when you encounter the problem?
3. Immediately after the problem occurs, check the ends of these Console logs for clues. Do not post the entire logs, simply copy/paste any messages at the ends of the cited logs that related to CDs, DVDs, "disc recording framework", or the like.
For example, of you see messages indicating Error Code 0x8002006D when you attempt to burn a disc, there are three primary causes for such:1. Dirty lens in your optical drive. The error code means that the burner was unable to perform the power-calibration test for its laser with the media. The test is described in "About optical disc drive burning and write speeds." A dirty lens is the most common cause of this error. Buy a dry CD/DVD lens cleaner at a good electronics or computer store and use it to attempt to clean the lens.
2. Incompatible media. Many new optical disc formats employ dyes for high-speed burning that may not work with older optical drives. The power calibration test fails, not because of a problem with the lens, but because of an issue with the dyes in the optical media. Try a different brand of media.
3. Optical drive failing. Your CD/DVD burner is simply worn out or damaged and needs to be replaced. If your Mac is still under warranty, you may wish to contact AppleCare. If there is an Apple Retail Store in your area, I'd recommend taking it there. You may wish to call ahead to make an appointment at the Genius Bar.4. You wrote: "So far, I have used Tech Tool to check out things and it only found some minor things with the finder. I am going to run the repair in a little while but I can't imagine that minor things could cause such a problem as I have."
4.1. Exactly what problems were found?
4.2. Is that TechTool Deluxe or TechTool Pro? In either case, before running any of the disk repair functions of such, be sure you are using a Tiger compatible version:• For TechTool Deluxe: version 3.0.4 or later.
• For TechTool Pro: version 4.0.4 or later.See also:• "Mac OS X 10.4: Don't use Tech Tool Deluxe 3.0.3's Volume Structure repair."
• "Only use Mac OS X 10.4-compatible disk utilities with Mac OS X 10.4 volumes."
Note that some of the information above is from the "Burning CDs and DVDs" and "Disk Utilities" chapters of my book, Troubleshooting Mac® OS X, Tiger Edition.
Good luck!
Dr. Smoke
Author: Troubleshooting Mac® OS X
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