IMac SuperDrive will only read CDs

My imac 27 inch will only read CDs - DVDs just whir and then eject.

Welcome to the Apple Support Communities
First, reset the SMC > http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3964 If it doesn't work, take the Mac to an Apple Store

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Usb superdrive will only eject discs, connected to macbook pro

new usb superdrive connected to new macbook pro, superdrive will not read discs, just ejects discs.

Hello wwboa
For issues with your SuperDrive not reading the disks and spitting them back out, check out the troubleshooting below to get it working for you.
Apple Computers: Troubleshooting the slot-loading SuperDrive
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2801
Accepts discs but they don't mount or are automatically ejected
Make sure the drive is not placed upside down. The aluminum enclosure should be facing up as shown in section 1.
Check the disc's surface for scratches and dirt, since these things can prevent the disc from appearing on the desktop.
Connect the MacBook Air SuperDrive directly to the computer's USB port instead a USB hub.
Reset the System Management Controller (SMC).
Ensure your drive can read the specific type of disc being used. The System Profiler or System Information may provide additional information regarding what media your computer supports.
OS X Snow Leopard v10.6 or earlier: Open Apple System Profiler by choosing "About this Mac" from the Apple () menu. Then, click More Info.
OS X Lion v10.7 and later: Click the Apple () menu and then hold down the Option key. Choose System Information from the menu.
If the disc continues to not be recognized, contact Apple or an Apple Authorized Service Provider, or make an appointment with an Apple Retail Store.
Regards,
-Norm G.

Superdrive only reads Cds, DVDs are spit out, and burning always fails.

HL-DT-ST DVDRW GWA4080MA:
Firmware Revision: AE38
Interconnect: ATAPI
Burn Support: Yes (Apple Shipped/Supported)
Cache: 2048 KB
Reads DVD: Yes
CD-Write: -R, -RW
DVD-Write: -R, -RW, +R, +RW, +R DL
Burn Underrun Protection CD: Yes
Burn Underrun Protection DVD: Yes
Write Strategies: CD-TAO, CD-SAO, CD-Raw, DVD-DAO
Media: No
this is the information about my drive. I never installed the infamous 2.1 superdrive update, so i dont know if this issue is related. My driver stills reads cds, so it isnt totally dead. Any help would be sooooo much appreciated.
"Media: No" seems like the most likely culprit, what can i do to fix that? My brother has the exact same issue with his identical model of MBP (2.33ghz C2D).

{quote:title=..::Tom::.. wrote:}{quote}
Thanks. Of course I meant an erase and install.
I could understand it being the battery if no discs worked at all, but why would the drive work with the apple discs and no others? Is there a way of testing the battery without opening up the case and replacing it?
Testing the pram battery? Yes, make sure your PowerBook is set to the correct date and time. Unplug the PowerBook from the mains and remove your main battery. Wait a couple of minutes then put everything back to normal and start it. Make sure you also have turned off in the date and time setup the ability to use a network time server.
If your PowerBook still has the correct date and time your pram battery is working.
Why only certain disks? As I mentioned in my previous posting if the lens is dirty this could be the problem. For example on PowerBook I just worked on it was not reading disks until I happened to put in one particular one that it read. That told me the problem was intermittent and that the drive was working to a degree. Since this laptop was quite dirty/dusty I figured it could be a dirty lens since it is fairly easy for dirt to work it's way into the drive.
Took the quick and easy way out, however if it starts to act up again I may have to pull apart the drive I use a high quality photo lens cleaning brush to give it wipe but do not use any pressure as you can damage the wiring going into the lens and of course do not do this with the hardware powered! In a worse case scenario I use a dab on Kodak lens cleaning solution on a wadded piece of lens tissue but again I don't recommend this approach unless you're really really really gentle.
There are also cleaning CD's and the Allsop one isn't bad as it has a small row of brushes attached to it that wipe the lens when it passes by, my fear is causing damage if it knocks the lens and some VRDS drives this will not work with.
Kevin

External Hard drive suddenly will only read! How can I make it read/write again?

Hi folks,
I'm working with a Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex 320gb External Hard Drive on the imacs here at my university. I have it formatted to ExFAT so that I could use it with my pc as well but I've never had to so far so it's only ever been used on the uni imacs.
It's been fine for working on media projects until suddenly when i came back to uni after the Christmas break I went to continue working on a film project and realised the external hard drive now said read only??
One thing I did was to put all of my work from last semester (which is everything that was on the hard drive into a single folder) could that have caused the problem?
And does anyone know how i can reset my permissions to read/write without causing damage or risk to the files on the hard-drive as I can't clear the disk (i have no where else to store the 185gb of video footage).
I'd really appreciate it if anyone could tell me how i can fix it? I know how to do all of this on my pc but i've no idea with the mac as i only use it for my media projects here in the university.
Thanks!
DrF ;-)

Out of curiosity , will this method also work for an external drive formatted to NTFS.. I have a lot of data that I have nowhere to Float while re-formatting the drive , so If this method would allow me to keep the data and still fix the problem that would be great !! At the moment the drive is formatted to NTFS and permissions say Read/Write , but I can only Read.. Very Frustrating as my mac drive is running low on space and performance is being affected.. Any help appreicated !!

How can I transfer files from a 27" iMac which will only boot in safe mode?

My late 2009 27" imac is having issues and will only boot in safe mode. I have tried to transfer files to a new Imac using migration assistant but it wont let me. If I try booting the old Imac normally I just get a grey screen, I believe it is the video card failed and am waiting for a fix, but I would like to transfer files before the fix in case something goes wrong and I lose everything.
Any help would be great

Hello Myles, likely it is a Hardware problem.
One way to test is to Safe Boot from the HD, (holding Shift key down at bootup), run Disk Utility in Applications>Utilities, then highlight your drive, click on Repair Permissions, Test for problem in Safe Mode...
PS. Safe boot may stay on the gray radian for a long time, let it go, it's trying to repair the Hard Drive
Reboot, test again.
If it only does it in Regular Boot, then it could be some hardware problem like Video card, (Quartz is turned off in Safe Mode), or Airport, or 3rd party add-on, Check System Preferences>Accounts>Login Items window to see if it or something relevant is listed.
Check the System Preferences>Other Row, for 3rd party Pref Panes.
Also look in these if they exist, some are invisible...
/private/var/run/StartupItems
/Library/StartupItems
/System/Library/StartupItems
/System/Library/LaunchDaemons
/Library/LaunchDaemons

T61p XP3 with Mat**bleep**a UJ-852 will not read CDs

Got From IBM Certified Used Equipment back in April, and just noticed I can't read CDs. Read alot of problems with the UJ-852 and DVDs, but not the problem I'm (my wife) is having. Machine Type 6457 AK7 with latest BIOS and Controller code. I have the Extended Warranty, but haven't found the right number to call. I can replace the hardware myself, and don't want to send Laptop back.
I sounds as if the Mat**bleep**a hardware has had problems for a while, and I should be able to get some help from Lenovo.
How come they put that drive in there in the first place, knowing it had problems... maybe I wouldn't notice... well, my wife noticed and her temperature is rising fast
Any suggestions??
Regards,
Billl

1-800-426-7378 the DVD should be a CRU so you won't have to send the laptop in
Thinkpad R61 7733-1GU
Thinkpad X61T 7762-54U
Thinkpad X60T 6363-4GU
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Regards,
GMAC

Superdrive only reads cds, dvds not working

Help!
My almost 1 year old imac has stopped reading dvds, when you put a video dvd/ dvd+-r/w it spits them out, but this doesnt happen with cds, i dont get a message on osx or anything
Any advice would be greatly appreciated

Make sure the DVDs are not cracked, smudged and/or dirty. See the following article: http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=50448 How to Handle and Clean CD and DVD Discs
It's also possible your DVD/CD drive needs cleaning. CD/DVD cleaning kits can be purchased from any store that sells CD/DVDs.
I would give Apple a call prior to your 1 year warranty running out if you do not have the 3 year AppleCare Protection Plan & see what they have to say. At least get a case# in case you do actually have a hardware problem prior to your 1 year warranty running out.
Hopefully, some other more knowledgeable users will chime in here to help you out.
Good luck

Macbook pro will only read audio cds

My MacBook Pro2,1 17" will no longer read anything other than Audio CDs in its drive. Any other format and it says the CD is empty. It never used to do this. I wonder if upgrading to Mac OS 10.7 (Lion - which is as far as this hardware will go) will fix this problem, or has the firmware gone awry? (What a great pity they don't make 17" laptops anymore.)

This is not related to my CD problems, for which you have been very helpful, but you may be interested as you seem to be au fait with the older MacBook Pros.
Some time ago, I purchased a new power supply for my Mac which came with a MAGSAFE 1 L-Tip magnetic adapter. The original had been a MAGSAFE 1 T-Tip but it had worn out and the coaxial screen was looking very exposed. All went well until, inevitably, the laptop was dropped. The L-Tip stayed in place and because of its sausage shape, dented the side of the casing. It [the L-Tip] would no longer make contact (because of its long body) so I reverted, very gingerly [an English expression?] to the original T-Tip which still worked. I then ordered what I thought was a new T-Tip supply but when it arrived, turns out there is now a MAGSAFE 2 T-Tip (which of course would not work). Maybe they have abandoned the L-Tip because it is self destructive. I have now finally returned the MAGSAFE 2 and await a MAGSAFE 1 T-Tip. A cautionary tale for those looking for a new power supply.

My superdrive will only burn audio cd's up to 8x for some reason...

I'm a college student, and I burn a lot of audio CDs to listen to in my car, and from what I recall, usually my burn speeds are around 24x. I tried burning a CD today and Toast only gave me options up to 8x burning speed. It actually burned the disc fine and everything, it's just that I can't figure out why all of the sudden my speed options have been reduced so low.

Are you using the same blank CDs that you recorded at 24x on? CD/DVD media are rated at certain speeds. If the CD/DVD media is only rated at 8X, it will not burn faster than that. Also, DVD and CD speeds are not the same thing. Was it a DVD that you were burning in Toast or a CD?

IMac Superdrive capacity for ripping CDs

I have a fairly large number of CDs (several hundred) I would like to rip to mp3 (Late 2009 iMac i7). CDs I have ripped using the iMac's internal drive have come out fine, but the drive does seem to slow down a little after a while. I am also a little concerned about how well the drive would hold up. Is the internal drive sufficient for the purpose of ripping a large number of CDs or should I consider buying an external drive for the job?

Hi Larry
Yes if your planning to rip lot's of media then an External DVD Drive is the way to go. Not only are External DVD Drives (even USB models) much faster than Internal Drives, but they also relieve all that ware n tare on your Internal Slim DVD Drive.
While others here swear by LaCie or OWC External FireWire DVD Drives, I'm using an OS X compatible LG GE24LU20 USB Drive that gets the job done about 4x faster than my Internal Drive.
Dennis

Imac 27 will only boot from internal and from factory install DVD?

I was trying to create a bootable external source for my iMac 27 and came across a pretty odd scenario. One that Apple iteslef says they have never seen before. Love any feedback on how to create a external bootable source. Below are my notes from the 45 minute conversation I just had with Applecare.
My iMac 27 purchased in December, 2010 Will not boot from:
Apple Factory Install DVD (white printed with Snow Leopard)
TechTool Pro 5.06 DVD
SD Card with Bootlable installation
EXT HDD with previous bootable (Leopard 10.5.9) system on it
eDrive on an EXT HDD
I had a 45 conversation with Applecare and the tech has never heard or seen a situation like this one.
Every source shows up if I hold the "option" key down upon power up.
Every source shows up in the System Prefs Startup window (though there was one oddity that he had not seen before. I have to authenticate each and every time I try to change my startup disk in the Startup Disk Prefs)
Every source other than the internal has the same result if I try to boot into it, gray screen with dark gray Apple logo, no gears running, no optical accessing, just the gray screen forever.
We reset my PRAM and tried again. No change
Then the Applecare tech had to get off the phone in order to do some further research.
He came back and we tried to startup from the DVD that shipped with my iMac, not the white factory Snow Leopard I got from Amazon, but the gray install DVD from Apple.
This one booted.
We repaired permissions and checked the internal disk from the Apple Gray Install DVD.
That is as far as the tech could go. He is sending me out a new copy of Snow Leopard, but is unable to support me in my quest to boot from an external source.
I am going to try and create a bootable external source using the gray install dvd instead of the commercial Now Leopard one and see what happens.
Thanks,
Henry

The point is that V.K. is correct.
You cannot create a bootable disk for your iMac from the factory Snow Leopard DVD because your machine was released after Snow Leopard was and as such relies on operating system changes and drivers that exist solely on the disc that came with your machine.
I'm really surprised if an AppleCare agent didn't know that.
To create a bootable external drive either use your Software Restore disc or create a bootable clone of your internal drive using an app like Carbon Copy Cloner.

IMac G5 will not read my new OS X 10.5 Leopard Disk.

Just got an official copy of leopard from the Apple Store in Annapolis MD. I tried putting in the installation disk into my iMac G5's Superdrive but it keeps spitting the disk back out. I put the disk in my MacBook and it reads just fine, **** I even put the disk in my iMac G4 my girlfriend has it that reads fine too! Can any one tel me what's wrong?

To Apple Discussions!
Are you having problems with all DVDs or just the Leopard DVD?
Your drive may need cleaning. Cleaning kits can be purchased from any store that sells CD/DVDs.
Check out the following threads:
SuperDrive Spits dvd's off the desk
CD drive spits out cds

10.3.5 will not read CDs

Hi I have an urgent problem. I have a CD with vairous files on it I burned on a PC and set up for 'maximum compatability' so should be fine. My iMac with OSX 10.3.5 will not recognise the CD at all when inserted, i.e. 'no volume'. Is there any fix for this? I urgently need the data.
Thanks.

Couple of other thoughts, Theodore.
As mentioned, it's best to burn the disk as a plain ol' Windows format CD. Make sure to close the disk. That is, don't burn it as a session. Unclosed PC disks often won't show up on a Mac.
Also, if you are using software that allows packet writing on the PC (drag and drop burning incrementally), don't use that. Macs can't read disks burned that way at all.

After installing VLC (64bit), my MBP only reads CDs and ejects DVDs. Uninstalling VLC did not fix the problem. What do I do?

I have recently installed VLC media player (64bit), played a movie file on a DVD+RW for 30 seconds, then decided to stop the movie. I poped the DVD out, and a minute later I reinserted the same DVD, it was ejected after 10 second. Now when ever I insert the DVD in my MBP it gets ejected. It reads my CDs but does not read my DVD. Uninstalling VLC did not fix it. I am not even sure at this if VLC caused the problem. What do I do?

Have you rebooted since uninstalling VLC?

Macbook Pro will only read on external drive.....

I got a Maxtor portable external drive, 320gig model, and was able to backup my files from WinXp desktop pc that includes mp3's and mp4 videos. I'm converting to apple and just got a Macbook Pro, 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo running on Mac OS X v.10.5.4. My question is that I wanted to add some files from my macbook to my external drive but some reason can't. Either the external drive won't let me or my macbook won't.
I check the info on the external and the drive is formatted to 'windows NT files system.' Does that have anything to do with why I can't make any changes on my external? Does any one have a solution for me? Any suggestions would deeply be appreciated.

bigjohnny002,
OS X can read NTFS volumes, but it cannot write to them. There is third-party software (MacFuse) that will allow OS X to write to NTFS volume, however.
In the absence of this third-party software, you will need to re-format that external. FAT-32 volumes can be created by OS X, and both OS X and Windows can read and write to them, but there is a 4 GB size limit for files stored in this file system.
If you are not planning on transferring files back to a Windows computer, the best format will be HFS+ (Mac OS Extended). Provided there is enough space on your Macbook Pro, you can copy all the files from the external to the Macbook Pro, use Disk Utility to re-format the drive, then copy the files back.
Scott

IMac SuperDrive will only read CDs

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