Most commonly CD drive is used when you need to install the licensed software that is available on the CD. It can be Windows, various Adobe products, professional software, games and much more. Sometimes when you want to insert a CD into the drive or, vice versa, get it from there, you may encounter a problem when your CD drive tray does not open. You can solve it without referring to any third-party help, and below we will give you the most effective ways to do it.
Table of contents: 1. Why the CD drive tray does not open 2. How to open a CD drive tray, if it does not open 3. Use windows tools 4. Open the CD drive with a paper clip 5. Cable check and reconnecting the CD drive
WHY THE CD DRIVE TRAY DOES NOT OPEN
To determine the ways to open the drive tray, you first need to understand the main reasons why it might not open. Let us highlight the most common problems that lead to this event:
- Faulty electronic drive board;
- CD that could crumble or was initially incorrectly inserted had stuck in the device;
- Mechanical problems, for example, breakage of gears, which are responsible for the advancement of the CD drive tray.
It is not possible to determine beforehand why exactly the CD drive tray is not opening. To make it easier to fix the problem, we recommend that you perform each of the following actions one after another, until you can achieve the desired result.
HOW TO OPEN A CD DRIVE TRAY, IF IT DOES NOT OPEN
If you pressed the CD drive button several times, but it did not lead to the desired result, it can be assumed that the button failed. You can verify or disprove these assumptions by listening to the clicking sound when you press on the button. But if your goal is to open the CD drive, proceed to the methods described below.
USE WINDOWS TOOLS
Windows operating system is offering a possibility to open the drive directly from the interface, without having to press the button. To do this, go to My Computer and right-click on the CD drive. Then select “Eject” from the pop-up menu, after which the CD drive should open.
There are also hundreds of applications that will allow you to open the drive. Most often these are programs, the main purpose of which is recording CDs. If the above method of opening the drive with Windows did not work, you should not resort to third-party applications, because they are referring to the command of the operating system.
OPEN THE CD DRIVE WITH A PAPER CLIP
If the problem is due to mechanical jamming, and not to a malfunction of the electronic board, this method helps to solve the problem in some rare cases. In such a situation, you can try to hook the drive tray with a thin tool and try to pull it out with the help of a mechanical effort, possibly by removing anything that prevents the CD drive tray from opening.
By applying too hard force in an attempt to open the CD drive, you may break the gears that are responsible for moving the tray. They, most often, are made of plastic.
CABLE CHECK AND RECONNECTING THE CD DRIVE
In case none of the tips mentioned above helped to open the CD drive, you should try to disconnect it and reconnect it back. To do this, turn off the computer and remove the side cover of the system unit, find drive cables and disconnect them. Make sure that cables are not damaged (they may have been pinched, which is why they no longer work). If there is no sign of damage, reconnect them, turn on the computer and try opening the CD drive.
Very rarely this method helps to get rid of the problem if you have tried the paper clip option described above. This is due to the fact that the CD drive must open with a paper clip, even if it is completely disconnected from the power supply.