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I have a CD drive on my laptop and it is not launching on the computer. In Hardware Manager it shows that the driver failed to launch. I tried updating the driver and an online forum told me I had to delete iTunes so I did, and it started working, but then it stopped again and I don’t have any iTunes on my computer.

Completely Remove iTunes

There are some CD drives that are incompatible with iTunes. As annoying as this is, you might need to make sure that the iTunes installation is completely removed before troubleshooting the disk driver. Here are the steps to remove iTunes according to Apple.

1. Close and quit iTunes
2. Click Start and then Control Panel
3. Chose Add/Remove Programs
4. Scroll through the list and find iTunes. Click to select it, then click Remove
5. When asked to confirm, choose Yes
6. Allow the process to run, if asked to restart your computer, DON’T
7. Repeat these steps for any other iTunes listings and any iPod Updater listings
8. When complete, restart your computer
9. Click to open Computer, then choose Local Disk C - your hard drive - and click to open Program Files
10. Right click on the iTunes folder and choose Delete, then Yes to confirm. If no folder appears, that’s ok, it was removed during the uninstallation
11. Right click the iPod folder, choose Delete, then Yes to confirm
12. If Windows asks for permission, click Continue
13. Now, right click on your Recycle Bin and choose Empty
14. Restart your computer again - this should have removed all traces of iTunes

Update your CD Drive Driver with Windows

Now you will probably need to re-install or update your CD drive’s driver. Windows has an updater tool that should work, as long as the CD drive you are using came stock with your laptop.

1. Click Start, then Control Panel, then System and Maintenance, then Administrative Tools
2. Click twice on Computer Management, then choose Device Manager
3. Scroll to find the CD drive listing and click the + to expand the section
4. Right click the CD driver listing, then choose Properties
5. Choose Driver, then click Update Driver to launch the wizard
6. Follow the on-screen instructions to find and install a driver update

If you are still having driver issues, visit the CD manufacturer’s website. You can find details about the device in Device Manager and then search the website for a drivers and downloads page and access the new driver that way. I hope this does the trick! Good luck!

Troubleshooting CD/DVD drives is a bit tricky as there are numerous possibilities. Let’s start with a few questions. Did you recently change something on your computer such as installing new hardware or software or uninstalling a program? System changes often disrupt other, previously functioning components and applications. Does the drive light up? Does the disc tray open when you press the eject button? Does your drive show up as a drive letter such as D:\ in Windows Explorer?

Let’s say you uninstalled an application and your CD-ROM drive suddenly stopped functioning. In this case, it’s probable that a required DLL file may have been removed during the uninstall process. Occasionally, uninstallers identify “shared DLLs” that are “no longer necessary” and then prompt you to remove them. If the uninstaller is mistaken and your system does need those files, then something will likely malfunction. Reinstalling the application reinstalls the required file and usually solves the problem. Once reinstalled, you can then uninstall the application, making sure to leave any shared files alone.

You can also try using System Restore to rollback your system’s settings to a previous state. For example, if your CD-ROM drive worked fine last week, use System Restore to restore the system’s drivers and other files to a restore point created a week ago. System Restore is a feature in Windows XP and above and is found in the Start > Programs> Accessories > System Tools folder.

Another common issue when CD- and DVD-ROM drives fail involves device drivers becoming corrupt or getting lost. Use the Device Manager to see the current status of your drive by going to the Control Panel, choosing System, and clicking on Device Manager. You’ll see a list of categories including DVD/CD-ROM drives. Click the plus sign next to this category. Is there a yellow triangle icon next to your drive? If so, the Device Manager has detected a problem. Double-click your drive and view the note in the status area.

Chances are, you need to reinstall or update the device driver. Click the Driver tab and click Update Driver followed by “Search automatically for updated driver software.” Alternately, you can go to your CD-ROM drive’s manufacturer’s Web site and download the appropriate driver to your hard disk. In this case, you would choose “Browse my computer for driver software.”

Finally, the CD-ROM drive may not be recognized by your system because it has come physically disconnected from the motherboard or has a mechanical problem. You may need to open the computer case and double check all connections. If the drive is damaged, you’ll need to replace it. Replacing a CD-ROM drive is fairly easy and doesn’t cost too much.

Since so many possible causes exist, you’ll need to do a bit of trial and error as you troubleshoot the problem. Start with recent changes, try System Restore, update your device drivers, and physically inspect the drive.