Interesting problem here. While I was installing a program from a CD a friend had burned for me I heard a loud grating sound about a minute into the install. After this sound the CD/RW drive stopped suddenly and will not read any CD. Now, whenever I put a CD into the drive I can hear the drive spin for a moment then it stops and will not read the CD. I know the concept behind a "Head-Crash" involving a Floppy drive when a small particle gets into the drive and disrupts the spinning disc, causing the cushion of air the disc is spinning on to rupture and the disc to fall and crash into the sensor - in a nutshell severely devestating the drive. I'm afraid this is what has happened to my CD drive. What does it sound like to you and is there anything i can do/try short of buying a new drive? Thank you!

Sounds like the media hit the laser. Was there any damage to the CD?

Get a bootable cd, restart and see if it boots from the cd. If it doesn't and you think it is worth your time, remove the drive and crack it open. If it isn't, then get a new one. Optical drives are not that expensive anymore. ____________________________ The greatest risk is not taking one

It doesn't look like there was any damage to the CD. I don't know much about CD drives though, is there anything i should know before attempting to open one and see if the laser is scratched or anything of the like? I was under the impression they were vaccum packed and opening one was a no-no.

It is not that they are vacuum packed, they are factory sealed since there are no user or tech replacable or repairable parts. The cost of the drive is so low that no shop will try and repair one. If you heard a bang and it will no longer read then the best choice is to replace it. You will not be able to accurately align it even if you open it. The only other question is how old is the drive and is it still under a factory warranty? Good luck Richard