I would go into setup first after installing the cdrw. See if it is recognized.
Just a feeling that the computer did not know what to do with the new device. Didn't know what to do with the old device being put back in but will except nothing. (no cdrom)
How long did you wait for it to boot up? P3 ? Sometimes it takes a few minutes for the computer to deal with new hard ware....IE put in a high end graphics card..go make lunch and come back.
I would say check jumpers but system failed on install of old cdrom.
Did you install the drivers first or the new cdrw?
By 'not boot up' do you mean you turn on the PC and nothing shows on the screen or do you mean you get the normal posting screen but it doesn't boot into windows?
I'd suspect a jumper or cabling problem. Is the new one jumpered and connected exactly the same as the old one? Did you change anything inside the case? (Sorry if this is a stupid question but. . .) did you connect both the power and data cables?
As worldlibrary says, sometimes it takes awhile for the bios to post a message about a hardware change, especially if it detects a problem. Give it a couple of minutes.
"Problem is the pc was running fine until we changed the CD drive to a CDRW drive, then it wouldn't boot up." "I get the normal "posting screen", checks memory then just sits there."
The computer will stall booting at that point if the jumpers on the drives are set incorrectly, or sometimes if a connector on a data cable is backwards on one end or is misplaced on the pins. If you wait long enough you may get an error message.
The jumper on the CDRW drive is probably set to something different from what the CD drive was set to. If there are two drives on a 3 connector data cable, one drive on the same data cable must be set to master, the other to slave, or both must be set to CS. If there is one drive on a data cable the jumper must be set to master or CS.
"We put the CD drive back in and would not boot."
There must have been a difference from the way it was connected before. Did you remember to plug in it's power connector? If it was working before, and you did not set the jumper on it to something different than it was set to before, either you must have connected it to a different data cable, or if it is a 40 wire data cable with no locating tab on the side of the connector it is possible you connected one end of the data cable backwards on the pins, or you misplaced it on the pins - didn't get it on all the pins properly. The stripe on one side of the data cable is usually supposed to be next to the power connector on the drive, and is always next to the pin 1 end on the mboard, which often has an arrowhead or similar mark printed beside it.
Oops. I forgot to mention that. It is quite easy to un-intentionally damage the data cable, more so for 80 wire data cables since the wires are much smaller, especially when pulling a connector off the pins on the drive or the mboard - that can rip the cable and sever the wire(s) at one edge of the cable or the other, right at a connector or under it's cable clamp at a connector, where it's hard to see the damage. Some data cables have a plastic pull tab at the connectors you can pull on rather that pulling on the data cable itself. If there is no pull tab, pull on the center of the data cable rather than at either side and it will probably come off without damaging the cable.
Or sometimes the cable is not ripped but pulling on the cable has pulled it away from the contacts on the back of the connector - make sure there is no gap between the back of the connectors and the data cable when you plug it back in - if there is a gap, press the cable against the connector to eliminate the gap.
