DVD-RW (sort of) not working

Bullet Dodger · Apprentice Joined: 16 Jul 2005 Posts: 230

I've noticed a problem with my DVD-RW drive while booting.
From dmesg:

pappy_mcfae · Posted: Wed Jul 02, 2008 7:58 pm Post subject:

Yes, replace the offending drive, and try again. Loose PATA cables rarely happen. Loose SATA cables are more frequent, but only if one doesn't take care to make sure that everything's nice and tight before closing up the box. Bad optical drives are far more frequent than either loose cable scenario above.

Blessed be!
Pappy
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Bullet Dodger · Apprentice Joined: 16 Jul 2005 Posts: 230

Ok. I have another DVD-rw I could swap it with, but it still doesn't explain why the current drive works as slave, but fails as master.

Cheers

pappy_mcfae · Posted: Thu Jul 03, 2008 9:23 pm Post subject:

There could be numerous reasons. The most likely are bad solder joints, a bad chip, or both. Electronic devices can die without warning. I'm usually happy when I get a "good-bye" before something dies. That doesn't happen too often.

Blessed be!
Pappy
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Bullet Dodger · Apprentice Joined: 16 Jul 2005 Posts: 230

Yes. That explains why its failed.
But why does it appear (haven't tested it extensively) to work as a slave device, but not as the master?

cheers

pappy_mcfae · Posted: Thu Jul 03, 2008 9:41 pm Post subject:

It could be something as simple as using an IDE cable that is used to force the device into master or slave mode. Or it could be a hardware issue. Just because you set the jumper doesn't mean the message gets where it needs to get to be effective.

While I don't consider myself a total expert when it comes to electronic thingies, I am pretty good at repairing just about anything that plugs in, runs on batteries, or both. I have seen numerous devices where the input wasn't getting to where it needed to go. Sometimes it was a support chip, sometimes, it was some form of microprocessor.

Once, I worked on an IBM PS/2 that had gotten struck by lightning. This machine posted, booted, and ran just fine. However, it looked like the driver for the parallel port had been taped to an M-80. It wouldn't print. That was the complaint. Naturally, that machine got gutted (and all internal parts scrapped) as soon as I saw said chip, but it just goes to show, something can look destroyed, and be functional, or it can come brand new out of the box not working.

Hope the experiment works.

Blessed be!
Pappy
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Bullet Dodger · Apprentice Joined: 16 Jul 2005 Posts: 230

That's a good point. I looked at the jumpers then thought nothing more about it.
Both drives are jumpered to cable select.
I could try setting master on the jumper to see what that does.
Or leave it as slave and link the dvdrw and cdrw device nodes to hdb.

But if there was a probelm due to cable select master/slave then woulndn't this show up in the bios?
The bios is detecting the drives correctly. The problem is after the kernel is loaded, during the boot.

I might have a play wid it this weekend. I'm not ready to through it away just yet.

The other problem I have is konqueror does not start any more. Not even from an xterm - no problems reported in the xterm.

At a guess its something to do with this problem or compitz-fusion.

The DVD drive and konqueror problem started at about the same time which was about when I installed compitz-fusion.
Probably some strange coincidence.

At a guess I recon compiz-fusion has nothing to do wid it and konqueror is trying to access a drive that's not working/responding and that's why it's freezing.

Anyways will try to have a play wid it this week end.

Cheers

Bullet Dodger · Apprentice Joined: 16 Jul 2005 Posts: 230

Ok, after removing the 2nd/slave drive, cannibalising 2 machines, swapping IDE cables, and drives, i recon,
The dvd-rw drive is dead :-(

1st drive of any kind I've ever had fail on me :-(

Still have the konqueror problem tho - but i'll post a new thread for that.

Cheers

pappy_mcfae · Posted: Sat Jul 05, 2008 6:30 am Post subject:

I've lost quite a few CD-ROM drives. The ones I miss the most where the Ultra-Plex SCSI's. But all things must pass. At least you got that fixed.

Blessed be!
Pappy
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Bullet Dodger · Apprentice Joined: 16 Jul 2005 Posts: 230

After this problem appearing to have gone away, after replacing the dvdrw, it's now come back.

I'm thinking this is pointing to a motherboard failure.

pappy_mcfae · Posted: Fri Jul 18, 2008 7:30 am Post subject:

Yeah, that sounds reasonable. Check the cable first, but yeah, you're probably looking at a mobo with an attitude.

Blessed be!
Pappy
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