Unable to read cd on mac
Not all home entertainment DVD players are capable of supporting and playing all the different formats of movie and audio files. If your computer is capable of playing the files off the DVD, but your home entertainment DVD player cannot play the file, you are likely encountering this problem. If after reading through the recommendations above you continue to have the same issue, it's possible that the disc is defective.
Try re-burning the disc and if possible, try a different brand of recordable disc. If all the above recommendations do not help to resolve the issue, the CD-R drive itself may be bad and need to be replaced.
iMac won't recognize CD | MacRumors Forums
When burning a new disc, below are some additional suggestions to keep in mind to help make the processes smoother. Try to close as many unused and open programs on the computer. Programs running in the background may cause issues during the burn process. Make sure Device Manager doesn't show any device conflicts with the hardware in your computer.
If conflicts exist, it could be an indication of a resource conflict that may be causing issues. Ensure that all power management is disabled on the computer. If the computer or a computer component goes into power saving mode during the recording process, it can cause issues. It is recommended that your hard drive has a 13 milliseconds or faster access time to keep the memory buffer full. Run Defrag and ScanDisk on the hard drive. Compression software can cause several issues during the recording process. It is recommended that you do not create CDs off of a compressed hard drive.
Unable to read a CD-R or recordable disc Updated: Basically, even the most well-looked after, scratch-free optical disc can become damaged, thanks to the methods used in manufacturing. The metallic layer where the data is stored is susceptible to peeling away from the base plastic of the disc, which means that using optical discs as a long-term storage solution is not a good idea.
Do Other Discs Work?
However, it seems that there is another threat, this time from nature itself. It has been shown that older optical discs for instance CDs purchased in the s are susceptible to a fungus that causes the metallic layer to decay. As the layer decays, so does the data, and this can result in discs that cannot be read by a Mac CD drive. You can easily spot a disc that has decayed either through nature or poor manufacturing by holding it up to the light; if light comes through any gaps in the metallic layer then your data is either lost or at risk.
What to Do if the Cd Drive in a Mac Won’t Read Discs
For instance, you might have an external optical drive connected but problems with the USB cable could be causing poor data transfer — in this case, replace the USB cable. There might also be a general compatibility issue with Mac OS X, so if you suspect this to be the case, try connecting the drive to a Windows computer and checking whether it works there; if so, contact the device manufacturer or visit their website for upgraded device drivers. Similarly, problems with the internal drive in your Mac could possibly be narrowed down to connectivity issues, and in cases such as this you should take your device to a local branch of Apple and have one of the Genius staff take a look at it.
Be prepared to demonstrate the issue as you have experienced it so far, and they will take the necessary steps to resolve the issue. Some disc issues could be caused by compatibility problems between the type of disc in use and the type of optical drive in your Mac.
CD Drive Not Reading Discs Properly? Try These Tips.
Older iMacs, for instance, will only read a certain type of DVD. Clearly this can prove frustrating if other types of disc can be read without a problem, but if you find that this is an issue then the best course of action will be to either have the data copied to a different type of disc or employ an external CD or DVD drive that will then enable you to read and write to any type of optical storage.
Similarly, 3 inch CDs and DVDs cannot be used in slot-loading Macs without CD trays, as these are only designed for use with traditional 5 inch optical discs.