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FIX: Windows 10 doesn’t recognize CD Drive

9 min. read

Updated onApril 29, 2024

updated onApril 29, 2024

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Windows 10 might have a few issues with hardware, and speaking of hardware issues, users have reported that Windows 10 doesn’t recognize CD drives on their computers. This might be a big problem if you rely on optical media for file storage, so let’s try to fix this problem.

What to do if CD drive isn’t recognized on Windows 10?

Many users reported that Windows 10 doesn’t recognize CD drives. This can be an annoying problem, and speaking of issues, users reported the following problems related to CD drive:

Fix – Windows 10 doesn’t recognize CD drive

1. Use Hardware and Devices troubleshooter

2. Reinstall the driver

In order to reinstall your CD drive driver, you just need to navigate to Device Manager and uninstall the driver that you currently have installed. To do that, follow these steps:

If the previous solution didn’t work, we strongly suggest doing it automatically throughthird-party softwarethat will protect your computer from permanent damage during manual driver installation (incorrect version of drivers).

3. Remove the corrupted registry keys

If Windows 10 doesn’t recognize the CD drive, this can be due to corrupted registry values, and if that’s the case, the best solution is to delete those registry keys. Before we start, make sure that you are using an administrator account on this computer. We have to mention that changing registry values can sometimes lead to system instability if you’re not careful, so proceed with caution.

If you can’t findLowerFiltersorUpperFilters, don’t worry, just skip to the next step of the solution.

4. Create a new registry subkey

If Windows 10 still doesn’t recognize the CD drive, you might want to create new subkeys for each CD drive that you have. To do that, just follow these steps:

If you have two CD / DVD drives on your computer, you might have to repeat this solution for every CD drive that you have. The steps for the next CD drive are exactly the same, except that you need to set the name of the new key toController1inStep 4.

5. Use Command Prompt to add values to the registry

If you don’t want to add values to the registry manually, you can use Command Prompt. Using Command Prompt is a quicker and for some users a simpler solution. To change registry using Command Prompt, follow these steps:

6. Run .reg to add changes to the registry

If you don’t want to use Command Prompt, and you don’t want to change the registry manually, you can use this .reg file to change the registry for you. Just open the archive, extract the .reg file, double click it, and it will make changes to the registry automatically.

Fix – Windows 10 doesn’t recognize CD ROM

1. Uninstall additional ATA / ATAPI controllers

Sometimes Windows 10 doesn’t recognize CD ROM due to additional ATA / ATAPI controllers that are installed in Device Manager. We’re not sure why this happens, but the only solution is to uninstall these additional controllers from Device Manager. To do that, follow these steps:

Delete all DVD / CD ROM and IDE ATA / ATAPI drivers

3. Unplug your hard drive and replace it with your CD / DVD drive

If Windows 10 doesn’t recognize CD ROM, you might want to try connecting your CD ROM to a different port. Open your computer, unplug your CD ROM andhard driveand connect them to different ports. If your computer is under warranty, we strongly advise that you take it to a repair shop in order not to break your warranty. In addition, if you don’t know how to do this properly, maybe it’s better that you ask a professional to do it for you.

4. Install new chipset drivers

Your CD ROM might not be recognized on Windows 10 due to the generic SATA Controller this is installed on your computer, so you’re advised to download the latest chipset driver from yourmotherboardor chipset manufacturer. After you’ve downloaded the drivers, install them, restart your computer and check if Windows 10 recognizes your CD ROM. If the problem persists, you might have to manually install the drivers. To do that, follow these steps:

5. Update your SATA Controller driver

To do this step, you might have to do some research and find out what type of SATA Controller do you have. In our case, it was an AMD controller, but it might be a different one on your computer. To update your SATA controller driver, do the following:

Windows 10 sometimes has problems with certain drivers or devices, and this is the main reason why Windows 10 might not recognize your CD drive, but as you can see, you can easily fix this issue by following our solutions.

FIX: Windows 10 doesn’t recognize CD Drive#

What to do if CD drive isn’t recognized on Windows 10?#

Fix – Windows 10 doesn’t recognize CD drive#

1. Use Hardware and Devices troubleshooter#

2. Reinstall the driver#

3. Remove the corrupted registry keys#

4. Create a new registry subkey#

5. Use Command Prompt to add values to the registry#

6. Run .reg to add changes to the registry#

Fix – Windows 10 doesn’t recognize CD ROM#

1. Uninstall additional ATA / ATAPI controllers#

3. Unplug your hard drive and replace it with your CD / DVD drive#

4. Install new chipset drivers#

5. Update your SATA Controller driver#