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Jannes
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Optical drive ejects any disc.

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Hey there,

A couple of months ago my 3 years old MacBook Pro started to eject any disc I inserted. Can anyone tell me this matters software or hardware. I already opened up my MB and checked the connectors. Is there anything else I can do?

Thank you.

Jannes

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Jannes
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Ok thanks.. I will try that as soon as I can borrow a external optical drive somewhere :). Is it possible that the lens is just dirty? I just really don't want to spend a lot of money on such an old Mac Book..

Yes !! Cleaning the laser lens with alcool would be the first thing I'd try.

lemerise,

This worked for me! Cheap and it reads again! Thanks! :D

Jannes,

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rdklinc
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I really think it's just a bad optical drive. I see them like that all the time. Someone who repairs optical drives might have more to add (spray it out with canned air?), but in my computer repair travels, optical drive constantly kicking out CD = bad drive. I don't think it's software, but to rule that out, just boot in option mode (hold down the option key while powering on), and once the option menu comes up, put in a CD. If it kicks it out, then, voila!, you've confirmed the hardware problem still occurs with no OS or other software loaded.

Is there somebody who can repair optical drives? Or where I can buy a cheap replacement?

Jannes,

iFixit sells them. You will want to go to the parts store icon above, enter your model number (on the back center of the case), and it will present suitable drives. You could also check eBay or CraigsList.

rdklinc,

Caution on buying used drives on eBay. I've not had much luck there. They aren't tested in a lot of cases. Rather than throwing good money after bad, I'd buy from a reputable dealer like ifixit or Other World, where you get a warranty with it.

colleenthompson,

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Jumpy
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I had the same problem on my MacBook Pro.

Try the lens cleaner DVD.

Worked for me. Good luck :)

Great, which brand did you use? I am definitely gonna try it.

Jannes,

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QEII Student IT
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Well if you've tried all that then I think you should replace the optical drive.

But just to check, try using an external disc drive and see what happens. If it spits them out too, it is probably a software problem

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David Iwanicki
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You could try booting from an OS disc - hold down the 'Option' key when turning on the computer. When the hard drive icon appears, insert a bootable OS disc - either the grey disc 1 which came with your computer or a retail Leopard/Snow Leopard DVD. If the drive spits the disc out at this point, it is 100% a defective drive.

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Dan
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Had the same problem. Buying a disc drive cleaner did the job.

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