iFixit

We lifted up the cover of the optical drive by removing the six Phillips #00 screws. These are all labeled on the previous image.

Because of a secured wire leading to the drive, we reattached the cover to facilitate the remove of the entire drive assembly without harming any of the electronics.

There are a ton of parts in the optical drive, but there is nothing very fancy about this drive compared to other slot-loading drives, so I didn't take it apart completely. There are also a ton of gears and levers that I did not want to deal with.

The screws holding in the drive were deep within the casing.

Once those screws were removed, the entire case could be lifted off.

Don't pull too hard! There are two cables attaching the drive to the logic board underneath.

This wire slid out from its horizontal slot. Once it was detached, the ribbon cable came out as well.

With those wires detached, the optical drive came off completely.

We begin trying to get to the logic board by removing this small black plastic rim.

Once within the case, all screws are Phillips #00. There are marked on the logic board with arrows, triangles, boxes, and crosses. From what I can tell, an arrow means that it just goes through the logic board cover. A triangle means that it is a longer logic board cover screw. A cross means that it holds on a plastic piece, and a box means that it holds on another EM shield / or heat sink.

Remove all screws from the logic board cover. Two are recessed in the middle; others are along the edge. More will become visible as other parts are removed. It's like a game! You can start with the screws holding in the black plastic pieces, but I started with the most visible and went from there.

There are two wires (shown in the third picture) coming from the logic board and connected to what appear to be thermal sensors. These are delicate. Do not break them.

Take out these screws in the black plastic casing.

Detach the case fan. There are two screws holding it in.

You must detach the power connector for the fan if you want to remove it completely.