Can't Open Cd Drive In Linux

[Crushdepth]

Its embarassing but true: I can't open the cd drive on a disused Linux server I inherited at work. It's driving me crazy! Pressing on the open button makes the light flash but nothing happens. Putting a paper clip in the pinhole does nothing either. I can't mount it, dismount it or do anything to it.

When booting, there is a message 'Line 9 in fstab is bad' (this is the line that refers to the CD drive). The fstab line reads like this:

/dev/hda /media/cdrecorder auto pamconsole, exec, noauto, managed 0 0

What's wrong with this line?

Using dmesg \more shows the cd drive is present but also gives a warning:

hda: ATAPI 24x DVD-ROM CD-R/RW drive, 2048kB cache, UDMA (33)

cdrom: open failed

Anyone got an idea about how I can open the drive? I just want to stick an Ubuntu CD in there and install a more recent/familiar version of Linux (it currently has LinuxSIS). Or how I can install Ubuntu without using a CD!

Edited October 20, 2008 by Crushdepth

[dave_boo]

Its embarassing but true: I can't open the cd drive on a disused Linux server I inherited at work. It's driving me crazy! Pressing on the open button makes the light flash but nothing happens. Putting a paper clip in the pinhole does nothing either. I can't mount it, dismount it or do anything to it.

When booting, there is a message 'Line 9 in fstab is bad' (this is the line that refers to the CD drive). The fstab line reads like this:

/dev/hda /media/cdrecorder auto pamconsole, exec, noauto, managed 0 0

What's wrong with this line?

Using dmesg \more shows the cd drive is present but also gives a warning:

hda: ATAPI 24x DVD-ROM CD-R/RW drive, 2048kB cache, UDMA (33)

cdrom: open failed

Anyone got an idea about how I can open the drive? I just want to stick an Ubuntu CD in there and install a more recent/familiar version of Linux (it currently has LinuxSIS). Or how I can install Ubuntu without using a CD!

If the paperclip doesn't work, there's probably something mechanically wrong with the drive, especially if it doesn't eject during POST.

You may wish to insert the 'rw' before your 'exec'. I also don't know why there's spaces between the options. Try and remove them and see what happens. Alternatively, if LinuxSIS is expecting SCSI emulation, and it's broken, and furthermore you don't expect to burn anything with the drive (at least until you get n00buntu installed) you may just want to change the whole line to this:

 /dev/hda /media/dvd iso9660 noauto,user,ro 0 0

Ubuntu can be booted/installed from a thumbdrive.