How to Eject a Stuck Disc from an External CD Drive

Authored by: Support.com Tech Pro Team

1. Introduction

Has your favorite video game, movie or music disc gotten stuck inside an external disc drive? Maybe the drive lost power or it's malfunctioning, the tray is just stuck or the disc has gotten misplaced inside the drive and jammed up the tray. Regardless of what happened, this guide will help you retrieve the disc from that drive.

Tools You'll Need:

• No extra tools are needed.

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Supplies You'll Need:

• No extra supplies are needed.

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Before You Begin:

No extra instructions.

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2. Check Power to External Disc Drive

When you're using an external disc drive you need to ensure it's powered up properly. This type of drives can be powered up either with a dedicated power supply or through a USB connection.

Check the Connection to the Power Supply

1. First, make sure you are using a working power outlet. You can test another electric device, such as a lamp, with the same power outlet.
   

1. Bypass any power strips for troubleshooting purposes.
2. Once you made sure the power outlet is working, firmly plug your external disc drive into the working outlet and your computer.
   

Check the USB Connection

• If your external disc drive is connected to your computer's USB port and it's not powering up, try using another USB port, if available.
  

• If your external disc drive is connected to a non-powered USB hub that's connected to a USB port on your computer, and your external disc drive doesn't get enough power to function, then you can try the following:
  

1. Reduce the number of devices connected to the USB hub.
2. Remove the USB hub and connect the external disc drive directly to your computer.
3. Replace the non-powered USB hub with a powered USB hub.

3. Force Eject the Disc

Some external disc drives have an emergency pinhole used to force eject a disc stuck inside.

1. Locate the pinhole on the front of the disc drive.
2. Grab a pin, needle or uncoiled paper clip that fits into the pinhole.
3. Insert the pin into the hole and push until the disc or tray pops out.
4. It will only pop out a little. Pull it out with your hand the rest of the way.