I think I lost my D drive in my 2007 Office Word Program

[no_hypocrisy]

I have a Windows XP. I've had it for more than 4 years.

I always had a D Drive so I could read and save on CD's. Not today.

It's gone.

I didn't remove it. It just isn't there. I haven't used it for a while, but I don't get why I don't got it.

Any advice please? How can I get it back? Time to install a new version of Windows? If I do install a new version, can I still read all the saved documents from earlier versions of Word?

Humbly,

no_hypocrisy

[discntnt_irny_srcsm]

1. have you tried the universal microsoft solution?

i.e. shutdown and reboot?

[gvstn]

2. Yeah

It sounds like your D: drive is a CD/DVD drive. Reboot and see if it appears. It should have nothing to do with Word itself but a Windows problem with seeing the physical CD drive.

[no_hypocrisy]

3. Yes, and I checked via Word

and by My Computer.

The drive is absent.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

4. drive sounds like it might be toast

or maybe some windows update managed to hose it up.

on the bright side, a DVD writer is dirt cheap (assuming this is not a laptop) and incredibly easy to install.

sP

[ManiacJoe]

5. Do you have a CD in the drive?

Sometimes this can make all the difference.

[no_hypocrisy]

6. Tried that. It's gone.

No recording and saving on disk.

Can't play CD's.

Can't access data on disks.

[whistler162]

8. Sounds like a dead drive or a loose cable.

fairly cheap fix. If you feel confident open the PC up, after unplugging it, and make sure the power cable is connected all the way and the data cable is connected. If they ar ethen the drive is likely dead and you will need to buy a used or new drive.

[gvstn]

7. Try Disk Management

http://pcsupport.about.com/od/tipstricks/ht/disk-management-command.htm

Go to Start>Run>copy/paste diskmgmt.msc and hit enter. Look at the graph section. Is the CD listed as Drive 1 or 2?

You can also check if it is listed in Device Manager: Start>Run> copy/paste devmgmt.msc and hit run. See if you have a model number listed when you expand Optical Drives in the list.

If it shows in one of those two areas then maybe an upper/lower filter fix would be worth a quick try. Look at resolution #2 at this link: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/314060

[no_hypocrisy]

9. Thank you for both suggestions.

I tried both.

For the latter (devmgmt.msc) I found DVD/CD Drives with Optiarc and an ID #.

But despite updating the drive, still nothing. I think it's really dead.

[gvstn]

10. It could be dead.

I haven't run XP in quite a while but want to make sure you tried the Fixit in the last link in my previous post. That would be the easiest way to have XP take another look for the drive.

Because it shows in Device Manager and an ID can be found seems to indicate the drive isn't entirely dead but they do reach a point where they are more trouble then they are worth as to being too unreliable. Unfortunately, depending on how old your machine is they no longer manufacture new IDE CD/DVD drives. SATA drives are easily replaced for less than $25 online, but IDE is Ebay or a local computer shop for a used one.