In my computer, I have an E: Drive, and it is able to burn and read CD's, but not DVD's. However, during a power failure, the internal power supply to my computer burned out. So, I had a different power supply installed, belonging to a different PC, but this power supply was not the correct fit. The cables were not long enough, so when they installed the power supply, they connected it TO the E: Drive. THerefore, the E: Drive no longer works. My D: Drive still functions (reads Cd's), but I was wondering whether or not I would be able to purchase an external E: Drive CD Burner, and whether or not it would work. ALso, if so, How do I Attach and run an external CD Burner/E: Drive?

Also, I almost forgot, but for some reason, my USB drives dont work either. Is there hope?!!

Hi AlkS14. Right, let's try and answer each bit of your question one by one:

Q. Can I purchase an external CD burner and will it work?
A. Yes, you can get CD-ReWriter (CDRW) drives and even DVD-ReWriter (DVDRW) drives that connect to a port on the PC. DVDRW have the benefit of being able to play and record CDs and also play and record DVDs, which can store 6-12 times as much data. Check whether the drive that you're looking to purchase comes with appropriate recording software such as Adaptec Easy CD/DVD (the best), Nero (OK) or Pinnacle Instant CD/DVD (not so good). Also, be aware that you need a pretty fast PC to be able to record at the fastest speeds but, if you have problems with your PC not being able to keep up, you can usually set a slower recording speed.

Q. How do I attach and run an external CD burner?
A. External CDRW / DVDRW drives predominantly have USB 2.0 connections so you'll need a spare (working) USB 2.0 port. Note that, if it's an older PC, it might only have a USB 1.1 port, which might not be fast enough. You can probably tell which you have by running the D-A-L Online Hardware Scan (http://www.d-a-l.com/hardware-scan.php).

Q. My USB drives don't work either. Is there any hope?
A. Maybe! Right-click on the 'My Computer' icon on the desktop and select Properties. Go into the Hardware tab and select Device Manager (or just click the Device Manager tab under Windows 98/ME). Make sure there are no items with a yellow exclamation mark symbol next to them. If there are, double-click the entry to see what the error is. You might need to re-install the drivers. Ensure that the USB drive is plugged in whilst you do this.

If you still have problems, let us know what version of Windows you are running and also run our Online Hardware Scan and post the log file here so that we can see what's fitted inside your PC. Also, we'll need a bit more detail about what you mean when you say the USB drive doesn't work, i.e. does it not show up in Windows Explorer or does it give an error message when you try to use it?

If you're in the UK, I may be able to get you a good price on a new external DVDRW drive.

I hope that helps

A little reminder to me in case you still have problems: Fitting the new power supply would have reset the BIOS so any on-board USB ports might now be disabled, in which case they wouldn't show up in Device Manager at all.

thats right. in My COmputer, when anything is plugged into the USB ports, nothing shows up. There is no "Removable F: Drive" like usual.

ALso, no yellow !'s

Im running Windows ME, sorry, I'm in the US. Thanks for the offer, and especially for the help!!

I think the ports must be disabled. PLease PLease PLease tell me how to get them running again.

Just one last thing to check before we go into the BIOS. Can you go back into Device Manager (right-click My Computer, etc)? At the bottom of the list, do you have an entries under "Universal Serial Bus controllers"? If so, do you have one or more "host controllers" and one or more "USB root hubs"?

Yes. I have one Host Controller and oneUSB Root hub