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The Daily Insight

What should I do if my CD is stuck in the drive?

Author

Emily Sparks

Published Apr 18, 2026

What should I do if my CD is stuck in the drive?

If a disc is stuck in the drive try using a pair of needle nose pliers and remove the disc. If you’re concerned about damaging the disc (if not already damaged), you may want to consider removing the drive and disassembling it.

Why does my CD drive not close or open by itself?

A CD-ROM or other disc drive tray that does not close or remain in the drive is often an indication of a hardware failure. However, the steps below can still be attempted before replacing the drive. If a disc isn’t seated correctly, or a foreign object was put in the drive by a child, it can cause the drive tray to remain out.

Why is the tray on my CD player not opening?

A typical problem occurs when you press the “Open” button to open the tray of the CD player. There is often a whirring noise of the loading motor and the tray gear wheels; however, the tray will not open.

What should I do if my disc tray does not close?

If there is a disc in the tray remove it and make sure it is not the cause of your problem. The drive button can break. If you are using the button to put the tray back in the drive try pushing the tray towards the drive instead. All disc drives support the ability to gently press the tray to put it back into the drive.

Why does the drawer on my CD player keep opening?

Follow this procedure to troubleshoot if the drawer on the CD player keeps opening and will not stay closed. Turn off the CD player. Unplug the power cord of the CD player from the AC outlet. Let the CD player set without power for 30 seconds. Plug the power cord back into the AC outlet. Attempt to close the drawer on the CD player.

How to fix a compact disc player drawer problem?

For this CD player, the problem turned out to be a broken belt between the motor and the wheel that has the gear that opens the drawer. Look at these two video tutorials to see how easy it can be to fix, by replacing one belt with a rubber band.

What to do when your CD player won’t open?

Insert the paperclip leg into the manual eject hole. Press gently until the CD drawer opens. If the drawer does not open after inserting pressure in the manual eject hole, remove the paperclip. Press the eject button and stop button simultaneously and hold.

If a disc is stuck in the drive try using a pair of needle nose pliers and remove the disc. If you’re concerned about damaging the disc (if not already damaged), you may want to consider removing the drive and disassembling it.