How to remove a disk from a MacBook. Removing a stuck disk: software methods

Most Makovodov sooner or later have a problem when his favorite CD or DVD disc doesn’t want to leave the MacBook. Macs, unlike PCs, have slot-loading drives and remove the disc in the usual way It can be difficult, since there are no physical buttons, as well as an emergency release button. According to some service center employees, the problem is that the protective rubber bands are too tight to each other, although sometimes the problem can also be software.

We try absolutely all known methods.

How to remove a disc

  • Drag the disk icon from the desktop to the trash.
  • If you have another operating system installed at the same time, try logging in and using software to extract it from it.
  • Open Programs -> Utilities -> Disk Utility. Select your CD/DVD drive on the left, click “Eject”. The same can be done through iTunes, or another program for recording, copying, viewing, listening to files from a CD or DVD discs. There are also programs specially created for removing stuck disks, for example the Force Eject Mounted Volumes script.
  • For geeks, their favorite. Let's launch the terminal. We try to execute the commands “drutil eject” or “hdiutil eject -force ‘/Volumes/DISK NAME”” or “diskutil eject /Volumes/DISK NAME” (without quotes).
  • If your MacBook has an Eject key on your keyboard. Restart the computer while holding down the Alt (Option) key. When the drive selection screen appears, release Alt and press Eject.
  • Lift the laptop, turn it with the drive down and press the Eject key, perhaps Newton's law will help you.
  • If a stuck disk prevents the computer from loading the operating system, then: turn on the computer and leave it for 10-15 minutes, perhaps the computer itself will spit out the disk.
  • If the computer does not see the CD/DVD drive, then you can try to put it to sleep and wake it up again (alternatively, reboot), sometimes the Eject to iTunes command helps.
  • The problem may be that your Mac is overheating. Place the laptop in a cool place for 20-30 minutes and try removing it again.
  • Booting the computer with hold right button mouse or trackpad. After booting the laptop, the disk should come out on its own.
  • As a last resort, you can try to carefully pick up the disk, for example, with tweezers or a floppy disk curtain (if you can find a floppy disk in the hiding places). Be careful, this operation can damage your computer or the disk itself.

If none of the above methods helped, then you are welcome to service center, or disassemble the laptop yourself (at your own risk).

‘s sometimes encounter a situation when, at one “wonderful” moment, an inserted CD or DVD does not want to come out. Having researched this issue a little, I found the most likely physical reason for this phenomenon. As the service workers suggest: the protective rubber bands fit too tightly to each other. Now I will give all the ones I know software methods for removing the disk, that is, without physical intervention. They will be useful to you if the disk does not want to come out just because software problems. I most likely won’t write articles about another reason - the disk rests against the case/protective rubber bands because it is uneven or damaged. The network is full of material, including photo and video reports.

I have roughly divided the extraction methods using “keyboard” manipulations into several: the fastest for beginners and methods used by more experienced users.

First thing to try

Mac OS X features

  • If the eject button does not help, hold it longer until the following image appears on the screen:
  • The Eject icon in the Finder sidebar. Next to each connected disk/volume, there is an eject icon on the right. Clicking on it will eject the disc.
  • With the drive selected in the sidebar, press Command+E.
  • Disk context menu in the same sidebar or desktop icons. From it, select Extract “Disk Name”.
  • Try dragging the disk icon to the Trash (if you have one in your Dock).
  • Restarting may also solve the problem

Mac OS X programs

  • Disk utility that will help you eject a disk even if Finder doesn't see it.

  • also has the Eject Disc function from the Control menu

  • Check your programs that you use when viewing/listening to files from a CD or DVD. There is a possibility that they also have a disk eject function.

Third party programs

There are utility programs created specifically for removing stuck disks or volumes, and there are programs that work with disks. The first category is called Force Eject Mounted Volumes. I placed its icon at the beginning of the article because it best conveys the meaning.

Programs that work with discs (burning, copying) usually have an eject function. I know exactly what is in .

For advanced users

Options for the Terminal

  • drutil eject
  • hdiutil eject -force "/Volumes/DISK NAME"
  • diskutil eject /Volumes/DISK NAME

I'm not good at -nix systems, so if there is anything to fix or add, I will be grateful.

Different boot modes

  • Boot your computer by holding down the right mouse button or trackpad. After booting, the disk should come out.
  • Boot into Open Firmware with hold Command+Alt+O+F. After the welcome message, type eject cd , press enter and wait a few seconds. As soon as the disk comes out and Ok appears next to the command, enter mac-boot. After the enter key, the computer will continue to boot normally.

As an option

If you have one or more operating systems installed on your computer, try removing the disk through them.

If all this does not bring results, there are two options left: contact a service center or external intervention using available tools. The second option is the most extreme, suitable only when the service center is not available to you. Well, or you yourself are an Apple service center employee.

Remember: everything you do with your computer is on your conscience. There is no need to insert suspicious, damaged or low-quality disks, and then, who knows how and with what, get them out.

Sometimes Mac owners encounter a problem: their favorite CD or DVD gets stuck in the computer. Unlike PC users, Mac drivers can't eject it the normal way because Mac slot-loading drives don't have physical buttons. What can you do to remove a stuck disk in a Mac?

How to remove a stuck CD or DVD from a Mac?

  • The simplest and most obvious way is to move the disk icon from the desktop to the trash in the Dock or select “Eject” from the menu bar.
  • If you are running a virtual machine such as VMFusion, make sure the CD is disabled in virtual machine. Sometimes the disk then appears in Mac OS X.
  • Restart your Mac while holding down the mouse button. Hold the button until the disk appears or you see the login screen.
  • Launch Toast Titanium and select Eject Disc from the menu.
  • Sometimes the Eject Disc command in iTunes helps, even when the CD or DVD is not visible in the Finder.
  • Open Disk Utility, highlight the drive in the left pane and click the Eject button.
  • Some Mac drives are equipped with an access hole that allows you to remove a stuck drive using a paper clip or a needle.
  • Open Terminal and write “drutil tray eject” to eject the disc/tray and “drutil tray close” to close the tray
  • Restart your computer while holding Command + Option + O + F to enter the Open Firmware prompt. Type “eject CD” without quotes and press Return. The Mac should eject the disk. To launch OS X, type “mac-boot” without quotes. Press Return and your computer will begin booting. (Does not work on Intel Mac due to lack of Open Firmware)
  • If your Mac has an Eject button on your keyboard, restart your computer while holding down the Option (Alt) key. When the drive selection screen appears, release the Option key and press Eject on your keyboard.

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If spare parts are available, up to 85% of complex repairs can be completed in 1-2 days. Modular repairs require much less time. The website shows the approximate duration of any repair.

Warranty and responsibility

A guarantee must be given for any repairs. Everything is described on the website and in the documents. The guarantee is self-confidence and respect for you. A 3-6 month warranty is good and sufficient. It is needed to check quality and hidden defects that cannot be detected immediately. You see honest and realistic terms (not 3 years), you can be sure that they will help you.

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Free diagnostics

This is very important and has already become a rule of good manners for the service center. Diagnostics is the most difficult and important part of the repair, but you don't have to pay a penny for it, even if you don't repair the device based on its results.

Service repairs and delivery

Good service We value your time, which is why we offer free shipping. And for the same reason, repairs are carried out only in the workshop of a service center: they can be done correctly and according to technology only in a prepared place.

Convenient schedule

If the Service works for you, and not for itself, then it is always open! absolutely. The schedule should be convenient to fit in before and after work. Good service works on weekends and holidays. We are waiting for you and working on your devices every day: 9:00 - 21:00

The reputation of professionals consists of several points

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If a company has been on the market for many years and has managed to establish itself as an expert, people turn to it, write about it, and recommend it. We know what we are talking about, since 98% of incoming devices in the service center are restored.
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How many masters in areas

If there are always several engineers waiting for you for each type of equipment, you can be sure:
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Technical literacy

If you ask a question, a specialist should answer it as accurately as possible.
So that you can imagine what exactly you need.
They will try to solve the problem. In most cases, from the description you can understand what happened and how to fix the problem.

Sometimes it happens that MacBook owners encounter a problem: a DVD or CD disk gets stuck in the laptop. Unlike users personal computer, MacBook owners cannot remove the disk in the usual way (in the case of a PC, you can insert a needle into a special hole in the drive, the mechanism will work and the drive will open), because slot-loading drives do not have physical buttons. So what should you do if your laptop has a stuck disk?

Removing a DVD or CD from a MacBook - step-by-step instructions for users

These methods will definitely help you get out a stuck disk. They are also suitable for those who simply do not know how to remove a disk from a laptop on MAC OS X:

  • The first and most obvious way out of the situation is to transfer the disk icon from the desktop to the icon in the Dock. You can also select the “extract” option from the general menu.
  • If your Apple laptop has an Eject button on the keyboard, then restart your MacBook while holding down the Alt key. When the CD and DVD selection screen appears, we need to press the Alt key and then immediately click on Eject.
  • If you activated a virtual machine (for example, this is the VMFusion program), then make sure that the drive is disabled in the virtual machine. It happens that after this the disk appears inside operating system.
  • If the disc cannot be removed in the usual way, we recommend downloading the Toast Titanium application and finding the “remove disc” option there.
  • Sometimes a simple “Eject” command directly in iTunes helps, even when the drive is not visible inside the Finder.
  • Download any specialized utility, and then select the drive in the left panel and click the corresponding button to remove it.
  • Some MacBooks have special holes that can help solve this problem with a simple paper clip or needle, just like on a Windows PC.
  • Launch the Terminal and in the window that opens, enter the following words “drutil tray eject”. This command activates the drive. Accordingly, entering the command “drutil tray close” will close the drive.
  • You can use a simple and proven method that solves almost all problems - reboot. Reboot your MacBook by holding Command + Option + O + F to activate the Open Firmware line. There, type “eject CD” without quotes and click on Return (reboot). After this, the computer should eject the disk itself. To start the operating system, type “mac-boot” into the same line again without quotes. Then click the Return button again. That's it, the laptop started to reboot (will not work if you are the owner of an Intel MAC).

We hope you were able to solve the problem and remove the stuck CD or DVD. If all these methods do not produce results, then you need to take the computer to a service center - this means the problem is in the hardware.