A question from a reader:

hello, i recently purchased windows 7 for my father because of all the problems he has had with vista, everything is fine with the package only windows media player now doesnt recognise that we have a cd/dvd burner drive built in to our laptop. it simply says connect a burner and restart, please could you offer some advice or help please

I fielded a question like this recently for a desktop computer. Her problem could have been either hardware- or driver-related, but in your case, since you just upgraded, I’m certain it’s driver related.

Windows 7 includes drivers for most computer hardware. However, I’ve upgraded many computers from Vista to 7, and most of them are missing at least one driver. However, your computer manufacturer has probably created drivers for you.

So, go to your computer manufacturer’s website (hp.com for HP, dell.com for Dell, etc) and find the Support or Downloads section. Look up your specific model of computer, and download and install any Windows 7 drivers. Try to access the CD/DVD after you restart your computer.

If you’re still having problems, open Device Manager:

Click Start, type devmgmt.msc, and press Enter.

Do any devices show with a yellow exclamation icon? That means those drivers have a problem. Without more information I can’t point you to the specific drivers. Instead, try Googling your computer model and the device, such as “Dell T3400 DVD driver”.

Let me know how it turns out. Good luck!