Unplugged my CD ROM and Floppy to be on the safe side with a Dell GX270 with Windows XP Professional. I am using all the USBs but one, and I thought it would be best to eliminate one potential problem by lowering power usage. I am selling the PC, so I replugged the parts, but the PC, including BIOS won't recognize either one. Neither one shows up in Device Manager or BIOS. I know there is power to the CD ROM, because the tray opens and the disk spins when I insert a CD. I went through a successful software fix for some minor Java problems here. I followed instructions and the problem was corrected, but I am wondering if one of the programs or maybe something else edited my registry to read that I have no CD ROM or Floppy, since they were unplugged. I don't think my system has any BIOS autodetection capabilities, so I guess that would explain what's wrong if it is the problem and also why plugging them back in wouldn't have mattered.
The only other thing I can think of is that I installed a BIOS update from Dell. It's a standard BIOS update for this computer, so I don't know.
I have tried replugging them, checked the cables to the motherboard and everything is fine. I have also, uninstalled some programs to see if they caused the problem. If this problem is with the BIOS, how do I fix it? If it's something else, what do I do? I am certain the units are in working order. No way they both died while unplugged.
Whatever is the problem, I would absolutely appreciate any help from anywhere. Thanks in advance.
Oh yeah, PC is reading everything else fine...