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External CD drive Monterey

The basic external CD drive (from ASUS) that has worked with my Macs for the last 5 or 6 years with all the recent OS' is no longer recognized by iMac or Macbook Pro since updating to OS 12.

No icon appears on desktop or Finder.

Is this a design change or an OS bug?


How can I add files to my computers?

I will appreciate suggestions.

iMac 27″ 5K, macOS 12.1

Posted on Jan 2, 2022 1:00 PM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Jan 4, 2022 1:56 PM

The solution, on the chance this may help someone else, I substituted the cable and it works fine now.

Interestingly the old cable still works on my Asus laptop and always worked on my Macs until now. Go figure.

8 replies

Jan 2, 2022 2:14 PM in response to PBs_watch

Unless there's a disc in the drive, empty or burned, there will be no icon showing on the desktop.


Take a look at the self powered optical drives from OWC (MacSales.com). They use newer and faster connections than the old and slow USB that the SuperDrive uses. Also consider drawer loading units as they are more resistant to jams than slot loading.


Jan 2, 2022 3:02 PM in response to Old Toad

Thanks All. The speedy responses are appreciated.


I have tried disc in drive to no avail. I tried direct connect to computer (USB A/B) as well as through a powered hub with USB C into Mac. The CD unit is getting powered either way.


I notice the OWC offerings stopped updating compatibility info at OS 10.


Thanks for your interest.

External CD drive Monterey

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