MacbookPro 2012 with Superdrive - CDs/DVDs disappeared from System Preferences

Welcome!

I still have the same model bought ten years ago in service. Great little computers.

I tried to play a DVD this morning. It accepts it and spins it up, then ejects it.

That can indicate a dirty drive, not a failed drive. Even with careful storage and transport, slot-load drives get filthy. You can get a drive cleaning disk for US$5-15. I've used my $15 cleaning disk to restore full function to three older Macbook Pros whose Superdrives had been pronounced dead and needing replacement by an Apple tech—at a cost fo US$150 parts + labor! 😱

Does a music CD mount and play? That can give clues.

I looked in System Preferences and do not find CD/DVDs listed.

Under Aple, System Report, Disc Burning, it says no disk burning devices present.

That could be a problem. On my 2012 MBP13, the optical drive is functional and shows under "Disk Burning":

It does NOT show under USB.

Also, don't know if this is related but my USB-A slots on the left side of the machine aren't working properly. They seem to pass power but don't allow devices connected to be recognized by the OS. I discovered this when an external mouse wasn't recognized.

I'd try reseting the system management controller (SMC). That might help the drive issue as well. See:

Reset the SMC of your Mac - Apple Support

Please post back with what you find.

Allan

If MacTracker is correct, the optical drive interface for a 13" mid-2012 MBP is SATA. No USB middle man. That would explain why the drive "does NOT show under USB."

On my old iMac, the built-in optical drive shows up under Disc Burning ("Interconnect: ATAPI") and under one of the "Intel 5 Series Chipset" headings under SATA/SATA Express. I bet it shows up under SATA/SATA Express on that MBP, too.

Dying-MacBookPro wrote:

I do not find an application called DVD Player in the Applications folder or in the Launchpad.

There is a DVD Player 4.6 download on the old Apple Support / Downloads site. This is a few versions behind 5.9.6 (the one I have on a High Sierra installation), so I don't know if perhaps Apple stopped releasing updates separately from macOS updates.

Apple - Support - Downloads

Apple's DVD Player User Guide has a page specifically for High Sierra, so I find it hard to believe that the app wasn't in Sierra.

Play a DVD or DVD movie file - Apple Support

One thing that comes to mind: if you have a spare external drive, you could try doing a clean install of macOS Sierra on it, and then afterwards, copying the DVD Player app to the Applications folder of your regular Sierra startup drive. That might be a way to get back the Sierra version of DVD Player if, by some chance, you have accidentally deleted it.