vista sp1 cd/dvd not working

My cd/dvd drive will not work at all. In device manager it shows an !. It also tells me it does not need to be upgraded. I cannot find any upper or lower filters. When I search "regedit" nothing is found. I am "partially" literate in all this, but I can follow directions, so if you can offer me assistance, it would be greatly appreciated. This drive has worked in the past. And at some point, these filters were there. Thanks.

dvd drives dont need drivers. Have you tried reseating the power and data cables to make sure theyre firmly set?

Hi skothy5 and welcome to Vista Forums

Is the drive recognised by the BIOS? Check the POST screen when you boot up. Swarfega's advice about cable security is good. Also check that the MA/SL/CS jumper on the back of the drive hasn't worked loose. Personally, I never use the CS option but instead prefer to explicitly set the drives as MA/SL.