Path: utzoo!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sdd.hp.com!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!pacific.mps.ohio-state.edu!ohstpy!rajah From: rajah@ohstpy.mps.ohio-state.edu Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware Subject: Re: Spurious "Disk is Write Protected" Message-ID: <9675.27e10c98@ohstpy.mps.ohio-state.edu> Date: 15 Mar 91 23:04:08 GMT References: <103405@unix.cis.pitt.edu> Lines: 31 In article <103405@unix.cis.pitt.edu>, djbpitt@unix.cis.pitt.edu (David J Birnbaum) writes: > My 5-1/4" 1.2M floppy drive has been refusing to write to diskettes, > telling me that the "Disk is Write Protected." This problem ...... > > The diskettes are all high quality and formatted normally. There is no > visible dust or debris inside the drive in question. > > Is this a known problem? Is it one I can repair by myself and, if so, > how? Given the bargain basement prices of disk drives, it hardly seems > worth getting it repaired professionally, but if all it needs is some > particular cleaning in some particular place, I'd be grateful if some- > one could let me know. > > Thanks, > > David > > ======================================================================= > Professor David J. Birnbaum djbpitt@vms.cis.pitt.edu [Internet] > The Royal York Apartments, #802 djbpitt@pittvms.bitnet [Bitnet] > 3955 Bigelow Boulevard voice: 1-412-687-4653 > Pittsburgh, PA 15123 USA fax: 1-412-624-9714 we experience the same problem with a computer in our lab. Drive "A" simply refuse to write. But it can copy from drive "A" into "C" or into memory. So no problem with the media (disk). I guess the drive somehow feels there is a protection tab on the disk. Probably the tab sensor does not move freely. We are going to check it soon. Any other suggestion on this is appreciated. Thanks, Rajah.