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Problems ejecting removable media in Mac OS X

In Mac OS X, if you are having trouble ejecting removable media such as a CD or DVD, try the following to correct the problem:

  • If you are getting an error message that something is open or in use, it means that you have opened a file or application on the removable media. Until you close it, you will not be able to eject the media. Mac OS X 10.6 and later will usually indicate which application this is. If you have an older version of the operating system and are not sure which document or application it may be, save all your work, quit all open applications, and close all open Finder windows. If you have fast user switching turned on, turn off applications running on other accounts as well. You should then be able to remove the media.

  • You can try using Disk Utility to eject the disk:

    1. Open the Utilities folder, located in the Applications folder. When Finder is the active application, you can access the folder by either selecting Utilities from the Go pull-down menu, or by pressing Command-Shift-u.

    2. Locate the Disk Utility icon, and then double-click it to launch the application.

    3. In the list on the left, locate the disk or other item you want to eject, and then click it once to select it.

    4. Click Eject near the top of the window, and the disk or other item should be ejected.

  • Sometimes, even if no applications are running, you will still not be able to eject the removable media. In this case, try restarting the computer. For some removable drives, this will cause the media to be ejected automatically. If not, then as soon as the drive has power (usually indicated by a power light, or the computer's power light if it is internal) immediately press the eject button, and the drive should eject the media.

If none of the above methods work, you may need to eject the media manually. Consult your removable media drive's manual for the proper technique for doing this. Doing it the wrong way could damage your drive and necessitate expensive repairs.