Fix NS_E_CD_READ_ERROR (0XC00D0FAC) in Windows Media Player

What's this error and when does it show up?

Error code NS_E_CD_READ_ERROR (0XC00D0FAC) pops up when Windows Media Player tries to read a CD but fails partway through. You've probably just inserted an audio CD or a data disc, hit Play, and then got slapped with that error. Or maybe you're trying to rip a CD to your hard drive and it stops at track 4 or 5 every time.

The real cause is almost always one of three things: a dirty or scratched disc, a failing optical drive, or a corrupted driver. I've seen this on Windows 7 through Windows 11. It's not specific to any one version. Let's get it sorted.

30-second fix: Clean the CD and the drive

This sounds too simple, but it fixes about 60% of these errors. Don't skip it.

1. Pop the CD out of the drive.
2. Find a soft, lint-free cloth or a microfiber glasses cloth. Paper towels can scratch the disc, so avoid those.
3. Hold the disc by the edges or the center hole. Don't touch the shiny side if you can help it.
4. Wipe the shiny side gently but firmly from the center straight out to the edge. Don't wipe in circles—that can make scratches worse.
5. Look at the disc under a bright light. If you see small scratches, you can buy a CD repair kit for $10–$15. If there are deep gouges, the disc is probably toast.
6. While you're at it, clean the drive itself. Get a CD drive cleaning disc (they're about $8 at any electronics store). Follow the instructions on the cleaning disc package. Usually you just insert it and let it run a 30-second cycle.
7. Put your original CD back in. Try playing or ripping again.

If the error's gone, you're done. If not, move to the next step.

5-minute fix: Update or reinstall your CD/DVD drive driver

A bad driver can cause this error even with a perfect disc. Windows Update sometimes pushes wrong drivers, or a driver gets corrupted after a system update.

1. Press the Windows key + X and select Device Manager from the menu that appears.
2. Expand the DVD/CD-ROM drives section. You should see something like "HL-DT-ST DVDRAM GH24N" or "TSSTcorp CDDVDW."
3. Right-click that drive entry and choose Uninstall device. When the confirmation pops up, check the box that says Delete the driver software for this device if you see the option. On Windows 10 and 11, you might not see that—don't worry, just uninstall.
4. Restart your computer. Windows will automatically reinstall the driver when it boots back up. This can take a minute or two.
5. After the restart, insert your CD again. Test it in Windows Media Player.

Still getting the error? Try the next step.

15-minute fix: Use a different player or rip the CD differently

Sometimes Windows Media Player just doesn't like a particular disc—maybe it's an older copy-protected CD, or the disc uses a format the player struggles with. This is especially common with CDs from the late 90s and early 2000s with copy protection schemes.

Here's what I do instead.

Option A: Try VLC Media Player

VLC is free, open-source, and handles almost everything. Download it from videolan.org.

1. Open VLC.
2. Go to Media > Open Disc.
3. Select Audio CD as the disc type.
4. Make sure the drive letter is correct (usually D: or E:).
5. Click Play. VLC should start playing the CD.

If VLC plays it fine, the problem is with Windows Media Player's settings or codecs. You can then use VLC to rip the CD to MP3 using the Convert feature under Media > Convert/Save.

Option B: Rip the CD with Exact Audio Copy (EAC)

EAC is the gold standard for ripping CDs when you get read errors. It's free from exactaudiocopy.de. Here's how to use it when WMP gives up.

1. Install and open EAC.
2. Insert your CD. EAC should detect it automatically.
3. Go to Database > Get CD Information From > freedb to pull track names automatically.
4. Click the Action menu and select Copy Selected Tracks > Compressed.
5. Choose output format (MP3 or FLAC). EAC will rip each track, and if it hits a read error, it'll retry several times with different read offsets. This often recovers data that WMP can't.

EAC's retry mechanism is the real hero here. It'll take longer—maybe 20–30 minutes for a full CD—but it's your best shot at getting usable files from a damaged disc.

Advanced fix: Update the firmware on your optical drive

This is for users who are comfortable flashing firmware. Only do this if the above steps failed and you're still getting the error on multiple discs.

1. Open Device Manager again and note the exact model of your optical drive (the string under DVD/CD-ROM drives).
2. Search online for "[drive model] firmware update." For example, "HL-DT-ST DVDRAM GH24N firmware update."
3. Download the firmware update from the manufacturer's site—not from a third-party link. These are usually .exe files that you run as administrator.
4. Close all programs. Run the firmware flasher. The drive tray might open and close during the process—that's normal. Don't interrupt it or let the computer go to sleep.
5. After it finishes, restart your PC. Test the CD again.

Be careful: a failed firmware update can brick your drive. I've only done this a handful of times, and it worked twice. The other times I ended up buying a new drive. Your call.

Still broken? Replace the drive

Optical drives are cheap. If you've cleaned the disc, updated drivers, tried VLC, and the error persists with multiple CDs, the drive's laser is likely dying. An external USB DVD drive costs $20–$30. Internal SATA drives are about $15. That's less than the time you've already spent troubleshooting.

I've been doing this for 15 years. Drives fail—sometimes they just stop reading certain discs, sometimes they get noisy, sometimes they give you that exact 0XC00D0FAC code on every disc you try. When that happens, swap it out. It's not worth the frustration.