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updated2026-10-04 23:30

 
Disassembling IBM ThinkPad A30 CD Drive
DeviceIBM ThinkPad A30
DifficultyVery easy
Time5 minutes
Steps3
This guide is by Jessica on iFixit and is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0. ByteRot mirrors it for non-commercial preservation: formatting changed and photos resized for old browsers; full-size photos and the text are on the FTP in /DOCS/REPAIR. Original guide >>

Take the battery out before removing the CD drive.


Step 1
[step 1 photo] [step 1 photo]
• NOTE: Flip the ThinkPad over so that it is upside down.
• Slide the highlighted tab to the left.
• With your finger on the tab, remove the battery by lifting it upwards away from the laptop.

Step 2
[step 2 photo] [step 2 photo] [step 2 photo]
• Hold the laptop in the same orientation as the picture. Then, locate the switch immediately above and to the left of the drive.
• Slide the switch to the right. A black plastic tab will pop out.
• Pull the plastic tab to expose the CD drive.
• If there is a problem with your tab, whether it doesn't pop out or it doesn't expose the CD drive, please check the corresponding entry in the troubleshooting page.

Step 3
[step 3 photo]
• Carefully pull the CD drive out from the laptop.

Conclusion
To reassemble your device, follow these instructions in reverse order.

Credit
This guide is by Jessica on iFixit and is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0. ByteRot mirrors it for non-commercial preservation: formatting changed and photos resized for old browsers; full-size photos and the text are on the FTP in /DOCS/REPAIR. Original guide >>
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