DVDROM/Burner Combo Unit unresponsive in Acer Aspire Desktop (Model: AX3810)

Hi Everyone,

          I am needing to help a friend of mine with a DVDROM/Burner unit problem with an Acer Aspire Desktop (Model: AX3810) running Windows Vista.  Basically, here is what is going on with it which is causing concerns.  First, the DVDROM unit is unable to boot from a bootable CD/DVD despite of the first boot device being selected CDROM within the BIOS of the desktop.  Secondly, Windows Media Player is unable to playback music despite of an audio cd being in the DVDROM drive.  Interestingly, the list of the song titles and artist can be seen though for the audio cd within Windows Media Player.  And, finally, it is not possible to install software from a CD/DVD with this combo unit as well.  All of these signs of unresponsiveness does suggest to me there is a defect of some sort with the combo unit.  However, that is mere conjecture on my part.  The entry for the combo unit appears fine within Device Manager of Windows Vista and does not indicate any kind of driver or software conflict.

               Any followup thoughts and suggestions to resolving this issue will be deeply appreciated.  I will look forward to reviewing any input shared to this post.  

               Thank you

                George