What does buffer underrun mean?
The CD writing process can’t be interrupted in mid-session. To prevent this from happening, the makers of CD recorders put a write buffer in the drive, usually 1MB or 2MB. Data read from the hard drive, tape, or another CD is stored in the buffer, and pulled out as needed by the recorder. If the recorder requests data from the write buffer, but there’s none there, it’s called a buffer underrun. The disc is still spinning, but there’s no data to write, so the recording process aborts. Some advices for preventing buffer underruns are: • Use a faster computer • Record at a slow speed – It takes longer to empty the buffer • Don’t do anything else with the computer while recording. • Don’t record on a file server!
It means you have an attractive new coaster for your table. The CD recording process can’t be interrupted in mid-session. Once the laser starts writing, any interruption would create a physical gap on the disc that could confuse CD readers. The recorder must always have data to write, from the moment the recording starts until the session ends. To avoid a situation where a temporary slowdown in the computer causes the write process to fail, the makers of CD recorders put a write buffer in the drive, usually between 512K and 4MB in size. Data read from the hard drive, tape, or another CD is stored in the buffer, and pulled out as needed by the recorder. If the recorder requests data from the write buffer, but there’s none there, it’s called a buffer underrun. The disc is still spinning, but there’s no data to write, so the recording process aborts. You can still use the disc with multisession CD-ROM drives by closing the session and starting another, assuming there’s enough space left o
It means you have an attractive new coaster for your table. The CD writing process can’t be interrupted in mid-session. To prevent this from happening, the makers of CD recorders put a write buffer in the drive, usually 512K or 1MB. Data read from the hard drive, tape, or another CD is stored in the buffer, and pulled out as needed by the recorder. If the recorder requests data from the write buffer, but there’s none there, it’s called a buffer underrun. The disc is still spinning, but there’s no data to write, so the recording process aborts. You can still use the disc with multisession CD-ROM drives by closing the session and starting another, assuming there’s enough space left on the CD, and assuming your pre-mastering software didn’t choose to finalize the disc for you. Advice for preventing buffer underruns is scattered throughout this FAQ. A brief summary: • Use a fast, AV-friendly hard drive (i.e. one that doesn’t do slow thermal recalibrations). Most drives being sold today fal
Deirdré Straughan of Adaptec Corp. 74431.2004@compuserve.com posted the following article to Usenet explaining buffer underruns, and what can be done about them: • About Buffer Underruns • Possible Causes of Buffer Underruns • Hard Disk • Hardware • Memory Resident Programs • Networks • Files to be Recorded • Other • Checks/Preventions • Windows 95 Settings • Virtual Memory • Hard Drive Typical Role • Turning Off Auto Insert Notification About Buffer Underruns CD writing is a real-time process which must run constantly at the selected recording speed, without interruptions. The CD recorder’s buffer is constantly filled with a reserve of data waiting to be written, so that small slowdowns or interruptions in the flow of data from the computer do not interrupt writing A buffer underrun error means that for some reason the flow of data from hard disk to CD recorder was interrupted long enough for the CD recorder’s buffer to be emptied, and writing was halted. If this occurs during an actu
