Operating system error / Virus - need help ?

Hi everybody
I have a PC with windows 7 ultimate X64 operating system and Kasparskyt Internet security 2010 registered and licenced.

For the last month I am experiencing an annoying problem. Whenever I try to insert a disc to my DVD drive, the disc rolls for a short second and than stops and is not being read. At the same time immediately all my hard drives (one internal and two external) start grinding ie running non stop. I can see and hear that they are spinning full speed but no process appears to be running and the memory and CPU seem low. Once this starts there is no way of stopping it except hard restart. Trying to shut down the windows properly does not help either as the operating system gets stuck on the message of wait for operating system to shut down.
I tired replacing DVD hardware as I have a spare one and it did not help. The phenomenon happens in safe mode as well. It happens with all types of discs as well. Strange enough if I start the computer with the DVD inside the drive, it is detected and read with not a problem. if I take it out and insert it in again, the problem re-appears

I did have a strange Kasparsky incident about a month back so I am suspecting it might be so,e sort of virus but when I scan for viruses currently the software detects nothing.

anibody experienced anything like this in the past ?
any suggestions as to how to solve this problem ? I ran out of ideas and formating the operating system is a last resort I wish not to be forced to use.

Thanks

B

Hi there
Thanks for the time and advice.
I have ran two anti-viruses - Kasparsky and NOD and found no virus traces. I installed your recommended malware software and ran it as well and no findings. furthermore I erased the DVD drivers and let the automatically update back and ran microsofts DVD diagnostic tool. Still no results. I did not ran the hard drives analyes but I doubt the hard drives are the problem.
The only piece of hardware I did not try and replace up untill now is the SATA cable to the DVD. I know sometime faulty SATA cable can send the computer some very strange and unpredicted places. That I will do today. If that does not help I have no idea where to go next. I think the next step would be to re-install the operating system.
ANy ideas or recommendations before I do drastic measures ?
Thanks

I changed between 2 DVD drives
If its a hardware problems and it will nto be the SATA cable its the motherboard ...
sure hope its not going there