Why doesn't my laptop volume work?

What is your Operating System? Windows, Mac, Linux?

Are you speakers built into your laptop or are they external? If built in it could be a faulty cable connection… Or you may just need to reinstall the audio driver.

Do you always use the built-in speakers or do you sometimes us a headset or some other thing that plugs in ?

When is the sound off? Watching Youtube, iTunes, watching a DVD, etc?

There are various subsections of the volume controls under Windows XP, and I had similar issues when one of them decided to mute itself when the others were at normal volume. Sometimes I could hear system sounds and games but not video soundtracks, or some other weird combination. Windows 7 has a Volume Mixer that fulfills a similar function; right-click the speaker icon in teh lower-right corner and select it from the pop-up menu.

I have also had “no sound at all” issues when I had something go tits-up and it took me a little trial-and-error to find the file that went wonky and then find one that worked on my system. (It was an AC97 codec, but that likely means nothing to you.)

I can think of a few other things that are specific to certain types of hardware and software, but there are way too many to list, and most of them are likely irrelevant to your situation, so I will stick with the basics.

I have a Dell laptop and the volume does not respond of and on. It is very frustrating.

Have you considered calling tech support for your laptop? I know it can be painful to wait on the phone while elevator music plays in the background, but sometimes they know what they’re talking about and they’re pretty effective at walking you through the basic steps. They would know more than we would at any rate because we don’t have many details about your setup from your description. It might help if you could tell us what model of laptop you have and what version of Windows (XP, Vista, 7, etc). It seems like the problem is not related to a driver issue because the sound stopped in the middle of normal operations.

Ok, great! Have you tried calling Toshiba tech support? Is your laptop still under warranty?

My Toshiba T135 had a fairly recent BIOS update that (among other things) fixed a couple of audio issues I’d been having that did not respond to Windows settings. I don’t know about yours, but mine came with the Toshiba Service Center pre-installed, and I make it a habit to check there every once in a while to see if there are any such updates.

If I had a model number as well (not just the model line, like Satellite, but the actual specific model) then I could probably direct you to the exact drivers you need, or you could find them yourself at the Toshiba Drivers and support page. You should be able to find that model number on the sticker on the bottom or by right-clicking “My Computer” and selecting “Properties”.

@camertron I doubt it’s still under warranty. Most warranties (including the standard Toshiba warranty) are only a year, and I don’t know of many computers (aside from “old stock” that is put on discount as it is (or is about to be) obsolete) sold in the last year that came with Vista because Windows 7 is over a year old, and many people who bought those “old stock” PCs were entitled to a free upgrade to Win7. It’s worth asking since maybe the OP bought an extended warranty or bought a laptop that had been sitting in someone’s warehouse for a long time, but I am fairly sure I already know the answer to that one.