Laptop Black screen on startup

A

AgrippA

Member
Hey all, I would really appreciate some help with an issues that has developed over the past few days.

My PCS Laptop has been not starting up correctly, I power on and get the PCSpecialist logo, then the screen goes fully black and doesn't come back on. The Laptop is still running and responding to inputs like caps lock or num lock (the appropriate lights on the laptop chassis lighting up) and the HDD light also shows activity. However the screen never seems to come to life. Eventually I have to boot up safe mode, restart the PC and then its a bit of dice luck as to if the screen loads up properly or not.

On the occasions I am able to get a screen image a few oddities have occurred: My graphics card (an nVidia 1070) sometimes has been stopped from working on the device manager and will only begin to work with a driver reinstall. Looking through the event log I am also seeing a number of events I think related to my graphics card such as an event 14 from a source "nvlddmkm", I am also seeing a number of "Dwminit" errors in the event log which are new and also point to the GPU as the source of the problem in some way.

Other things I have tried to clear the errors without success:


  • Remove battery, press power button for a short time, then replace battery and boot normally.
  • Complete clean of graphics drivers and reinstall of drivers, trying both older version that i know to be stable and then separate attempt with the newer versions.
  • General clear out of dust (but I'm normally on top of this so not much had accumulated).


As I said, all of which have had no success.

It looks like there is some issue with my GPU, but I'm hesitant to jump straight to "its broken" because when I am able to get my PC booted properly, the machine works fine normally (I'm posting from the machine now) and under high loads (playing Total War: Warhammer 2).

If anyone has any additional suggestions I am open to trying just about anything, I'm a patient man and willing to learn something new.
 
Oussebon

Oussebon

Multiverse Poster
Anything change in the last few days when this started happening? A Windows update perhaps? Do you use any kind of 'driver updater' software?

I would be inclined to see if it will boot to a live Linux USB
Making the USB: https://tutorials.ubuntu.com/tutorial/tutorial-create-a-usb-stick-on-windows#0
Running ubuntu (a version of linux) without installing it: https://tutorials.ubuntu.com/tutorial/try-ubuntu-before-you-install#0

Just to be 100% clear, don't click "install ubuntu" as that might well wipe out your data, click "try ubuntu" :)

If it works fine, that might suggest a problem with your Windows installation, and a clean install would be my next suggestion. Letting Windows install all relevant drivers and not using any driver update software.

If it gives exactly the same issues with Linux I'd start being more concerned about hardware.

Is the laptop under warranty for parts still?
 
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A

AgrippA

Member
I'll look into Linux and a windows reinstall, but I'll wait a bit before doing that to see if any other suggestions come out. Reinstalling an OS still gives me shivers, I know its much better now but I still have bad memories from some time back when it was neither easy nor quick.

Warranty issue - 3 year silver for a December 2016 order so parts wouldn't be covered by the PCS warranty, but would be covered by EU directive 1999/44/EC giving it 2 years assuming no misuse on my part (which there isn't, Jesus I'd be sunk if my laptop stopped working completely so I look after it). I don't want to go down that route at all because this doesn't feel to my inexperienced self like a faulty hardware issue, but I'm far from an expert which is why I was hoping to get some advice from some more experienced and knowledgeable people.

Id rather fix and learn than just scream fault and blame.
 
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SpyderTracks

SpyderTracks

We love you Ukraine
Something worth a try, when it booted but not displaying anything, if you press ctl alt del, does it load the admin menu? If so it could be that explorer hasn’t loaded correctly.

Also, when loaded but screen blank, shine a torch directly on the screen, can you see a picture? If so it could be the backlight is faulty.
 
Oussebon

Oussebon

Multiverse Poster
My understanding is that this '2 year EU warranty' only applies if you can prove an inherent fault with the system, if the issue you are reporting happened after 6 months. People here explain it better than I can: https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=5836500

Also: https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/c...purchase/claim-using-a-warranty-or-guarantee/

I'm not saying you shouldn't expect any support from PCS, only that if there is a hardware fault you shouldn't necessarily expect PCS to cover the full cost of repairing/replacing if it turns out the laptop wasn't faulty from the start. :) If troubleshooting on the forum doesn't help then definitely contact PCS to discuss options and they generally seem to be as helpful as they can be, going by what I've seen on the forums.

I'd suggest you start downloading Linux live, as this does not involve (re)installing an OS. And it's a handy thing to have lying around in general too :)
 
A

AgrippA

Member
SpyderTracks said:
Something worth a try, when it booted but not displaying anything, if you press ctl alt del, does it load the admin menu? If so it could be that explorer hasn’t loaded correctly.

Also, when loaded but screen blank, shine a torch directly on the screen, can you see a picture? If so it could be the backlight is faulty.
Click to expand...


Tried the CtrlAltDel Menu - no joy just continued black screen.

Tried tried the torch on screen thing (interesting as thats a new thing for me!) but that didnt show any picture or image on screen.



Oussebon said:
My understanding is that this '2 year EU warranty' only applies if you can prove an inherent fault with the system, if the issue you are reporting happened after 6 months. People here explain it better than I can: https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=5836500

Also: https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/c...purchase/claim-using-a-warranty-or-guarantee/

I'm not saying you shouldn't expect any support from PCS, only that if there is a hardware fault you shouldn't necessarily expect PCS to cover the full cost of repairing/replacing if it turns out the laptop wasn't faulty from the start. :) If troubleshooting on the forum doesn't help then definitely contact PCS to discuss options and they generally seem to be as helpful as they can be, going by what I've seen on the forums.

I'd suggest you start downloading Linux live, as this does not involve (re)installing an OS. And it's a handy thing to have lying around in general too :)
Click to expand...

Regarding warranty - all things to consider but I'm not there yet, I'll stick to troubleshooting for now. Nice to see a Citizens Advice Bureau link making an appearance, I volunteer at a local CAB so nice to see that website linked by other people.
 
Oussebon

Oussebon

Multiverse Poster
The CAB gets govt money to provide consumer advice via its consumer service/helpline (which I'm sure you know!) so I consider them the first port of call for consumer information and so on. :) In my work we regularly refer clients to CAB, and indeed take referrals from them, though principally not consumer related. Anyway, CAB is a Good Thing[SUP]TM[/SUP].
 
ubuysa

ubuysa

The BSOD Doctor
What happens if you boot the Windows installation media? That's a completely different OS and different boot device, so if that doesn't boot it's very likely some sort of hardware problem.
 
A

AgrippA

Member
Ok I have tried booting into Linux and Windows install media, both seem to boot ok, also by accident I have found that any time I boot into the advanced boot options first before loading up my current install of windows leads to a clean boot. The bad boots are still throwing up the same set of errors in event log, the most common or consistent being the fault in "nvlddmkm" and "Dwminit" - both of which suggest in details that there is a problem getting the GPU started up. I'm also getting error 1000 for dwm.exe but i assume that is just paired up with the Dwminit reports saying that the application isnt working. Oddly I have also noticed an error with ID 4115, with the source as "Display" which reads "Display driver failed to start; using Microsoft Basic Display Driver instead. Check Windows Update for a newer display driver.". I have done a windows update but my machine is kept up to date, so the only update was this month's cumulative update (KB4462933) and there doesn't seem to be anything relevant to my query in the update change log.

Given that the issue seems to be happening on starting up I've switched off fast start up in case that is causing a problem but I cant test it right away. The problem only seems to occur when the Laptop has been either in sleep mode or turned off for a longer period of time (overnight). If I do a restart after the Laptop has been working fine, its comes up without incident. Similarly, if I shutdown and walk away but start up again after about half an hour there is no problem on boot - at least it hasn't happened YET in those two scenarios.

Anyone have any suggestions?


EDIT: Fast Startup change hasn't had any effect. Worth a shot :)
 
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ubuysa

ubuysa

The BSOD Doctor
AgrippA said:
Tried an in Windows OS reset first, then after that didn't work I did a complete wipe of the OS hard drive followed by a full reinstall.
Click to expand...

AgrippA said:
Direct from Nvidia website (not using windows update).
Click to expand...

If you were able to do a reinstall (using the iGPU) then it's either a problem with the Nvidia GPU or a driver issue. Generally with laptops Windows Update (in Windows 10) makes a very good job of finding the right drivers - including Nvidia drivers. I'd be tempted to do another clean reinstall and this time run Windows Update right after installation and let it find and install all the drivers it can. If it still doesn't work on the Nvidia GPU I'd suggest you call PCS.
 
C

cojo

New member
I had something similar with my desktop last year. When it got to the blue welcome screen it would go blank. If I pressed Ctrl,Alt and Delete then the Admin screen appeared. When I selected restart it would boot up as normal. Also when the screen went blank, if I went and made a cup of coffee when I got back it had completed the boot up. I seemed to cure it by putting in the windows disc and doing a system repair.
Earlier this week,Monday I think, when it got to the welcome screen it started flashing on and off with the small wheel going round in the centre. The computer was unresponsive as nothing happened when any key was pressed. I had to turn it off using the button on the front of the case. I started it in safe mode, did a system restore and everything seemed ok. After a short while I was notified "True Key" had installed an update and needed me to restart the computer. I then uninstalled "True Key" using ccleaner and then cleaned the hard drive. I Have not had any problems since.
I hope your problem is as easy as this to fix.
 
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