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Question

Laptop Display Not Working When Windows Is Running

by Sep 9, 2019 6:22PM PDT

Hi, so recently I have had some problems with my laptop display not working. I have a Lenovo Yoga 900 and when I went to turn it on last, the screen randomly was black when I started it up. So, knowing a few things about computer problem solving, I messed around in the bios and messed up a few things but was able to fix them, but still had the black screen. And the unusual thing is that the screen works in the bios menu and will display the lenovo logo when starting up as well as the loading symbol but as soon as I would normally come to the login page, the screen goes blank. So, I connected an external monitor which lit up fine and worked great. Also another unusual thing is when I go into settings with the external monitor plugged in, and when I switch the display mode from second screen only to first screen only or duplicate these displays, the screen stays black and the settings immediately switch back to second display only. Also, in the display settings, it says that the first display isn't active. But anyways, I also opened the laptop up, and unplugged the battery, hard drive, and screen and replugged them all back in and the screen still stayed black. So I went further and (on the external display) and made sure that in device manager and configuration settings, that everything was enabled that should be. And after that had no result, I reset windows hoping it would fix the problem, which it did not do. So, currently I am at a loss on what to do as I have done everything I could find as a possible fix and would greatly appreciate any help, suggestions, or criticism on things to do as I would love to get my laptop screen working again.

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9 Posts
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Answer
Not unusual at all.
by Forum moderator Sep 9, 2019 6:26PM PDT

I've done that by mistake on a laptop where I set it to use the external only.

Try a few things.

1. Boot into SAFE MODE. What happens?
2. Windows reset may not override that display setting. For your model which Function key sets your display? I can't tell you this as the make and model is missing.
3. It is possible that the laptop has failed. As a test I boot up one of my Linux USB sticks. Try that. Boot any current OS that is on some USB stick. You don't have to know that other OS. It's a test to see if it's some hardware issue.

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Tried Safe Mode
by jdansonz12 Sep 9, 2019 7:10PM PDT

So, I tried entering safe mode and while I was in it the screen worked completely fine. While in safe mode, I ran the troubleshooter on a few things but didn't have any luck with that. When I restarted out of safe mode though, I still ran into the same problem, and my screen was still black. The make and model of my laptop is a Lenovo Yoga 900-13ISK2. The button to switch between display modes is paired with the F10 button and the button to turn off the screen is paired with the F9 button (which doesnt do anything if pressed).

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Backup your OS drive then...
by r. proffitt Forum moderator Sep 9, 2019 9:34PM PDT

1. Go get DDU. What, how to use is on the web but I've never read the manual.
2. Run DDU to blow out all video drivers.
3. Install the video drivers from the maker.

Usually safe. I've done this on some hundred PCs over the years.

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It Sortof Worked
by jdansonz12 Sep 10, 2019 6:13AM PDT

I did what you suggested and got DDU and ran it and wiped all of the video driver and now it all works. However, once I use my computer for around 5ish minutes, the screen stops working again... But if I go back into safe mode and run DDU again, it will work again but only for 5 minutes or so...

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That's a good clue.
by r. proffitt Forum moderator Sep 10, 2019 8:36AM PDT

It appears that either Windows is automatically installing a driver of Microsoft's choice or there is a hardware issue. Let's hope it's the driver issue. Here's my method to deal with that.

1. Disable Windows Driver Update. Not to be confused with Windows Update and noted many places on the web.
2. Run DDU again.
3. Test at this step.
4. If testing is OK, install the video driver from the machine's maker. DO NOT GO SEARCHING for the latest, use what the maker issued on their site for this model.

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It's finally fixed!
by jdansonz12 Sep 10, 2019 9:57AM PDT

Okay, so I did what you suggested and a little bit more. I disabled windows driver update on the computer and then went and Uninstaller the graphics drivers again, but the same problem happened. So, I went online and found out that in the C:\Windows\System32\Driverstore folder, all of the driver's that come with windows are stored in there. So, I took permission of the folders that had display drivers in them and deleted them all and then went back into device manager and Uninstaller the graphics driver. So, now when I turn my laptop on, it is using the Microsoft Basic Display Driver and no longer has any problems. Grin I suppose that there are a lot better drivers but it works fine as it is so I am happy with it. Thank you for all your help, I'm really thankful to finally have my computer back up and running!

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I have one more step when DDU isn't enough.
by r. proffitt Forum moderator Sep 10, 2019 10:51AM PDT

It's not one I use since in all cases so far since DDU was enough.

If you read other DDU discussions they say to run it in SAFE MODE too.

Anyhow, progress of a sort and you know what to do if you decide to install the maker's version of the graphics driver and it goes wonky again.

Kudos to you for digging in. Hope this discussion helped you along.

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Which Drivers Did You Delete?
by thepure12 Jan 10, 2020 8:16AM PST

Hi,
I am having the exact same problem as you. Running DDU get my screen to work for about 5 minutes. I am in the Driverstore folder, but I am unsure what I am supposed to be deleting. What exactly did you delete?

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You may need to perform that extra step as noted.
by r. proffitt Forum moderator Jan 10, 2020 8:44AM PST

Look up with the steps I wrote about "1. Disable Windows Driver Update. Not to be confused with Windows Update and noted many places on the web." and more.

There are quite a few machines not I've had to do this routine.

As to your question I NEVER had to tinker with Driverstore. I used my method, DDU and was done.

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