Windows 7 Now My monitor doesn't turn on

[ekaiser1901]

I upgraded to Windows 7 a few days ago and everything seemed to be fine. Earlier today i left my PC on and when i came back an hour later the computer i accessed the computer, the monitor came on fine, but all my icons were missing. i tried to reboot and from that point on the computer appears to boot (all lights are working and the drives are going), but the monitor is never receives any input. I know the monitor works but is says there is no input. i am using a Sony SDM-P234

Any ideas?

 

[JessicaD]

I upgraded to Windows 7 a few days ago and everything seemed to be fine. Earlier today i left my PC on and when i came back an hour later the computer i accessed the computer, the monitor came on fine, but all my icons were missing. i tried to reboot and from that point on the computer appears to boot (all lights are working and the drives are going), but the monitor is never receives any input. I know the monitor works but is says there is no input. i am using a Sony SDM-P234

Any ideas?

Ekaiser1901,

Have you checked all your cable connections? Is there another computer you could plug the monitor into to ensure it is capable of receiving input? Which video card are you using? Did you install the latest drivers?

Jessica
Microsoft Windows Client Team

 

[ekaiser1901]

Yes I plugged the monitor into my Laptop which is running XP and the monitor started up right away. On the PC running Windows 7 i am running an Nvidia GTX 285 with the latest drivers installed. The computer was running fine for a few days until today when this reboot, and now nothing.

 

[JessicaD]

Yes I plugged the monitor into my Laptop which is running XP and the monitor started up right away. On the PC running Windows 7 i am running an Nvidia GTX 285 with the latest drivers installed. The computer was running fine for a few days until today when this reboot, and now nothing.

Do you see anything on the monitor? Even a boot up screen or option to log in to BIOS? Did you install any drivers or applications recently (right before this issue presented itself?)

Jessica
Microsoft Windows Client Team

 

[ekaiser1901]

Do you see anything on the monitor? Even a boot up screen or option to log in to BIOS? Did you install any drivers or applications recently (right before this issue presented itself?)

Jessica
Microsoft Windows Client Team

Nothing comes up at all. No boot up screen... no option to get to the BIOS. It seems like the computer is not even calling to the monitor at all.. it is just a black screen. no installs or applications before this issue presented itself. This is why i am so confused. when i power down just the monitor... and power it back up ... it says no input signal.

 

[JessicaD]

Nothing comes up at all. No boot up screen... no option to get to the BIOS. It seems like the computer is not even calling to the monitor at all.. it is just a black screen. no installs or applications before this issue presented itself. This is why i am so confused. when i power down just the monitor... and power it back up ... it says no input signal.

Is it a DVI or VGA connection? Is there an option on the monitor to select which input to run from?

Jessica
Microsoft Windows Client Team

 

[ekaiser1901]

Is it a DVI or VGA connection? Is there an option on the monitor to select which input to run from?

Jessica
Microsoft Windows Client Team

it is a DVI connection. no there there is no option to select which input to run from... or if there is i don't know where to find it.

 

[JessicaD]

it is a DVI connection. no there there is no option to select which input to run from... or if there is i don't know where to find it.

Is your laptop's external monitor connection also DVI or did you use a DVI to VGA adapter? Do this: turn off both the monitor and the computer. Unplug the monitor and hold the power button down for 30 seconds. Next, unplug your compute and take out your graphics card and then re-seat it into the computer. BEFORE you plug the computer back on, press and hold the power button for 30 seconds as well.

Now plug both components back into power and turn them both on, any changes?

Jessica
Microsoft Windows Client Team

 

[ekaiser1901]

Is your laptop's external monitor connection also DVI or did you use a DVI to VGA adapter? Do this: turn off both the monitor and the computer. Unplug the monitor and hold the power button down for 30 seconds. Next, unplug your compute and take out your graphics card and then re-seat it into the computer. BEFORE you plug the computer back on, press and hold the power button for 30 seconds as well.

Now plug both components back into power and turn them both on, any changes?

Jessica
Microsoft Windows Client Team

No Change after following the steps you described for the laptop i needed to us a dvi to vga adapter.

 

[JessicaD]

No Change after following the steps you described for the laptop i needed to us a dvi to vga adapter.

Do you have another video card to use to see if this issue is a product of a failed video card?

Jessica
Microsoft Windows Client Team

 

[ekaiser1901]

Do you have another video card to use to see if this issue is a product of a failed video card?

Jessica
Microsoft Windows Client Team

no. but i guess i'll need to go get one. Any suggestions on which one to get?

 

[JessicaD]

no. but i guess i'll need to go get one. Any suggestions on which one to get?

Ekaiser,

Video cards are going to be contingent upon your needs I.E. If you're a gamer you're probably going to want one that is 1GB or more, (I would go with 2GB personally). Pretty much any standard graphics card should suffice.

Just check to ensure it is compatible with Windows 7, obviously. Also -- before you run out and purchase a new card -- is there another computer you can check your current graphics card in?

Jessica
Microsoft Windows Client Team

 

[ekaiser1901]

Ekaiser,

Video cards are going to be contingent upon your needs I.E. If you're a gamer you're probably going to want one that is 1GB or more, (I would go with 2GB personally). Pretty much any standard graphics card should suffice.

Just check to ensure it is compatible with Windows 7, obviously. Also -- before you run out and purchase a new card -- is there another computer you can check your current graphics card in?

Jessica
Microsoft Windows Client Team

I found another graphics card nvidia gtx 280 and installed where the gtx 285 used to be... same result. I suspect that if i install the GTX 285 in another PC it will work just fine. what else could be wrong here?

 

[JessicaD]

I found another graphics card nvidia gtx 280 and installed where the gtx 285 used to be... same result. I suspect that if i install the GTX 285 in another PC it will work just fine. what else could be wrong here?

Ekaiser1901,

The problem must lie between the hardware present at this point and we have confirmed the monitor does work. Could you confirm that the video card will indeed work in another machine? Just to be safe?

Jessica
Microsoft Windows Client Team

 

[tblount]

I think it went into hibernate and gets stuck trying to restore the state it shut down in. I disabled hibernate and I forgot a work around to ignore the hibernate restore state.

 

[ekaiser1901]

Hi Jessica, Turns out all the hardware was all working fine... The system was getting stuck in hibernation mode. I ended up taking to a near by computer repair place where everything was resolved within the hour. They apparently knew a way to get into the BIOS and once there everything worked just fine.

 

[tblount]

Hi Jessica, Turns out all the hardware was all working fine... The system was getting stuck in hibernation mode. .

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