Starting your computer and seeing the disastrous black screen means that you definitely need to see these troubleshooting black screen computer tips. I have seen many black screens on computers as I used to repair them. I am grateful that I do not have to do this any more, as I used to have literally piles of computers complaining of the same problem, a black screen problem. Now that I am not fixing computers, I have time to write tutorials and troubleshooting black screen tips for other people to learn by. It is impossible for me to mention every possible cause or solution of a black screen computer, however even if this article helps 50% of the people that read it, I will be happy.
Troubleshooting Black Screen, this
could mean a few things:
- You were just about to load Windows and saw the logo screen and then you got a black screen in Windows.
- You saw the usual loading screens but just didn’t quite make it into Windows. You did not see a Windows logo as it appears that you can only see a black screen in Windows.
- You logged into Windows and then saw a black screen.
- You were using the computer and then a black screen in Windows appeared.
- You have logged into Windows to see a black screen with a blinking cursor.
If you see a computer black
screen and do not see anything else at all, including the usual loading
screens, then your black screen has appeared before Windows has even had a
chance to load. As you can see, there are many ways to have a computer black
screen and therefore it is very hard to pinpoint your particular problem.
Sometimes having this problem
can be easily solved, but at
other times it is a nightmare and hopefully these troubleshooting black screen
tips will help you.
Start in Safe Mode when Troubleshooting
Black Screen Errors
- If you can start your computer in safe mode you should be able to choose to do a system restore, providing you have not disabled the system restore feature. Below I have a screen shot of the incensed boot options menu that you see when you press the F8 key when starting the computer. In the screen shot below I have chosen safe mode. When I pressed enter the computer will boot to safe mode.
Last known good
configuration for troubleshooting black screen problems
- Restart your computer and press F8 to get to the advanced options menu. Choose to start with the last known good configuration. If you are lucky enough to see a screen full of options, after an error with a black screen in Windows, never choose to start the computer normally. You should always choose a safer option right now. The two best options to try first our last known good configuration and safe mode. In the screen shot below I have selected “last known good configuration” to see if Windows start with the same files it did before the error happened.
8 More Troubleshooting Black Screen Computer Tips
The following troubleshooting
tips for a black screen in Windows are not in any particular order. I probably
would recommend that if you can start your computer, always do it in safe mode
after a serious error. Also when you have a black screen in Windows, do not
rush and try to fix the problem straight away, as you may cause more problems
than you realize.
Check
all your cables
1. Check to see that or you’re
plugs are securely plugged in and there is nothing connected that should not be
there. This includes having a small USB flash drive plugged in while you are
trying to start the computer. did a cable come loose while you were using your
computer? What about the power supply to the computer? These are pretty common
causes but can still cause a panic until you find the culprit.
Check
for faulty devices
2. Check for bent pins or faulty
devices. Unplug printers and external hard drives. Also check the ends of connections
to see if there are any bent pins. For example a bent pin on the end of the
keyboard cable can cause a black screen. This might not apply to a black screen
in Windows unless the pin board device has become faulty while you are using
Windows. This troubleshooting black screen computer tip is a difficult one to
diagnose manually. It is like
searching for a needle in a hay
stack!
Check
hardware
3. Check your internal hardware.
Check to see if your hard drive and CD drives are plugged in correctly and
securely. If you have recently transported your computer from one place to
another this could dislodge the CPU all loose certain cables. Also check your
computer memory as this is one of the number one reasons for a black screen. If
you see a black screen in Windows while you have been using the computer, you
may have had a hardware problem. This can be caused by a video card, as
mentioned below, or even something as simple as dust on your CPU, causing your
computer to overheat. You Can still get a black screen in Windows because your
CPU may have just been connecting to the motherboard. Basically hanging on by a
thread.
Enabled
low resolution video or enable VGA mode
4. If you are playing a game on
your computer and it shut down and when you restart you only have a black
screen, you need to restart the computer. When restarting press F8 to go to the
advanced options menu, and choose ―enable low- resolution video or ―enable VGA
mode. This problem often happens when you are playing a game that your video or
graphics card cannot handle. Your computer might overheat from the pressure or
it could possibly damage the video card.If you are a gamer you would be
familiar with troubleshooting black screen problems as the games just keep
getting bigger and bigger!
Connecting
a TV or another monitor
boot up any computer, fix and install Windows
easy.
5. If you have
recently changed monitors or connected your computer to a TV try restarting and
pressing F8 to get the advanced options menu, then choose ―enable
low-resolution video‖ or ―enable VGA mode‖. You can also try pressing the Fn
key on your keyboard and F5 or F6 at the same time. Back in the old days….Hmm I
am not that old. We did not even think about trying to connect your computer to
your TV and did not need troubleshooting black screen tips.
On-board
video vs install video card
6. If you are just set up your
computer when plugged all the cables in, check to see if the monitor is plugged
into the on- board video plug when you actually have a PCI or AGP video card
installed. Trust me I have done this myself. Simply move the plug to the
correct position.
Use a
diagnostic POST card
7. You can also try
troubleshooting black screen problems and fix boot errors with a diagnostic POST
card. This is a PCI card that you can slot into your computer’s motherboard to
help diagnose boot errors and sometimes troubleshooting black screen problems.
Use
the Windows operating system disc
8. If you have an original
Windows operating system disc that came with your computer, then definitely
insert it into the CD or DVD drive, and use this discs resources to repair your
computer. Even if you are using Windows XP, it also has a recovery console that
will help you prepare a black screen. However with Windows Vista and Windows 7
it is even easier to repair a black screen in Windows if you have the original
operating system CD. These versions of Windows now have an option to restore
your system in the recovery console options.
If you do not have an operating
system cd you can buy a repair cd to replace your disc and still boot up your
computer. Please note that the you can boot up Any computer, fix & install
Windows easy with a boot disc especially made for this error. Of course you can
try everything listed above first as you might get lucky! Hope you do
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