Well, I did the clean install of Win 7 - (including having the Win7 disk format my C drive prior to installation - yes, I did have all my personal stuff backed up first! ) - and installed the necessary drivers from the Alienware Resource CD.
I have been carefully selective of which Windows updates to allow to be installed. There were several that were obviously intended for a computer in a business network environment, which I did not need, as well as at least one update that claimed to be a Nvidia driver update. I decided not to install that one, as all my on board drivers have the option to check for their own updates, and claim they are current.
Windows update now says I have all the current updates for my computer, and there is no 'screen blink' happening.
I can only speculate that one of the Windows updates which I did not allow this time, or the Nvidia driver offered with the Windows updates, (I had allowed it to install last time,) may have interacted badly with my system, (perhaps because it was an upgrade of Win 7 from Vista, or perhaps just because it wasn't for a personal use laptop,) which caused the screen blink issue I was experiencing before.
At any rate, the screen blink has been cured, and my laptop is behaving beautifully again.
Thank you for all your assistance in troubleshooting this issue with me!
When does the screen blink? What is the frequency of it? When you turn on the system how long does it take for the screen to start blinking? Does the blinking stop automatically or does it reoccur after a while or is it constant all the time? What applications have you seen the screen blink? Could you try an external monitor and check if the screen blinks on both the LCD and the external monitor? Is there any damage on the screen? Did you notice the screen blinking while the system was on Win Vista?
Update the BIOS from support.dell.com - http://dell.to/1kGWIcI - enter the service tag and select drivers and downloads and run the BIOS update.
Restart the system and press f12 key and choose diagnostics and check if the screen blinks while on the diags. Run the notebook panel test and check if the screen blinks at that point. Swivel the screen back and forth while on the diags and notebook panel test and check if the screen blinks as well.
Restart the system and press f2 key to enter BIOS. DO NOT make any changes on this. Observe and confirm if the screen blinks while on BIOS.
The screen blinks when the laptop is on, after log-in. It starts blinking within a few seconds of loading the desktop. It is constant, as long as the computer is running in normal mode.
The frequency appears directly related to the amount of activity from the mouse, such as when I click a link or play the local Microsoft games such as Solitaire, Mahjong Titans, Spider Solitaire, and Freecell; or when I have multiple applications running, such as a web browser, e-mail client, and chat client all at once. It will also blink more frequently when I have a simple reminder software running (RMP3)
It does blink when no programs are running other than the OS, just not as frequently as when I'm trying to click on something.
I am currently running BIOS A07 - which is the most recent. I upgraded to it when I did the fresh install.
The screen blinked before I made any changed to the BIOS and continues to do so after making changes. (Disabling both 'integrated' and 'hybrid' functions of the video card drivers.) The screen does not blink while in the BIOS.
I did not keep the computer in Vista long enough to use it to see if it would blink while there.
The screen itself is not physically damaged, nor does it appear to be damaged electronically.
The angle of the screen does not affect the blinking.
Screen did not blink while running the diagnostics in F12 - nor was it affected by rotating the screen on the hinge during that time.
Before doing the restore, I was running Win7 Ultimate Edition, fine. After the full restore, and upgrading the BIOS, it started blinking.
Is it possible that there is a compatibility issue with the BIOS version A07 and the nVidia display drivers?
Thank you for your assistance, I'm looking forward to getting this fixed. :)
You have answered all my questions. However, have you tested an external monitor? If not, please test the system with an external monitor and keep me updated. Based on your response, we might be able to isolate the source of the issue.
I attempted to connect my laptop to an external monitor and a flat-screen TV. My laptop was unable to detect either.
I did make sure that 'integrated graphics' was turned off. This did not change anything.
I also tried to get the NVIDIA control panel to do a "Rigorous Display Detection" - which only brought up a screen asking if I wanted to enable TV connections - which I said YES to. While a check did show up in the check box for "Force television detection on startup." - it still remained greyed out, as did the "Restart Now" button under it. I restarted anyway, and the laptop was still unable to detect the TV.
I tried several times with both the TV and the monitor, using an HDMI cable and a VGA cable, and still the laptop could not detect the TV or the monitor.
Is it possible that the newest BIOS is not compatible with the display drivers? (After all, before I did the system restore, I was using an older version of the BIOS and did not have this 'blink' issue with the display. It was only after the restore, and updating the BIOS to version A07 that this started happening.)
Well, I don't suppose the BIOS would conflict with the display driver.
Based on the description, I suspect the issue to be OS related. The best resolution at this point is to clean install the OS on the system. However, if you want to try another option, downgrade the BIOS and check - http://dell.to/1M04qhI
Also, try reinstalling the video drivers - download the drivers from the vendor site - http://www.geforce.com/ for your OS. Uninstall the existing video drivers - restart the system - DO NOT install the drivers yet. Windows native drivers should kick in - wait for a while and test the system and see if the screen blinks at any point. Then proceed to installing the new drivers downloaded. While installing - click on custom installation and then check the "Perform Clean Install" tick box.
Just a quick question regarding the drivers direct from the vendor site:
They do not have the driver specified for this laptop: "GeForce 9400M G"
They do have drivers listed as 940M series for notebooks. When I allow their site to 'auto detect' which driver is correct for my laptop, it returns this message:
"GeForce 9400M G
This product has been detected as your primary device
Your product manufacturer requires you to download a driver for your device from their website"
That being said, do I take the chance that a GeForce 940M driver (for Win7) will work? (Also, that using their driver will not invalidate any future tech support options here at the Dell site?)
Thank you for your quick response time, I really appreciate it! :)
I removed the NVIDIA GeForce 9400M G shown in the previous screen shot, and selected the option to delete the driver software from this device.
I then installed the driver from my Alienware M17X Resource DVD labelled "GTX 280M" and restarted my computer when prompted.
Here is the current screenshot of the device mangler manager with display drivers expanded:
I tested the screen blink by opening and attempting to play 'Solitaire' - the screen is still doing the blink thing, especially when I'm attempting to click on a card. (I find that any of the built in Microsoft card games will emphasize the blink instantly, much faster than web browsing or any other application, which is why I use Solitaire as the test subject.)
Note: The screen does blink when I'm not using the mouse or keyboard, it's just more emphatic when I do use them, especially the mouse.
Looking forward to your reply. Thank you for sticking with me on this.
The M17x has 2 graphics solutions - Integrated (only GeForce 9400M) and Discrete (separate video card).
Based on this, there might be 2 possibilities. Either the system was only shipped with integrated graphics, hence the reason you only see 9400M. Or the discrete graphics with GTX280 has failed and is not being detected on the system.
I can confirm this via the service tag of the system. Please send me a private message with the service tag and your contact details for verification. I could then advise you which driver you need to install on the system and how to progress from there on.
Carpe Draco noted that both the 'Integrated' and the 'Hybrid' functions were disabled in the BIOS.
DELL-Rishi responded:
Thank you for the info.
I see the GTX 280 graphics card as part of the original order.
When did you disable the options in BIOS? Could you try enabling the hybrid and check if it works? Since you are running on Win 7 now, it should ideally work.
If it has worked up until now, then we can isolate the video card has failed and hence is not being detected in device manager.
Keep us updated on the thread (so it might possibly help any other user having the same issue)
Thanks,
Rishi
Hi Rishi,
I turned off the Hybrid & Integrated function when I first noticed the blink issue shortly after reloading the OS from the Alienware recovery disk, as info found online, and noted in the BIOS itself that:
"This option enables/disables Hybrid Graphics feature. Hybrid Graphics is only supported in Windows Vista with Nvidia discrete Graphics cards."
I have turned them both back on again, and here is the screenshot from the Device Manager now:
The screen blink still occurs, although it seems to be less frequent. (Again tested by playing a few games of Solitaire.)
(Honestly, I'm starting to wonder if I should just do a Format C: and start over again. The main reason I haven't yet is that it's a PITA downloading & installing updates, rebooting, wash-rinse-repeat, once the OS is reinstalled. :emotion-15: )
Now that you have enabled them, could you please try reinstalling the video drivers - http://www.geforce.com/drivers/results/73780 - and then test the system and also check on an external monitor. This might possibly fix the issue.
If not, then I would advise you to clean install Win 7 on the system without having the need to install Win Vista and then upgrade to Win 7 - read this link - http://bit.ly/1f1D9vP
Looks like I'm going to have to go for the Win7 clean install.
I downloaded the video driver you gave me the link for, (the NVIDIA Graphics Driver Version 335.23) and when I attempted to install it, I got this message:
"X NVIDIA Installer cannot continue."
"This graphics driver could not find compatible graphics hardware."
I double checked my Device Manager, and the display adapters are exactly as they show in the most recent screen shot I posted. Do I need to uninstall them first, deleting the driver info from my system, before trying to install the driver I just downloaded? (I had thought that the driver would have detected the hardware even with the current drivers installed, which is why I didn't remove them first.)
I'll check in tomorrow to see if you have any more suggestions before I start the clean Win7 installation. It's too late in the evening to start now. (Nearly 9pm, Friday, Eastern Australia Time - about 4am Friday, USA Pacific Time.)
Ideally the driver should detect the video card. Since the hardware shows up find in device manager.
Uninstall the existing drivers from control panel -> programs and features and from device manager. Restart the system. While installing the new drivers - choose custom installation and select perform clean installation and continue.
If this does not work, I suppose you would be heading down the long road of backing up data and clean installing Win7.
Carpe Draco
10 Posts
1
September 24th, 2015 06:00
Hi Rishi,
Well, I did the clean install of Win 7 - (including having the Win7 disk format my C drive prior to installation - yes, I did have all my personal stuff backed up first! ) - and installed the necessary drivers from the Alienware Resource CD.
I have been carefully selective of which Windows updates to allow to be installed. There were several that were obviously intended for a computer in a business network environment, which I did not need, as well as at least one update that claimed to be a Nvidia driver update. I decided not to install that one, as all my on board drivers have the option to check for their own updates, and claim they are current.
Windows update now says I have all the current updates for my computer, and there is no 'screen blink' happening.
I can only speculate that one of the Windows updates which I did not allow this time, or the Nvidia driver offered with the Windows updates, (I had allowed it to install last time,) may have interacted badly with my system, (perhaps because it was an upgrade of Win 7 from Vista, or perhaps just because it wasn't for a personal use laptop,) which caused the screen blink issue I was experiencing before.
At any rate, the screen blink has been cured, and my laptop is behaving beautifully again.
Thank you for all your assistance in troubleshooting this issue with me!
Cheers
Carpe Draco
DELL-Rishi
4 Operator
•
2K Posts
0
September 3rd, 2015 06:00
Hi Carpe,
When does the screen blink? What is the frequency of it? When you turn on the system how long does it take for the screen to start blinking? Does the blinking stop automatically or does it reoccur after a while or is it constant all the time? What applications have you seen the screen blink? Could you try an external monitor and check if the screen blinks on both the LCD and the external monitor? Is there any damage on the screen? Did you notice the screen blinking while the system was on Win Vista?
Update the BIOS from support.dell.com - http://dell.to/1kGWIcI - enter the service tag and select drivers and downloads and run the BIOS update.
Restart the system and press f12 key and choose diagnostics and check if the screen blinks while on the diags. Run the notebook panel test and check if the screen blinks at that point. Swivel the screen back and forth while on the diags and notebook panel test and check if the screen blinks as well.
Restart the system and press f2 key to enter BIOS. DO NOT make any changes on this. Observe and confirm if the screen blinks while on BIOS.
Keep us updated.
Carpe Draco
10 Posts
0
September 5th, 2015 08:00
Hi Rishi,
The screen blinks when the laptop is on, after log-in. It starts blinking within a few seconds of loading the desktop. It is constant, as long as the computer is running in normal mode.
The frequency appears directly related to the amount of activity from the mouse, such as when I click a link or play the local Microsoft games such as Solitaire, Mahjong Titans, Spider Solitaire, and Freecell; or when I have multiple applications running, such as a web browser, e-mail client, and chat client all at once. It will also blink more frequently when I have a simple reminder software running (RMP3)
It does blink when no programs are running other than the OS, just not as frequently as when I'm trying to click on something.
I am currently running BIOS A07 - which is the most recent. I upgraded to it when I did the fresh install.
The screen blinked before I made any changed to the BIOS and continues to do so after making changes. (Disabling both 'integrated' and 'hybrid' functions of the video card drivers.) The screen does not blink while in the BIOS.
I did not keep the computer in Vista long enough to use it to see if it would blink while there.
The screen itself is not physically damaged, nor does it appear to be damaged electronically.
The angle of the screen does not affect the blinking.
Screen did not blink while running the diagnostics in F12 - nor was it affected by rotating the screen on the hinge during that time.
Before doing the restore, I was running Win7 Ultimate Edition, fine. After the full restore, and upgrading the BIOS, it started blinking.
Is it possible that there is a compatibility issue with the BIOS version A07 and the nVidia display drivers?
Thank you for your assistance, I'm looking forward to getting this fixed. :)
Cheers,
Carpe Draco
DELL-Rishi
4 Operator
•
2K Posts
0
September 7th, 2015 13:00
Hi Carpe,
Thank you for the update.
You have answered all my questions. However, have you tested an external monitor? If not, please test the system with an external monitor and keep me updated. Based on your response, we might be able to isolate the source of the issue.
Keep us updated.
Carpe Draco
10 Posts
0
September 9th, 2015 00:00
Hi Rishi,
I attempted to connect my laptop to an external monitor and a flat-screen TV. My laptop was unable to detect either.
I did make sure that 'integrated graphics' was turned off. This did not change anything.
I also tried to get the NVIDIA control panel to do a "Rigorous Display Detection" - which only brought up a screen asking if I wanted to enable TV connections - which I said YES to. While a check did show up in the check box for "Force television detection on startup." - it still remained greyed out, as did the "Restart Now" button under it. I restarted anyway, and the laptop was still unable to detect the TV.
I tried several times with both the TV and the monitor, using an HDMI cable and a VGA cable, and still the laptop could not detect the TV or the monitor.
Is it possible that the newest BIOS is not compatible with the display drivers? (After all, before I did the system restore, I was using an older version of the BIOS and did not have this 'blink' issue with the display. It was only after the restore, and updating the BIOS to version A07 that this started happening.)
Thank you for your help, I really appreciate it!
Cheers,
Carpe Draco
DELL-Rishi
4 Operator
•
2K Posts
0
September 10th, 2015 13:00
Hi Carpe,
Thank you for the update.
Well, I don't suppose the BIOS would conflict with the display driver.
Based on the description, I suspect the issue to be OS related. The best resolution at this point is to clean install the OS on the system. However, if you want to try another option, downgrade the BIOS and check - http://dell.to/1M04qhI
Also, try reinstalling the video drivers - download the drivers from the vendor site - http://www.geforce.com/ for your OS. Uninstall the existing video drivers - restart the system - DO NOT install the drivers yet. Windows native drivers should kick in - wait for a while and test the system and see if the screen blinks at any point. Then proceed to installing the new drivers downloaded. While installing - click on custom installation and then check the "Perform Clean Install" tick box.
Let us know if this works.
Carpe Draco
10 Posts
0
September 10th, 2015 17:00
Hi Rishi,
Just a quick question regarding the drivers direct from the vendor site:
They do not have the driver specified for this laptop: "GeForce 9400M G"
They do have drivers listed as 940M series for notebooks. When I allow their site to 'auto detect' which driver is correct for my laptop, it returns this message:
"GeForce 9400M G
This product has been detected as your primary device
Your product manufacturer requires you to download a driver for your device from their website"
That being said, do I take the chance that a GeForce 940M driver (for Win7) will work? (Also, that using their driver will not invalidate any future tech support options here at the Dell site?)
Thank you for your quick response time, I really appreciate it! :)
Cheers,
Carpe Draco
DELL-Rishi
4 Operator
•
2K Posts
0
September 13th, 2015 16:00
Hi Carpe,
Please send me a screenshot of the device manager with display adapters expanded.
The driver you need to install is ideally GTX 280M (as per your first post).
The driver can be installed from any source, be it Dell or the Vendor itself. That will not impact your support options from Dell.
Carpe Draco
10 Posts
0
September 14th, 2015 22:00
Hi Rishi,
Here is the screenshot you requested:
As per your suggestion, I will see what happens when I install GTX 280M, and let you know the results.
Thank you for all your help with this, I really appreciate it!
Cheers,
Carpe Draco
Carpe Draco
10 Posts
0
September 15th, 2015 00:00
Hi again, Rishi,
I removed the NVIDIA GeForce 9400M G shown in the previous screen shot, and selected the option to delete the driver software from this device.
I then installed the driver from my Alienware M17X Resource DVD labelled "GTX 280M" and restarted my computer when prompted.
Here is the current screenshot of the device mangler manager with display drivers expanded:
I tested the screen blink by opening and attempting to play 'Solitaire' - the screen is still doing the blink thing, especially when I'm attempting to click on a card. (I find that any of the built in Microsoft card games will emphasize the blink instantly, much faster than web browsing or any other application, which is why I use Solitaire as the test subject.)
Note: The screen does blink when I'm not using the mouse or keyboard, it's just more emphatic when I do use them, especially the mouse.
Looking forward to your reply. Thank you for sticking with me on this.
Cheers,
Carpe Draco
DELL-Rishi
4 Operator
•
2K Posts
0
September 15th, 2015 05:00
Hi Carpe,
Thank you for the update.
The M17x has 2 graphics solutions - Integrated (only GeForce 9400M) and Discrete (separate video card).
Based on this, there might be 2 possibilities. Either the system was only shipped with integrated graphics, hence the reason you only see 9400M. Or the discrete graphics with GTX280 has failed and is not being detected on the system.
I can confirm this via the service tag of the system. Please send me a private message with the service tag and your contact details for verification. I could then advise you which driver you need to install on the system and how to progress from there on.
Keep us updated.
Carpe Draco
10 Posts
0
September 17th, 2015 05:00
Relevant excerpts from the private messages:
Carpe Draco noted that both the 'Integrated' and the 'Hybrid' functions were disabled in the BIOS.
DELL-Rishi responded:
Thank you for the info.
"This option enables/disables Hybrid Graphics feature. Hybrid Graphics is only supported in Windows Vista with Nvidia discrete Graphics cards."
I have turned them both back on again, and here is the screenshot from the Device Manager now:
Cheers,
DELL-Rishi
4 Operator
•
2K Posts
0
September 17th, 2015 23:00
Hi Carpe,
Now that you have enabled them, could you please try reinstalling the video drivers - http://www.geforce.com/drivers/results/73780 - and then test the system and also check on an external monitor. This might possibly fix the issue.
If not, then I would advise you to clean install Win 7 on the system without having the need to install Win Vista and then upgrade to Win 7 - read this link - http://bit.ly/1f1D9vP
Keep us updated.
Carpe Draco
10 Posts
0
September 18th, 2015 04:00
Hi Rishi,
Looks like I'm going to have to go for the Win7 clean install.
I downloaded the video driver you gave me the link for, (the NVIDIA Graphics Driver Version 335.23) and when I attempted to install it, I got this message:
"X NVIDIA Installer cannot continue."
"This graphics driver could not find compatible graphics hardware."
I double checked my Device Manager, and the display adapters are exactly as they show in the most recent screen shot I posted. Do I need to uninstall them first, deleting the driver info from my system, before trying to install the driver I just downloaded? (I had thought that the driver would have detected the hardware even with the current drivers installed, which is why I didn't remove them first.)
I'll check in tomorrow to see if you have any more suggestions before I start the clean Win7 installation. It's too late in the evening to start now. (Nearly 9pm, Friday, Eastern Australia Time - about 4am Friday, USA Pacific Time.)
Cheers,
Carpe Draco
DELL-Rishi
4 Operator
•
2K Posts
0
September 19th, 2015 03:00
Hi Carpe,
Ideally the driver should detect the video card. Since the hardware shows up find in device manager.
Uninstall the existing drivers from control panel -> programs and features and from device manager. Restart the system. While installing the new drivers - choose custom installation and select perform clean installation and continue.
If this does not work, I suppose you would be heading down the long road of backing up data and clean installing Win7.
Keep us updated.