XPS 13 9365 - Thunderbolt/Power port not working - TB16

So you have loaded the Thunderbolt drivers (firmware and Controller) and it is enabled in the Bios?

There are also Dock Drivers.

I do not have any Thunderbolt devices so I cannot check.

Yes.

I ran the Intel Thunderbolt Controller Driver installation available under the chipset section for the laptop model.

It installed the Thunderbolt software, but the controller driver still says unknown.

I also installed the Dock Drivers, but it doesn't do anything since it cannot even detect the dock being connected.

Also tried running the Thunderbolt firmware update, but it throws an error saying that there is no controller present.

I have a little Startech dock which connects with the USB c and has two USB ports, Ethernet and HDMI.  It seems to work fine and power the computer.

After I plugged it in it started downloading drivers for the USB and Ethernet.  The HDMI may have been next if would have left it alone..

The Thunderbolt software never saw the device but something did, I do get a connection tone, which is why it started downloading drivers.  I did have a USB drive inserted in one of the ports at the time.

This probably doesn't help unless it may alter the way you are looking at the dock install.

I don't think I have any other Thunderbolt 3 devices.

I only tried the TB16 dock on that port on the left, and nothing.

I also tried using some other USB-C devices on that port, but nothing. (They are fine on the port on the right, but that is not a Thunderbolt port.)

You said earlier that no device connected to the Power connector port worked.  Since you received the USB c to USB adapter, that means even a flash drive will not function on that port?

It is starting to sound like the port is broken.  It is unusual, after a motherboard replacement, the problem would continue unless something not on the motherboard was the cause, but it could happen.

Since it seems you have everything enabled needed for the functionality of the port, one situation might exists and that being a problem with a defective TB16 which may have disabled the port.  If you had tried a Flash drive in the port prior to the TB16 and it had worked and after did not, that would point to that device.

I would not try to use the dock until you can do some testing.  I checked and it appears there is not an option to reset the USB Hubs so uninstalling the USB devices and letting them reinstall may allow you to test the port with a simple flash drive to see if you can get it working.  Make sure and have the driver downloaded and available.  If the TB16 connector is good there may be some internal problem with it.

I am fed up with Dell.

I have already confirmed that there is nothing wrong with the TB16 dock, and I also tried other Thunderbolt devices on the machine,

They have sent out an engineer to replace the motherboard twice, with no results, and now they have kept the laptop at their "repair center" for almost a month with no updates. Still "waiting for parts" they say.

The laptop is brand new. Why not just replace it with a known working one?

Yes.

I have started over numerous times. I even tried, as mentioned in the first post, reinstalling Windows 10 and all the device drivers, in order, according to the installation guide for this model that is posted on the Dell website.

It doesn't show "Unknown Device" in device manager. In fact, when anything is plugged into the Thunderbolt port, it does not change anything in Device Manager. (And no sound like what you got when you tried connecting your Startech device.)

In the Thunderbolt Software, if you click the Details button, it should show you details about the Thunderbolt Controller. Mine shows "Controller Driver Version: Unknown".

When you check it on a working computer, it should show the driver version as well as more detail in the lower section of the window, including the Thunderbolt generation, NVM firmware version, etc.

But nothing shows on mine.

And lastly, hopefully, you have checked the USB C cable and it has the Thunderbolt designation.  I could probably assume since you say you check the dock the cable would be correct, just wanted to make sure.

If yours will not work, I will order the device so I can check it myself.

I am ready to install the Thunderbolt Controller driver, but before I do, can you tell me exactly where you are seeing the Unknown device?  I assume in Device Manager and right now all I seem to show is a "Docking Station" entry under System devices.

I suppose the problems with the unknown device is not related to the Dock since it should not be plugged in yet.  If you think you might have gotten the system out of sequence, the Controller driver install utility does say it can remove the software.  If you have not tried that, it may help to start over..

The Thunderbolt software on my system has no "Details" button, possibly because I have not tried to plug in a dock.  I do have the appropriate Bios settings enabled.

Edit:  I checked the Settings for the software and found the Details button and mine shows "Unknown" also.  We will see what happens when the unit arrives Thursday afternoon.

You do show the "Docking Station" in Device Manager inside the System Devices?

I will order it but I probably won't get it until Friday, so hold on a little longer.. if you can..

I just got the unit but have not plugged it in yet.  Earlier the details showed the controller as Unknown but just now when I checked it the controller is now recognized.  All I remember doing it updating the Thunderbolt firmware, unless a reboot allowed this to happen.  Let me know if you need something else checked.  I will wait for a couple of hours before I actually plug the Dock into the 9365..

I have not yet loaded all the drivers, such as video for the dock.

Confirm you installed the Thunderbolt Controller software and the Thunderbolt Firmware upgrade PRIOR to plugging in the dock..  As I mentioned, mine showed unknown until after I installed the Firmware upgrade

You said earlier you could not install the firmware because the dock was not recognized.  Since the firmware is for the computer and not the dock, it makes a difference.

Yesterday, I reset my system and set up the dock again.  I did not have to install the controller elements but I did install the Ethernet and USB.  I have not tried the audio but the HDMI works, although the system seems to get warm when I use it.

My controller just shows as Unknown. When I run the Firmware Update for the supposed controller, it fails because it cannot find the controller. Tried new BIOS too. No change.

I read, if the system does not have the Thunderbolt controller installed, the Bios settings will be greyed out.  I would try turning the Thunderbolt off in the Bios and boot a couple of times and then re-enable.

You might even think about putting your Bios back to the default values then reset any special settings you use.

Since, in your situation, you have rebooted and tried installing the firmware, perhaps the controller is inoperative and you may need a service call for that.  All you could do right now is try uninstalling and re-downloading the software for a reinstall..

I wish I had some better suggestions..