17 R4, broken lcd connector, no boot Windows on external screen

Hi @keaz when in safe mode the screen works - so the screen cable/connector is also working. When in safe mode, open msconfig and uncheck the "boot only in safe mode" option, Restart (not Shut Down). Open user account and all the drivers will now work, so that laptop function is fully reinstated. 

Please share an update on progress, so that other users derive benefit from your experience. Thank you. 

Hi @crimsom and thanks for the answer,

When i said it work in safe mode i meant for the external screen, the lcd 40pin connector is physically damaged (partially snatched) , there is no way to boot the computer with't external screen,

anyway i'll try what you said and write an update ^^

extra (because i might not be well expressing myself as english isn't my main language) :

withn't external screen plugged :
-computer try to boot but restard after like 5-10 seconds infinitelly

with external screen plugged :
-computer boot and alienware loading is displayed on the external screen, when the loading is ended the external screen show "no signal" but windows is booted as i can hear win sounds and see tobii lights recognising me .
-can acces to the bios and both GPU are recognised
-if launch on safe mode everithing is working on the external screen.

Ok so "boot only in safe mode" wasn't check on msconfig, so after restarting it did the same as usual : alieware loading screen displayed on the external screen then "no signal" after it turned to windows ...

Edit : i'm about to try uninstalling the gtx 1070, then reinstal drivers if i can acces windows in normal mode. what do you think about that ?

Update : I found that uninstalling the discrete gpu made it work, windows now boot on the Intel one, had struggle to reinstal it (gtx) but when it was done everything worked properly ( normal benchmark results on furmark)
then i rebooted the computer aaaannnnnd .... back to the start, alienware loading screen then black screen after windows boot ...

so now i only disabled the gtx in safe mode in order to use my computer (same effect as uninstaling it)...

all this confirmed me that there is a (bios?) security about not using the discrete gpu when the laptop screen is unpluged (or maybe because the lcd connector is damaged) .

so my question is : how to bypass this security in order to use my laptop as a desktop ? (withn't the laptop screen)

I'm in the exact situation. However I cannot get into the safe mode. How did you enter the safe mode? Thank you keaz!

@keaz How can you access to BIOS? Is your external monitor connected to displayport or to hdmi? I have similar problem; I have the edp connector partially broken. The laptop recognise the built-in screen but backlight doesn't work so windows starts normally but I can only see anything in external monitor. The thing is when I try to get in BIOS it is only "shown" in laptop screen which doesn't work. Any idea? 

Thanks

P.S. I find incredible there is no option in BIOS to set a external monitor as principal screen. Many users having this problem and alienware doesn't give any solution. Very dissapointed with this brand.

Alienware 17 R4 17.3" QHD LCD LCD Ribbon Cable WTNR3 (parts-people.com)

if this is the part that broke replace it.

if the motherboard is broken from.
Find a solid electronics engineer in your business.
make solder.
repair is required.
Option 2 is not guaranteed anyway.
In the 3rd option, you should go to the nearest dell service.
get well soon

@abraxxax Yes I know. I have bought both the cable and the connector already. But I would like to know meanwhile how @keaz managed to get into bios without laptop screen working. I also wonder this: "so my question is : how to bypass this security in order to use my laptop as a desktop ? (withn't the laptop screen)"

I don't think it's the bios settings that solved the problem. (There is no choice about Bios's bus to the screen )
It could be a broken connector tip or a contactless solder. (@keaz may have implemented the screen connector with the help of an adapter. )
I don't know if anyone can answer your question without the motherboard schematic. however, an electronics engineer can look at the broken connector with an ohmmeter and find a solution.

Hi all, I have the same problem with an Alienware 15 r4. The only way is to start the pc in safe mode or without NVDIA 1060 video card (driver or device disabled in settings of devices). For me is not a BIOS POST control because like you write, the pc start and Alienware logo was loaded, Only after (when Windows booted) we can see a black screen. I think that the only way is to reach the software cause (like a service or a environment variabile related to the nvidia video card and disable the control). Actually on my pc I haven't all the dell applications (that for me can cause the check after boot) but the behavior is also the same. I don't know if you try to format the pc in a clean way (try to remove all the partitions related to dell, like recovery partitions) in my case I try a simple formatting (mantaining all the original partitions) but the behavior is the same. I think that is a bad brand policy if i haven't the possibility to use my laptop like a desktop, also because all these machines are very performant like a desktop.

Please if you have any updates or news reply to this post.

Thanks,

Luigi

Hey people, I have the same issue and I am using Google desktop to access the window to reinstall Nvidia drive update(can be even old version it will work), after reinstalling the driver the external monitors will automatically works but only if you don't shut down the windows otherwise you will have to do all over again. if I put to sleep it will wake up without any issue.

Maybe there is a driver inside de LCD or something, because is not saving the driver

@Surfers​ This might be the solution for you. If you enabled dGPU mode in your laptop's control panel or BIOS, disable it. In my case, that was causing the external monitor to lose signal as soon as Windows started.