m15 R5, lights stopped working

Thanks heaps for taking the time to reply.

Funny you should say this - I've uninstalled, reinstalled, had AWCC look for updates, said it wanted to install OC, then uninstalled it, then I restarted, and it installed some addons in AWCC.

After about 6 restarts, the RGB lighting came back.

Unfortunately, this is the third time it's done this and I've only owned the system for a week!

Next time it does it, I will head into the BIOS to see what it says. It currently says "Backlite" but I guess that it should seeing as it is now working again.

I did have Dell remote connect to my computer and they couldn't figure it out so they have escalated the problem.

I'll update here soon in case anyone else has this same issue.

I had also experienced this in my m15 R5, the light just suddenly off during usage and after a couple time of restarts, the alienware command center still says "cannot find FX device".

So I tried to reinstall the BIOS, I followed the update BIOS tutorials even though it was the same version of BIOS.

After the reinstallation, my light was back and problem solved. I still have not idea what causes the issue. But I hope this would help you

Hi @Yunchi  thank you for sharing update. 

My 17 R5 is stuck in dark mode, have installed all the AWCC old versions, but it remains stuck in dark mode. The operating system has been updated to Windows Pro 10 x64 Version 21H2 and AWCC will not load. Have asked Dell to modify/update their AWCC AlienFX 2.0 application, but Dell Technical Support and their Warranty Technicians are clueless. There is no Dell AWCC AlienFX 2.0 troubleshoot. Very disappointed. 

@JayMcMillan I just wanted to check in with you after reviewing the contact made after this post -.were the lights still working on your system? 

Hi @Dell-BradL  there are too many Alienware systems with this soft-brick of the AWCC AlienFX 2.0 application problem that puts all LED lights permanently into dark mode. When is Dell Technical Support going to change their computer code so that these problems are automatically fixed? This problem has been around since 2018, so there has been ample time to get this Dell flagship feature fixed. 

Thanks for the update. I am going to see if I can have someone from our team look into this further. 

On your R5 has it ever come back/started working at random times?

Hi @Dell-BradL  thank you for your response.

My Alienware 17 R5 MLK had all the Windows and Dell updates installed as soon as it arrived. This is my first Dell purchase and most expensive laptop. I subsequently "discovered" that the laptop was stuck in dark mode. During first year RTB warranty, it was sent for warranty repair, but the clueless warranty technician said no fault was found and returned laptop.

F12 ePSA Diagnostics tests all pass. Windows 10 Check Disk says OS(C:) boot disk has no faults. Have attempted all the Dell Community solutions, but they did not work.

Windows Pro 10 x64 is now version 21H1 and does not like AWCC v5.3.2.0, older versions are also rejected. There is speculation that the AWCC installer soft-bricks the AWCC AlienFX 2.0 application. Have invested more than a thousand hours trying to fix this problem. Guess that other users have also invested similar hours.

Trying to fix this AWCC AlienFX 2.0 problem requires a computer code rewrite and EEPROM flash utility. This user does not have these skills, and just wants to use this laptop with all "as advertised" functions working. Hopefully Dell Technical Support will provide the long awaited solution for all users. 

20210717 AWCC 5.3.2.0 never loads

Just wondering if @JayMcMillan has any updates on this. Just received my M15 R5 yesterday and after about half a day the rear tron & alien lights stopped working at some point. All software is up to date.

@Dell-BradL  said "I am going to see if I can have someone from our team look into this further."

Looking forward to getting an update and/or solution that works for everyone. 

Hi Everyone.

Same problem to me. It worked flawlessly for a month, since I've bought my M15 R5.

Yesterday suddenly went dark and there's no way to turn it back on. Tryed rebooting, reinstalling, troubleshooting. No Luck.

Sent a request to support before finding this post...I see I'm not the only one

Hi, I have the same issue. I fixed it by download the latest bios 1.2 from the website and reflash the same 1.2 that updated from Windows 10 update. Hope this helps.

Have you solved the problem, the alien logo in the back of the screen just stop working after a few days

Re-installing the bios fixed it for me after trying most other ideas. Hope it works for you