Laptop graphic card trouble (?)

[Squawk7777]

Hello Ppruners!

It seemed like another normal day: Vista running, browsing pprune; stepping away for about half an hour an then found this machine in matrix mode. Black screen with vertical blue dotted lines. Laptop was frozen. Restarted, initially same issue in normal mode while loading, and then it would freeze. No problems though in Safe Mode. On start-up I noticed some graphical distortions (logo) which were also present when I accessed the BIOS.

The Sony VIAO has a power mode switch: Stamina or Speed. I moved it to Stamina and ...no problems! It starts up normally. I did notice through a freeware program called "Speedfan" that the temperature of my GPU is no longer displayed. I am glad that my lappy works in Stamina mode; I am in the process of making a complete backup.

Since I am suspecting my graphic card to be malfunctioning, I wonder if any of you know a software diagnosis tool for my graphic card. Do you have any other suggestions in pin-pointing the problem?

Thanks,

7 7 7 7

Sony VAIO VGN-SZ780
NVIDIA GS8400 (but says Intel chipset now ???)

[Mr Optimistic]

I use GPU-Z.0.3.4.exe, but it doesn't exercise the card and 3dmark would be a bit heavy for a laptop. Perhaps a free version of sisoftt sandra may benchmark the card ?

[hellsbrink]

Sony VAIO VGN-SZ780
NVIDIA GS8400 (but says Intel chipset now ???)I would look at reinstalling drivers, the "Intel chipset" bit would be right as the laptop will have an Intel chipset and Nvidia graphics card, but something seems to be confused

Go here:- Sony eSupport - VGN-SZ780 - Software Updates & Drivers (http://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/swu-list.pl?mdl=VGNSZ780)

[AnthonyGA]

If the video messes up in "Speed" mode but works fine for long periods in "Stamina" mode, the video adapter is most likely overheating, especially given the appearance of the screen that you describe (which is typical of video adapter failures). If there are one or more fans in the laptop, verify that they are all turning. Verify that ventilation paths are not blocked by dust.

Laptops always have trouble staying cool, so intermittent video failures could be par for the course with the particular model you have, if it was poorly designed. One or more failures due to overheating may also produce permanent damage, causing intermittent failures even after the cooling issue is fixed.

Changing drivers will generally have no effect on cooling issues. The only exception would be if there's a variable-speed fan on the video adapter and the driver is not setting the speed appropriately, but that's highly unlikely.

You can find various helpful gadgets on the nVidia Web site, which may help you to measure the GPU temperature and (in some cases) set the fan speed, if a fan is present. They also have some demos on the site that you can run to show off the capabilities of nVidia cards, and some of these will pin the card against the wall in terms of video load, so they might be useful as a stress test. Watching the temperature may be the best thing to try, though. Video cards have a high tolerance for heating (more so than CPUs, in many cases), but there are still limits.

[MG23]

Changing drivers will generally have no effect on cooling issues. The only exception would be if there's a variable-speed fan on the video adapter and the driver is not setting the speed appropriately, but that's highly unlikely.

That may not be true: I've read of people having problems with my model of laptop when they installed the Nvidia driver instead of the version that Toshiba supply... it seems the driver on Nvidia's web site either runs the GPU faster or lets it run to a higher temperature than the Toshiba-ised version.

[hellsbrink]

That may not be true: I've read of people having problems with my model of laptop when they installed the Nvidia driver instead of the version that Toshiba supply... it seems the driver on Nvidia's web site either runs the GPU faster or lets it run to a higher temperature than the Toshiba-ised version.

That was my thoughts, in a way. Laptops tend to be more temperamental as far as "generic" driver software, like Nvidia/ATi drivers, goes so I always say the first port of call is the maunfacturer's website to update/reinstall the drivers. Of course, drivers from Windows Update can have the same issues as the Nvid/Ati ones, and more issues too, so that should be avoided too (and that goes for ALL PC's, not just laptops. I've had so much trouble with things because of Microsoft's driver updates, it's beyond belief).

Overheating is a possibility/probability too, it's worth making sure all the air vents are clear and the fan "exit" has no fluff clogging it up. Also do remember that putting a laptop on your lap or on a cushion/blanket/etc "because you can" is one of the worst things you can do since that will close up air vents. Always make sure you have, at least, a newspaper under it as that will help keep the vents clear. I know it's stating the bleeding obvious but you wouldn't believe how many people think that because it says "laptop" it should be perfectly happy on a pair of jeans, etc, sucking in all the dust and fibres into it with absolutely no ill effects whatsoever..........

[E_S_P]

Hello everybody, this is my 1st ever post on PPRuNe, so please be gentle with me - despite lurking for a while...:p

I must admit it does possibly look like a heat problem (unless you have already let it fully cool down for a few hours and it is still present), as if it is visible while loading the BIOS, the Windows drivers are not yet loaded so can therefore be discounted. As others have said make sure there is no obstructions that prevent air circulating :ok:

You can also try removing the mains adaptor and battery, and then press and hold the power button down for a few secs to dischage the motherboard/gpu (your BIOS settings will remain intact), and see how you go on from there.

Good Luck !

[Mr Optimistic]

..not tried them myself

Free Graphic / Video Card Benchmark Programs (http://www.troublefixers.com/free-graphic-video-card-benchmark-programs/)

but only problems I ever had were hardware, broken ribbon cable and dead inverter so no experience otherwise.