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Changes Made In "Enable VGA Mode" go after restart

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markjrees

markjrees

Technical User
May 13, 2004
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We have a client who is experiencing some display issues (see post Each time their pc boots up they get a message on screen saying "Cannot Display This Video Mode".

We advised them to go into XP via the Enable VGA Mode startup option make the necessary changes (display settings, advanced, adapter, list all modes) and this works fine - it gets them back up and running no problems.

The problem occurs when they reboot - each time they reboot into XP normally the error message returns.

seems for some reason like it's not saving the changes made during VGA mode.

has anyone else encountered this?

I have posted this in the general hardware forum also - obviously if needs be I'll ask for the other post to be removed.


 
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i've managed to recreate the error on my dimension and the actual error is monitor generated (i.e. not a windows error).

on my dell flat panel monitor (the same as theirs) i can enter a menu and reset to factory defaults while the error is on screen. on theirs they cannot get the menu to come up.

 
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they cannot get the menu to come up
Click to expand...

Well, getting the menu to come up shouldn't be a problem whether or not the monitor is connected to the PC. If it's not displaying, then perhaps there is a deeper hardware issue with the monitor itself.

Try powering it completely off (unplugging it) for at least 30 seconds. If you still can't get it, hopefully it's under warranty!
[smile]

You could always try it with another PC as well to be sure. Also don't forget that LCD monitors don't need a refresh rate greater than 60Hz (unless the specs say otherwise). The reason is that refresh rates differ on an LCD as opposed to a CRT.


~cdogg
[tab]"All paid jobs absorb and degrade the mind";
[tab][tab]- Aristotle
[tab][navy]For general rules and guidelines to get better answers, click here:[/navy] faq219-2884
 
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they've tried 3 other flat panel monitors. all do the same.

some further facts:

Problem Details:

The system has been working fine.

It seems that a refresh rate setting within Windows XP Home has been changed to a setting unsuitable for the monitor to display. Each time the workstation is booted up the following message appears in white on a black background on the monitor:

"CANNOT DISPLAY THIS VIDEO MODE"

The message is a monitor generated error (it seems) rather than a Windows error.

Other than the power button, the other three buttons on their monitor do nothing. They have tried 3 monitors including one 17 flat panel.

They can access windows via Enable VGA mode and change the display settings back to what they are on all of their other workstations however when they reboot the workstation it keeps none of the settings and reverts to the above error message. In addition to this they have also tried booting into the last known good configuration but this had no effect.


We have modified two of our own Dimension workstations by changing the refresh rate to 100hz and we too get the same error message as above however on our monitors we are able to press the menu button on the monitor and carry out a factory reset. This solves the problem on our workstations. In addition to this our workstations after about 10 seconds of displaying the above error message actually revert back to a regular working display. Again none of this works for our client on their monitors.





 
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Can they see the BIOS boot screen before XP loads? Is there this message then?
As cdogg says, it may be a malfunction of the monitor itself.
Also, the display rates list may not match what the monitor can really do. With XP trying to push the best refresh rates as seen in its list for a given monitor, it may fool the monitor. Check with the manufacturer of the monitor, they may have a driver to correct this.
I have a NEC monitor that supports 85Hz max, but Windows 98 has a list going to 120Hz for this model. Upon every change of resolution, I had to change the parameters. I assigned it to a system with an old video card that did not support more than 85Hz.

Maybe you can ask your customer to boot the system, with the error message, then ask to remove the LCD, and put a CRT monitor that has the function to display the Hsync and Vsync. Then check if these numbers are compatible with the LCD.

cdogg, the standard VGA refresh rate is 70Hz, so the LCD displays surely accpt that one too.


 
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In safe mode, try uninstalling the display adapter and any monitors that you see in Device Manager. Reboot into Normal Mode and XP should use a default graphics adapter at 60Hz 800x600. You can then reinstall the video drivers and be set...


~cdogg
[tab]"All paid jobs absorb and degrade the mind";
[tab][tab]- Aristotle
[tab][navy]For general rules and guidelines to get better answers, click here:[/navy] faq219-2884
 
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