Question Can you open your computer when you have a black screen

[HelBel49]

A friend just called with that question. It seemed to me that I had read that there is a key or key sequence on the keyboard that will let you enter. Any help would be appreciated. She is using a Toshiba laptop with Windows 10 and thinks this might have been the result of a Windows Update. Thanks so much...

 

[USAFRet]

What do you mean by "open"?
If there's no display...the thing may be running, but you can't really tell or do anything with it.

 

[HelBel49]

What I meant was can you do anything when you have a black screen??? Her computer is running but she can't get into it...like opening it so that she can sign in??? This happened when a Windows Update was finished or at least she thinks it finished...any suggestions???

 

[jsmithepa]

Not matter whether update botched or not, u should be able still to get into BIOS, to verify basic hardware functionality.

If able to boot into BIOS, try to boot under safe mode then run HD repair, if that doesn't do it, run Restore.exe to a point when it was working.

 

[HelBel49]

Thank you for your answer but you aren't dealing with an IT person. Can you tell me what to tell her in regular "dummy" language. What is BIOS...have no idea what booting under safe mode is....if we can just get past the black screen she can get the Toshiba remote people on it. Thanks again!!!

 

[HelBel49]

Solved with a Google search....thank you to all that helped