Question Power outage caused weird display issue ?

[SunbearWizard]

There was a small power outage, when I turned everything back on both of my monitors and TV work (I tested them on a laptop and they all work fine) however my PC now only recognizes one of my monitors, and only in certain ports. What's even weirder is that if I look at the display setup it does recognize the TV and says its extending the display to the TV, but the TV is still saying no signal. I tried to do the CMOS reset, reinstalled my graphics card driver, and quite a few reboots and testing all the ports, everything other than the display setup seems completely fine as far as I can tell. What could possibly be the cause of this problem?

OS Name Microsoft Windows 11 Pro
Version 10.0.22631 Build 22631
System Type x64-based PC
System SKU ASUS_MB_CNL
Processor Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-8700 CPU @ 3.20GHz, 3192 Mhz, 6 Core(s), 12 Logical Processor(s)
BIOS Version/Date American Megatrends Inc. 2601, 17-Jul-19
SMBIOS Version 3.2
Embedded Controller Version 255.255
BIOS Mode UEFI
BaseBoard Manufacturer ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC.
BaseBoard Product TUF H310M-PLUS GAMING
BaseBoard Version Rev X.0x
Installed Physical Memory (RAM) 16.0 GB
GPU MSI GeForce GTX 1060 Gaming X 6G

 

[Ralston18]

Update your post to include full system hardware specs and OS information.

One immediate thought is that the power outage may have created or caused some corrupted files.

Run the built in Windows troubleshooters. The troubleshooters may find and fix something.

Also try "dism" and "sfc /scannow" to look for and fix corrupted files.

FYI:

https://www.windowscentral.com/how-use-dism-command-line-utility-repair-windows-10-image

https://www.lifewire.com/how-to-use-sfc-scannow-to-repair-windows-system-files-2626161

If the problems continue then look in Reliability History/Monitor and Event Viewer for error codes, warnings, and even informational events.

 

[SunbearWizard]

Update your post to include full system hardware specs and OS information.

One immediate thought is that the power outage may have created or caused some corrupted files.

Run the built in Windows troubleshooters. The troubleshooters may find and fix something.

Also try "dism" and "sfc /scannow" to look for and fix corrupted files.

FYI:

https://www.windowscentral.com/how-use-dism-command-line-utility-repair-windows-10-image

https://www.lifewire.com/how-to-use-sfc-scannow-to-repair-windows-system-files-2626161

If the problems continue then look in Reliability History/Monitor and Event Viewer for error codes, warnings, and even informational events.

OS Name Microsoft Windows 11 Pro
Version 10.0.22631 Build 22631
System Type x64-based PC
System SKU ASUS_MB_CNL
Processor Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-8700 CPU @ 3.20GHz, 3192 Mhz, 6 Core(s), 12 Logical Processor(s)
BIOS Version/Date American Megatrends Inc. 2601, 17-Jul-19
SMBIOS Version 3.2
Embedded Controller Version 255.255
BIOS Mode UEFI
BaseBoard Manufacturer ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC.
BaseBoard Product TUF H310M-PLUS GAMING
BaseBoard Version Rev X.0x
Installed Physical Memory (RAM) 16.0 GB
GPU MSI GeForce GTX 1060 Gaming X 6G

I also tried the methods you recommended, sfc scan said it found and fixed some corrupted files, but I did a reboot after that and my problem is still there, in Reliability History there are errors but its windows shut down unexpectedly and nothing else

 

[Ralston18]

Make and model PSU?

Age, Wattage, Condition (original to build, new, refurbished, used)?

History of heavy use for gaming?

Another place to look for errors is Event Viewer. Not as user friendly as Reliability History and requires more time and effort to navigate and understand.

To help with Event Viewer:

How To - How to use Windows 10 Event Viewer | Tom's Hardware Forum (tomshardware.com)

 

[SunbearWizard]

Make and model PSU?

Age, Wattage, Condition (original to build, new, refurbished, used)?

History of heavy use for gaming?

Another place to look for errors is Event Viewer. Not as user friendly as Reliability History and requires more time and effort to navigate and understand.

To help with Event Viewer:

How To - How to use Windows 10 Event Viewer | Tom's Hardware Forum (tomshardware.com)

the PC is a very basic custom build from pc specialist, its about 4 years old and the graphics card I already had from before so its a bit older, ither than that I also replace the ram like a year ago for some better ones
PSU is a Corsair VS350

a lot of use, mostly gaming and also game engines like unreal and unity

I just tried going through even viewer, one of the errors was hyper- V - hypervisor being turned off, but turning it on in BIOS did not fix my issue but that specific error is gone, there are also some warning about "The application-specific permission settings do not grant Local Activation permission for the COM Server application with CLSID " followed by files named a bunch of numbers, this is the only warning that has popped up every time after I restart the PC

 

[Ralston18]

Corsair VS350 = 350 Watts.

This PSU?

https://www.corsair.com/br/en/p/psu...ies-vs350-350-watt-power-supply-cp-9020052-ww

Build is likely now underpowered and all the more so based on the current PSU wattage, age, and history.

Do you have access to another known working PSU that can be swapped in for testing?

Remember to use only the cables that come with the test PSU.

 

[SunbearWizard]

Corsair VS350 = 350 Watts.

This PSU?

https://www.corsair.com/br/en/p/psu...ies-vs350-350-watt-power-supply-cp-9020052-ww

Build is likely now underpowered and all the more so based on the current PSU wattage, age, and history.

Do you have access to another known working PSU that can be swapped in for testing?

Remember to use only the cables that come with the test PSU.

I do have a separate power supply I can test later, just to make sure though could that really be the issue for the screens not being recognized? Also the second power supply is a corsair CX450M, just wanted to ask because replacing the power supply does seem like a lot of effort

Edit: replaced power supply anyway, PC still works fine but display problem isn't fixed

 

[Ralston18]

Make and model information for monitors and TV.

Verify: all three work as expected when used for display on other computers or video sources - correct?

Reference:

"my PC now only recognizes one of my monitors, and only in certain ports."

Which ports?

 

[SunbearWizard]

Make and model information for monitors and TV.

Verify: all three work as expected when used for display on other computers or video sources - correct?

Reference:

"my PC now only recognizes one of my monitors, and only in certain ports."

Which ports?

yes I have tested all of them with my laptop that I use for work, all the screens work fine, the only monitor that works.
there are 3 display ports, 1 HDMI port and 1 DVI port, the DVI and HDMI ones work with the one monitor, all the display ports don't. However when I connect the TV to the display port it does detect the TV but the TV displays no signal so at least they seem to kind of work?

 

[Ralston18]

Make and model infor for monitors and TV.

And the DP cable has been proven to work - correct?

 

[SunbearWizard]

Make and model infor for monitors and TV.

And the DP cable has been proven to work - correct?

TV is an old LG smart TV, the other monitor that isn't being detected is acer and the one that is working for this PC is a samsung, i dont really know the models but I could check later. There is no DP cable, all of the monitors only have HDMI inputs so I just use DP and DVI adaptors, however even if it is the adaptors that are broken then no monitor should work right? thats the part that confuses me, all the monitors work 100% as intended exept with the PC, so the only place the hardware could be the issue is the GPU itself, but then why does it choose to work with one of the monitors?

 

[SunbearWizard]

I have now also reinstalled windows from scratch, still no change

 

[Ralston18]

If you right click an empty area of your desk top and then select "Show more options" do you see Control Panel for your GeForce GPU?

Are you able to access the Control Panel?

= = = =

Another thought: Are the monitors and TV sharing any common power sources? Either with or without other devices?

Some sort of loop via any path: power, audio, visual, network?

Device A connected to Device B connected to Device C connected to Device D connected to Device A again.

Any sort of loop.

 

[SunbearWizard]

If you right click an empty area of your desk top and then select "Show more options" do you see Control Panel for your GeForce GPU?

Are you able to access the Control Panel?

= = = =

Another thought: Are the monitors and TV sharing any common power sources? Either with or without other devices?

Some sort of loop via any path: power, audio, visual, network?

Device A connected to Device B connected to Device C connected to Device D connected to Device A again.

Any sort of loop.

yes I can see the nvidia control panel, the monitors and TV are all on the same extension but I have also tried them all separately, with all USB and other things disconnected so no loops at all

 

[Ralston18]

Seems to be narrowing down to the power outage actually damagining something - or a couple of somethings.

As I read back it appears that the problem is not configuration related, software related, nor cable/connection related. Especially with respect to the file fixes and the Windows reinstall.

The most common factor being the physical PC itself and/or the GPU - correct? Excluding the PSU, which has been swapped out.

I do have some doubts about the DP and DVI adapters that are being used and would thus focus on determining that those video adapters are fully functional in as many ways as possible.

My suggestion is to conduct another series of tests using the various monitors/TV, cables, and adapters. Be as consistent as possible: vary only one thing at a time, and be methodical. Keep notes and even a diagram as you swap monitors, etc. about.

Ensure that all drivers are up to date - including any TV or monitor drivers. Try to identify the monitor and TV model numbers. There could be some known problem - likely a stretch but even if so would eliminate another potential culprit.

Delete all of the Event Viewer logs and start fresh. Any errors will be easier to find and hopefully easier to decipher. Continue to check Reliability History/Monitor as well.

The objective simply being to identify what combinations work and what combinations do not work.

 

[SunbearWizard]

Seems to be narrowing down to the power outage actually damagining something - or a couple of somethings.

As I read back it appears that the problem is not configuration related, software related, nor cable/connection related. Especially with respect to the file fixes and the Windows reinstall.

The most common factor being the physical PC itself and/or the GPU - correct? Excluding the PSU, which has been swapped out.

I do have some doubts about the DP and DVI adapters that are being used and would thus focus on determining that those video adapters are fully functional in as many ways as possible.

My suggestion is to conduct another series of tests using the various monitors/TV, cables, and adapters. Be as consistent as possible: vary only one thing at a time, and be methodical. Keep notes and even a diagram as you swap monitors, etc. about.

Ensure that all drivers are up to date - including any TV or monitor drivers. Try to identify the monitor and TV model numbers. There could be some known problem - likely a stretch but even if so would eliminate another potential culprit.

Delete all of the Event Viewer logs and start fresh. Any errors will be easier to find and hopefully easier to decipher. Continue to check Reliability History/Monitor as well.

The objective simply being to identify what combinations work and what combinations do not work.

ok after a lot of plugging and unplugging things I figured some stuff out, probably stuff I just missed the first time cause I was stressed out and tired so apologies for that, but here goes:
1- One of the HDMI ports on my TV no longer works, when I I was testing if it worked I probably just used the second one instinctively when plugging it into my laptop, so if I plug it in the working port to my PC it works

2- My second monitor HDMI port doesn't work, I swear it worked on the laptop when I tested it a few days ago, but it doesn't work at all now, it also has a VGA port but I have no VGA adaptor so I cant test that, although he monitor is for sure "working" the screen turns on and goes through all the sources before going into standby so there is a good chance that its just the port that broke just like the TV.

3 - I thought the display ports of my PC where broken, but one of the display adapters just does nothing at all, but the other makes the connection sound and the PC detects it but the monitor/ TV says no signal. So there is a chance both display adaptors are broken, and that would explain why my PC seems to be entirely fine.

So from what I can tell the most logical thing is that display ports for whatever reason broke the HDMI/DP adaptors, and the HDMI ports of the TV/monitor also broke with that surge, it also makes a bit more sense if that's the case because the one monitor that seems unaffected was the one on the DVI adapter that is also still fine, whereas the TV and second monitor where both on the DP adapters. I want to test the DP on the GPU but I have no spare adapters for that so I have to see if I can borrow some to test that as well. Kind of annoying if I'm right because that means I have 2 screens with broken ports now and 2 fried adapters but yeah.

 

[Ralston18]

No apologies necessary.

"Figuring out stuff" is an important life skill.

Not always neat and easy. And sometimes you are dealing with multiple and moving targets.

Intermittent problems, domino effects, and circular problems can be quite testing....

Key is that you have made progress. You had to start somewhere despite stress and other confusing things.

Very likely that you will be able to pin down the problems with some further testing. Or at least some root source.