External monitors get disconnected

Question

I am using Surface Book 2 Model 1832 i7 with a Surface Dock. All drivers are updated.

The laptop is connected to two external monitors through the dock.

From time to time, and without any apparent reason, the monitors get disconnected, and screen vision is lost. This may happen:

• at a new boot of the laptop, even if no change occurred since the previous shut down;
• abruptely, during normal operation of the laptop.

Hard reset, disconnection, or re-boot do not seem to provide a consistent (reproducible) response from the system: sometime one of them seems to fix the problem until the next failure, sometime none doesn't.

Any idea on how to fix this issue once and for all?

Thanks.

Max

Answer 1

Thank StevenK_M,

that is terrible news, bacause reinstalling (and reconfiguring) all apps is a time-devastating operation :(

Not sure I will be able to do this now...

Max

Answer 2

Thanks for keeping us posted, Massimiliano Barolo.

If that's the case, we would highly recommend that you reset your Surface using a USB Recovery Image. This option reimages the entire device, including the partition on the hard drive. It is the most complete form of reset.  You must have at least 16GB/32GB of USB Flash drive and it must be formatted to FAT32 prior to downloading the Recovery Image.

Note: This removes all the files and apps on your device. You will need to back up your data and reinstall the desktop apps or run updates after the completion.

To download the Recovery Image:

1. Visit the page at http://www.surface.com/support/warranty-service-and-recovery/downloadablerecoveryimage
2. Sign in with your Microsoft Account (this is the email address we asked you for at the start of the call)
3. From the list of Surface devices available, select the device that you need a recovery image for
   Please note that while you will only be presented with devices that are currently registered on your account, you will also be presented with the option to get an image for a different type of device. If you try to use this option, you will be prompted to enter the serial number for that device
4. Download the recovery image using the button on the page
5. When the download bar pops up at the bottom of your screen, save the file in a location you will be able to find it.

Format USB Drive:

1. Insert your USB drive into the USB port of your PC.
2. From the desktop, open File Explorer
3. Tap and hold or right-click on the USB drive and choose Format
4. Select FAT32 as the file system and enter a Volume label to name the USB drive, such as RECOVERY, and then tap or click Start
5. Tap or click OK to erase the contents of the USB drive
6. Tap or click OK when the format is complete

Create a recovery drive:

1. On your Surface or PC, open recovery image that you downloaded by double-clicking it
2. At the top of the window tap on Extract and then Extract all. Select the USB drive you formatted earlier for the location and click Extract.

Perform USB recovery image:

1. Turn the Surface off by pressing the power button
2. Insert the USB recovery drive into the USB port
3. Press and hold the volume-down (-) rocker
4. Press and release the power button
5. When the Surface logo appears, release the volume-down (-) rocker
6. When prompted, choose your language options and keyboard layout
7. Select Troubleshoot
8. Select Recover from a drive. If prompted for a recovery key, select Skip this drive at the bottom of the screen.
9. If prompted, select Repartition the drives.

I hope this helps.

Answer 3

And, by the way: right after posting my previous answer, the monitors got disconnected once again!

:(

Max

Answer 4

Hi StevenK_M,

I am running Windows 10 Enterprise, version 21H2, build 19044.1415.

I am connected to two DELL monitors: DELL U2412M and DELL P2415Q.

No pending updates.

I had already done yestarday all the operations you suggested, but unfortunately they were not effective. However, they have been today, and currently the monitors are connected regularly. However, the big issue is that the fault shows up randomly, and effective solutions are not consistent: they may work one day, they may not on another day. Sometimes, even just waiting one day without doing anything may be effective. Therefore, one cannot reconstruct under which conditions the fault manifests itself, and under which it gets fixed.

Max

Answer 5

Hello Massimiliano Barolo,

Thanks for reaching Microsoft Community. We're sorry to know that your external monitor keep on disconnecting. We'll do our best to help.

May I know what version of Windows you have? What are the make and model of your external monitors?

In this case, please force a shutdown and restart your Surface (microsoft.com). Run the Surface Diagnostic Toolkit and check for Windows Update. Ensure all pending updates are installed. Then, follow the methods on Troubleshoot connecting Surface to a second screen (microsoft.com) and Troubleshoot Surface Dock and docking stations (microsoft.com).

Feel free to respond on this thread to keep us posted.

Best regards,

StevenK