I have a P-4 2.2G running Windows XP Home with all Service Pak upgrades. System memory is 1GB. ASUS motherboard with only PCI slots. Dell 19" Wide monitor with VGA & DVI inputs. Recently, my PCI e-GeForce FX 5200 DVI video card went bad. I replaced it with a e-GeForce 6200 DVI video card. When I turned the computer on, the initial boot up screen comes up as normal. The display then shows the Windows XP logo sceen. After that, the screen goes blank, even though I hear the computer continuing to boot up. I must pull the power cord to shut the computer off. I switched to the VGA port on the monitor and connected to the on-board video chip on the motherboard. With that connection, everything works normally. When the 6200 was connected via DVI, as was the 5200, the graphics in the BIOS was set AUTO (verses on-board). I changed it to on-board when I connect using the on-board video chip. Has anyone run into a similiar problem and found a solution?
Start windows up in safe mode and install the drivers for the new video card. Maybe that will help.
Mark H
I reconnected the VGA cable to the on-board video chip, booted into XP, and installed the XP drivers from the CD for the 6200. I then rebooted, changed in BIOS from on-board graphics to AUTO, shut the computer off, installed the 6200 video card and connected it to the monitor with the DVI cable, and rebooted. The computer booted into XP. However, the computer resolution was very low and displayed colors at 4bit. The driver update program launched automatically. I opted to connect to Windows Update This Time Only to locate an updated driver, as I normally do. An updated driver was installed and I rebooted the computer, as instructed. After booting past the Windows XP logo screen, the screen went blank, which was the original problem. I have since reverted back to the on-board video chip with a VGA connection to the monitor. This is very frustrating because I am not getting the quality display which is available with the 6200. Does anyone have a solution for this problem?
You might consider returning the video card for a replacement. I could be bad hardware. Do you have another PC in which you can try installing the video card for a verifcation that it works or doesn't?
Mark H
Some monitors have a switch that enables the DVI display. Even though you had DVI previously, you may want to check if yours does.
Thank you Pat. My monitor has 3 settings: Auto, VGA & DVI. I did select DVI.
Just to summarise (please correct me if I'm wrong):
- The GeForce 5200 worked with DVI, no problem
- The GeForce 6200 VGA works no problem
- The GeForce 6200 DVI works until you get to the Windows desktop
?
Have you tried the latest drivers from www.nvidia.com rather than the ones supplied with your graphics card?
One more thing - when it's connected via DVI, and showing a blank screen, what happens if you have a VGA lead connected to the motherboard's onboard VGA output? Perhaps the onboard is not disabled, and becomes the primary adapter once Windows loads.
Chandler - 1 correction - the Ge-Force 6200 only has a DVI output. Yes, I changed the graphics in the BIOS from on-board to AUTO (which is the only other choice). I also went the the nVidia sit, downloaded the latest drivers, installed the 6200 and installed the new drivers. When I rebooted, is still got a blank screen once I passed the Windows XP logo screen. This is very frustrating. Maybe the 6200 is the problem. Unfortunately, I bought it a few months ago from a computer show and do not think I can exchange or get a refund at this time. I am currently living with my monitor connected to the on-board video chip which gives me a decent display. Thanks everyone for your suggestions.
One last thing would be to boot in to safe mode (F8 at start up) with the 6200 and DVI connection. If you boot with a picture on the screen it would tend to indicate a software problem if you still get no picture it would tend to indicate a hardware problem.
If you do get a display, go to add/remove software and remove any and all traces of Nvidia software/drivers and reboot and reinstall the most current driver for your series of card.
Well everyone - I broke down & purchased a EVGA GeForce 6200 256 mb DVI/VGA video card. Changed the BIOS to AUTO for the graphics, installed the card, connected the DVI cable & booted up. It booted into Windows XP. Display quality is as expected. However, my Taskbar at the bottom of the screen does not appear. I changed the resolution up & down and still no Taskbar. I tried to adjust the screen both in the NVidia Control Panel and with the Dell S1909WX controls, with no success. Also, the Start key on my keyboard does not bring up the Start button on the screen. That's odd. Therefore, I cannot access any programs the normal way. My desktop only has the Recycle icon - I like to keep a clean desktop. I can access the web and certain programs by using the shortcut keys on my keyboard. I shut down using Windows Task Manager, connected the monitor to the video card with a VGA cable, booted up, and got the same result. Frustrated to say the least. My limited opinion is that this problem may have something to do with the way the video card is displaying the image on this widescreen monitor. I appreciate any help anyone can give to resolve this problem. I dread going back to the on-board video chip. Thanks.
Perhaps you've got multi-monitors enabled, and your DVI connection is the secondary monitor, with your unconnected VGA being the primary (and where your taskbar etc. are located).
Well everyone-I found my solution to the Taskbar missing problem by downloading a small program called Repair Taskbar: http://forums.techarena.in/windows-xp-support/720135.htm Worked like a charm. My Taskbar is restored. I shut down, connected by DVI cable, and am up and running. What an adventure. Thanks everyone for your suggestions.
Congratulations on your persistence in getting the problem resolved.
And thanks for sharing your solution.