Nvidia RTX 4080 and 4090 GPUs get a fix for nasty blank screen issue on boot
Firmware update is required
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Nvidiahas released a fix for problems with its newRTX 4090and RTX 4080graphics cardsexperiencing a black (or blank) screen on bootup in some unfortunate cases.
This isn’t quite as bad as it first sounds, as theoperating systemwill still load okay and produce the desktop on your display as normal, eventually – you just get the blank screen on boot. However, that means you can’t access the BIOS for example, or see anything at all on the screen, until you reach the OS environment. And not being able to get in the BIOS could be a big problem in itself.
AsTom’s Hardwarereports, though, Nvidia has released a GPU firmware update for the RTX 4090 andRTX 4080to cure these blank screen blues.
Note that the problem will only happen with certainmotherboardswhich are in UEFI mode.
Nvidia says: “The Nvidia GPU Firmware Update Tool will detect whether the firmware update is needed, and if needed, will give the user the option to update it.”
For those experiencing a blank screen on boot with their new Lovelace GPU, you can grab therelevant update here, where Nvidia also provides instructions on how to get going with the update.
Analysis: Another Lovelace GPU glitch for Nvidia – but the solution has arrived quickly this time
By all accounts, this problem is a rare one, so that’s some good news. Still, if you’re affected, it’ll obviously be frustrating not to be able to reach the BIOS (though at least your PC will still boot fine to the desktop).
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As Nvidia notes, don’t apply the update unless you’re actually experiencing the blank screen – there’s no need to risk a firmware update if you don’t have a tangible problem to resolve, of course.
Note that this gremlin in the works has nothing to do with the other well-publicized issue that has hit the RTX 4090 graphics card, namely the melting cable controversy. (We’ve just heard an update from Nvidia on that problem, by the way, and it seems the culprit, as thought, is thepower adapter not being plugged in correctly.)
Darren is a freelancer writing news and features for TechRadar (and occasionally T3) across a broad range of computing topics including CPUs, GPUs, various other hardware, VPNs, antivirus and more. He has written about tech for the best part of three decades, and writes books in his spare time (his debut novel - ‘I Know What You Did Last Supper’ - was published by Hachette UK in 2013).
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