Come, Play along with me...

[Shropshire Slasher]

My dell XPS M1710 died during CS:S last night

 

Upon reboot, the load screens have green has marks across them.

 

What follows is a my chat log. I'm only half way done. more or less.

 

12:39:43 PM System System

You are now being connected to an agent. Thank you for using Dell Chat

12:39:43 PM System System

Connected with LIBX_Mary_191567

12:39:58 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Thank you for contacting/using DELL XPS premium Chat support! My name is Mary, How may I help you today?

12:40:24 PM Customer Charles Moreau

My XPS M1710 hung last night while playing a game.

12:40:39 PM Customer Charles Moreau

then upon reboot it had distorted video and won't boot into windows

12:40:53 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

I’ll be happy to assist you with that. Can I start with your name, Service Tag, system type, email address, and current contact phone number.

12:41:34 PM Customer Charles Moreau

BITE ME HA><ORZ!!!1!1!!!!!!!ZOMG!!!!!11!

12:42:04 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Thank you for those in formations.

12:42:38 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

One moment please,I will pull up your record.Thank you.

12:43:28 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

May I call you with your first name?

12:43:38 PM Customer Charles Moreau

yes

12:44:28 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Pleased to meet you Charles,just to inform you the warranty of your system is still active.

12:44:36 PM Customer Charles Moreau

thank you

12:44:38 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Are we chatting on the system with the issue?

12:44:46 PM Customer Charles Moreau

no

12:45:16 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Did you try anything already yourself?

12:46:29 PM Customer Charles Moreau

well, I cleaned the heat exchangers where they are visible through the chasis grills (by the fans on the left and right side).

12:46:49 PM Customer Charles Moreau

I suspected heat, because that was cited as a reason the last service call was necessary

12:46:57 PM Customer Charles Moreau

but upon reboot

12:47:20 PM Customer Charles Moreau

the screen showed green hash marks superimposed upon the boot screen

12:47:33 PM Customer Charles Moreau

then the system never seems to make it to windows.

12:47:39 PM Customer Charles Moreau

just a black screen

12:48:28 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ok,Charles can you give me at least 3 minutes to further study your case.Thank you.

12:48:39 PM Customer Charles Moreau

sure

12:51:29 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Charles to verify your portable don't boot in normal mode.Correct?

12:51:37 PM Customer Charles Moreau

correct

12:51:58 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Have you tried to boot in safe mode?

12:52:02 PM Customer Charles Moreau

no

12:52:30 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ok lets try it and see what will happen.

12:52:35 PM Customer Charles Moreau

ok

12:52:59 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

To access safe mode, restart your computer and at the Dell screen slowly start tapping F8 to access the Windows advanced startup options. Next, highlight safe mode and press Enter, then select the appropriate operating system and press Enter again.

12:54:28 PM Customer Charles Moreau

Safe mode is loading. I appear to be at the desktop

12:55:19 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Is there an option?

12:55:56 PM Customer Charles Moreau

?

12:56:03 PM Customer Charles Moreau

windows loaded safe mode

12:56:33 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

click yes

12:56:47 PM Customer Charles Moreau

k

12:56:53 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

After the Desktop appears with the words Safe Mode in all four corners, click Start, click Settings, click Control Panel, and click Add/Remove Programs.

12:57:34 PM Customer Charles Moreau

k

12:57:48 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Remove the program

12:57:53 PM Customer Charles Moreau

which?

12:58:09 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Are we chatting on the system with the issue?

12:58:17 PM Customer Charles Moreau

no

12:58:32 PM Customer Charles Moreau

it is sitting next to me

12:58:39 PM Customer Charles Moreau

which program am I to remove

12:58:41 PM Customer Charles Moreau

?

12:59:19 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

What software have you installed recently?

1:00:00 PM Customer Charles Moreau

Nothing recently

1:00:24 PM Customer Charles Moreau

and I was able to play the same game for all weekend before the sudden crash

1:00:29 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ok.

1:01:24 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Anyway what game are you playing when this problem occurred?

1:01:34 PM Customer Charles Moreau

Counter Strike: Source

1:01:48 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

What kind of anti-virus your currently using?

1:02:17 PM Customer Charles Moreau

Ire currently using Symantec

1:03:09 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Does McAfee still in your system?

1:03:14 PM Customer Charles Moreau

no

1:03:35 PM Customer Charles Moreau

My employer uses Symantec, and provides updates

1:03:54 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ok let me work on it.

1:04:59 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

lets continue to boot in safe mode.Can you restart the computer for me.Thanks.

1:05:22 PM Customer Charles Moreau

I'm already in safe mode. Do I need to restart? we haven't done anything yet

1:06:29 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Yes we need to restart the system to verify if it starts up properly in safemode.

1:06:58 PM Customer Charles Moreau

k. gimme a sec.

1:07:39 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Take your time.

Edited October 27, 2008 by Shropshire Slasher

[Shropshire Slasher]

You can probably see where I start to scratch my head at some of the responses and requests I'm getting.

 

As it get's more comical (odd requests, poor grammar), I start reciprocate. For lulz.

[Shropshire Slasher]

1:10:48 PM Customer Charles Moreau

k safe mode has (re) loaded

1:11:38 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Ok tell me what will happen next

1:12:10 PM Customer Charles Moreau

well, I get a desktop, with safe mode written in all three corners.

1:12:23 PM Customer Charles Moreau

The bios boot screen still exhibits distortion

1:12:58 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

you video distortion still occurs/

1:13:13 PM Customer Charles Moreau

during bios and windows boot screens, yes

1:13:24 PM Customer Charles Moreau

In Safe mode, distortion seems to be gone

1:13:32 PM Customer Charles Moreau

Still cannot boot into windows normal mode

1:14:48 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ok let me clarify you cant boot in normal mode and your video screen is distorted.Correct?In safe mode its the same both problem still occurs?

1:15:28 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Is there any error message?

1:15:32 PM Customer Charles Moreau

If I boot in normal mode, the BIOS screen and windows boot screens are distorted, but I never get into windows. Just a black screen where login should be.

1:15:55 PM Customer Charles Moreau

If I boot into safe mode, I get the BIOS and windows boot screen corruption, but I can log into windows

1:16:03 PM Customer Charles Moreau

No error messages are ever displayed

1:16:33 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ok let me check on something.One moment please.Thank you.

[stutters]

 

 

 

btw, dr. moreau? like, uh, as in "the island of dr. moreau?"

[utube]H4Fk8WU17Dw[/utube]

 

er, wait, meant this one

[utube]zLVIXyUPVl4[/utube]

[Magruter]

WOW, sounds painful. I'd just call next time, speaker phone is much easier.

[Shropshire Slasher]

My guess at this point is that I've got a crappy nvidia chip (7900 GTX). After all, the problem is happening in the bios boot screen. This indicates that it is coming off the card at the hardware level.

 

We'll see what we get down the line.

[Shropshire Slasher]

oh, and another thing... stay by the keyboard. I've noticed that they will leave you hanging for 5+ min. But if you don't respond in 30 sec, they start pestering you, with a finger on the dump button

[Magruter]

I pester them after 30 seconds too. They do like to take short coffee breaks, it's a method that deters people from calling in the future.

[Shropshire Slasher]

1:18:23 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ok lets try to run diagnostics.woul

1:18:53 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

heres what we are going to do.

1:19:28 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Hi,are you still there?

1:19:50 PM Customer Charles Moreau

yes

1:20:33 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Kindly turn of the system.Thank you.

1:20:48 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Push and hold the power button for 10 seconds to confirm the system is completely powered off.

1:21:18 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

tell me if your done.

1:21:27 PM Customer Charles Moreau

k

1:21:30 PM Customer Charles Moreau

done

1:21:48 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Press and hold the <Fn> key, and then press the power button to power the system on.

1:22:03 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Release both buttons. The Pre-Boot System Assessment screen appears and the PSA diagnostics begin.

1:22:08 PM Customer Charles Moreau

k

1:22:18 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Do not press any keys while the tests are running unless prompted to do so.

1:22:30 PM Customer Charles Moreau

k

1:22:38 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Document any error codes displayed by PSA diagnostics. After the error tones, or completion of the PSA diagnostics, the Dell 32-bit Diagnostic screen appears.

1:22:58 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Press the <Enter> key to select the Express Test from the menu.

1:23:23 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Document any error codes that are received

1:24:43 PM Customer Charles Moreau

tests are running. The screen corruption is visible during these tests, but don't het seem to affect them.

1:26:55 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

so cant see if theres an error code/

1:27:47 PM Customer Charles Moreau

The corruption doesn't render the screen unreadable. Imagine viewing the screen with small green or white pixels superimposed on top of it

1:27:58 PM Customer Charles Moreau

in a regular pattern

1:29:39 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

is there any peripheral connected top your system?

1:29:45 PM Customer Charles Moreau

no

1:30:09 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

By the way what kind of video cards are you using?

1:31:00 PM Customer Charles Moreau

the system still has the nVidia 7900 GTX that it shipped with.

1:31:23 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ok.thank you for that information.

1:34:28 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

All right Charles since diagnostic wont work.Lets try system restore would that be fine with you?

1:35:19 PM Customer Charles Moreau

? diagnostic is currently running.

1:35:37 PM Customer Charles Moreau

would you like to let it finish?

1:36:03 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ok.thought there is no error sorry,my mistake.

1:36:13 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

let it finish.

[stutters]

is mary you're customer service rep.or your friend her?

 

[Shropshire Slasher]

[Shropshire Slasher]

 

is mary you're customer service rep.or your friend her?

 

 

Maybe both! I'll ask her out here while the memory diag is running.

[stutters]

 

 

 

 

[JackieChan]

12:40:53 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

I̢۪ll be happy to assist you with that. Can I start with your name, Service Tag, system type, email address, and current contact phone number.

 

I'd get rid of the information you gave on the forum if I were you. I mean, I wouldn't have it there.

Edited October 27, 2008 by JackieChan

[Shropshire Slasher]

12:40:53 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

I�€™ll be happy to assist you with that. Can I start with your name, Service Tag, system type, email address, and current contact phone number.

 

I'd get rid of the information you gave on the forum if I were you. I mean, I wouldn't have it there.

 

Done. Good point.

 

1:51:18 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Actually Charles im suspecting athat it might be the LCD or the controller thats causing the problem.

1:51:27 PM Customer Charles Moreau

?

1:51:59 PM Customer Charles Moreau

I would place money on the controller, as the lockup happned in game, and the corruption isn't visible in windows safe mode

1:52:44 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

But then you told me that you can't boot to window.That complicate it

1:54:13 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ok

1:54:29 PM Customer Charles Moreau

I CANNOT BOOT TO NORMAL MODE!!!!!!!

1:54:39 PM Customer Charles Moreau

ONLY SAFE MODE!!!!!!

 

 

I'm pushing it here. But, c'mon!

 

 

FTW

[boiler]

[Unclean]

Wow. It's like someone at Dell support got fired, but before he left, he messed with the scripts.

 

Does the user have graphics problem issues?

Yes: Uninstall the error message.

No: Ask about anti-virus software.

[Shropshire Slasher]

1:57:03 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

I figure it out.

1:57:09 PM Customer Charles Moreau

?

1:57:28 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Would you mind if we cancel the memory test.

1:57:33 PM Customer Charles Moreau

not at all

1:57:58 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Your system is in safe mode now,correct?

1:58:10 PM Customer Charles Moreau

no. diagnostic mode

1:58:33 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ok go on safe mode.

1:58:59 PM Customer Charles Moreau

how do I end diagnostic?

1:59:04 PM Customer Charles Moreau

just power off /on?

2:00:23 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

press escape or power off.

2:01:12 PM Customer Charles Moreau

k booting into safe mode

2:02:38 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ok

2:02:44 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

tell me when its done.

2:02:51 PM Customer Charles Moreau

done

2:04:04 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ok while in safe mode.Kindly remove the video card driver.

2:04:41 PM Customer Charles Moreau

use "add/remove programs"?

2:04:49 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Just tell me when your done.

2:05:53 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ues

2:05:59 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

go in device manager

2:07:28 PM Customer Charles Moreau

drivers removed, rebooting. still in safe mode?

2:08:30 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Great,Now Charles,lets try to boot in normal mode and see what will happen.Can you that for me?Thanks.

[dwEEziL]

You need to give Dell TS a call. This chat log is a huge joke. Tell Mary to start writing down the answers to some of the things she asks you fgs (for goodness sakes). By the time this chat session is done, your computer won't be under warranty anymore.

[Shropshire Slasher]

ROFL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

2:10:19 PM Customer Charles Moreau

i'll let you know if/when I make it

2:10:43 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ok.

2:10:53 PM Customer Charles Moreau

in Normal mode, with standard VGA driver.

2:11:10 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

yes

2:11:26 PM Customer Charles Moreau

Found New Hardware Wizard came up

2:11:40 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

What does it say?

2:12:16 PM Customer Charles Moreau

Welcome to Found New Hardware Wizard

2:12:28 PM Customer Charles Moreau

Can Windows connect ot windows update to search for software

Edited October 27, 2008 by Shropshire Slasher

[Shropshire Slasher]

2:46:38 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

can you go to support.dell.com

2:48:05 PM Customer Charles Moreau

yes

2:48:33 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

We will just download the driver.Through support.dell.com

2:48:50 PM Customer Charles Moreau

k

2:49:03 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

tell me when your there

2:49:12 PM Customer Charles Moreau

there. will I enter the service tag?

2:50:24 PM Customer Charles Moreau

que?

2:50:38 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

yes,

2:51:13 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

are you there?

2:51:27 PM Customer Charles Moreau

yes

2:52:03 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Then click on video

2:52:14 PM Customer Charles Moreau

k

2:52:48 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

download NVIDIA 7900 GTX,XM1

2:53:54 PM Customer Charles Moreau

The option I have is 7900 GTX 174.31 XP, A05

2:54:36 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

click Nvidia 7900 GTX

2:54:52 PM Customer Charles Moreau

k

2:55:09 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

tell me what will happen.

2:55:21 PM Customer Charles Moreau

It wants me to download R180918.exe

2:55:44 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

let me verify it.

2:58:39 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

Im sorry my mistake please choose 7900 GTX 174.31 XP, A05

3:00:14 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

then download R180918.exe

3:01:04 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

tell me when it work.Thank you.

3:01:13 PM Customer Charles Moreau

I have the file downloaded.

3:02:09 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ok.So can we consider this issue resolved?

3:02:35 PM Customer Charles Moreau

um... what?

3:02:46 PM Customer Charles Moreau

I downloaded the driver. Did you want me to install it?

[Shropshire Slasher]

3:03:34 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

yes kindly install.Im sorry for the inconvinience.

3:03:50 PM Customer Charles Moreau

working

3:04:14 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ok

3:05:24 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

just tell me when your done.

3:05:50 PM Customer Charles Moreau

Just now, as the driver was installing, my screen went black.

3:06:08 PM Customer Charles Moreau

Now it is just sitting here. A black nothingness. Alone, cold.

[Shropshire Slasher]

And the laughs keep coming

 

3:07:04 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ok let me see what else we can do.

3:08:24 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

ok lets try it again.

3:08:56 PM Customer Charles Moreau

k. Do I go back to safe mode, uninstall drivers, then boot normal mode, reinstall the nvidia driver?

3:09:15 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

yes.

3:10:44 PM Agent LIBX_Mary_191567

anyway Charles believe you downloaded the drivers successfully.

3:11:15 PM Customer Charles Moreau

question for you as I do that. How might a bad video driver in Windows cause vga corruption during the POST screen, Windows startup screen, and diagnostic mode screen?

3:11:25 PM Customer Charles Moreau

yes, driver downloaded successfully

[Unclean]

This is kind of a weird spectator sport, btw.

 

6 User(s) are reading this topic (0 Guests and 0 Anonymous Users)

6 Members: Unclean, Shropshire Slasher, [LaW]Maverick, san`, BushM, lonewolf

[Bewildered]

3:11:15 PM Customer Charles Moreau

question for you as I do that. How might a bad video driver in Windows cause vga corruption during the POST screen, Windows startup screen, and diagnostic mode screen?

 

 

Enjoying the thread