M17 won't start - black screen - fan turns on, keyboard lights up, nothing on screen.

Hi,

Just to confirm, have you seen the lines appear outside of Windows? For example, in the Bios or in the initial boot screens before it boots into Windows?

Hi, I only see them after the initial boot screen.

Hi,

Do you have an external monitor that you can test with this computer (like a TV with an HDMI cable)? If the lines do not appear on the external monitor, it could be an issue with the LCD screen.

Hi there, thanks for your reply. I've just tried it on an external monitor via a HDMI cable, and the same lines appeared on that screen also. After this, my laptop screen started to cycle through block colours, going from black, white, red & green seemingly at random.

Hi, 

Thanks for confirming this. Try reinstalling both the Intel and NVidia/AMD drivers, you can use the Intel driver from the Dell support site. For the NVidia/AMD driver, use the latest version from their website. Also, make sure your system is running the latest Bios firmware, click here for the download link. 

Installing the BIOS doesn't work, I get the following error message:

IHISI: Get support mode error in SMI!

SMI Return Code: 0xEF

Hi, 

Can you please confirm the revision of your Alienware M17 system?

I'm sorry, I don't understand what you mean.

Hi, 

The revision of the model is what I meant, like for example is it the Alienware 17 R1?

Hi there, the model is Alienware M17x R2.

Hi, 

Thanks for confirming this. The Bios link that I provided to you is incorrect for this model, try this one. You can find all of the drivers and applications on the Dell support site. Try reinstalling the video card drivers and let us know how it goes. 

Hi, I did a complete clean re-installation of Windows and then downloaded and installed the BIOS, chipset and all drivers. The screen went again about 30 minutes after this was done.

Hi, 

If your system is in warranty, send me a PM with your service tag for further assistance.