Dual display not working. What's going on?

[Muse]

Never had this problem before, IIRC. I have an nVidia card with dual DVI (BFG 6600 GTOC AGP video card), both displays are 19" LCDs. I just hooked up my 2nd display. Haven't been using it but I need to use it now in dual display mode.

Running XP Pro. I turned on the 2nd display and it says No Signal. I rebooted, and saw the boot display information identically on both screens but when Windows has booted, the 2nd display says No Signal.

I tried setting things up in nVidia control panel, tried Clone, Horizontal dual display, nothing changes the 2nd display from showing No Signal. What can I try here? This used to work fine.

 

[Muse]

Now I'm in trouble:

I tried to get the system to Identify both displays. In doing so, my first monitor (the one that did display Windows) went blank. I sat there 15 seconds expecting Windows to reappear (the nVidia config always does that, if you don't like the results it restores the former config), but it stayed blank! WTF! I had no way of fixing anything, so I rebooted, same deal. I boot again and go into Safe Mode. In there I could find no way into nVidia Control Panel, no way whatsoever to change my display settings. What the hell am I supposed to do. Right now I'm in Windows only by virtue of my having a second boot partition, so I'm running a version of XP that I haven't done anything with for over a year. How can I fix my main boot partition?????????

Edit: In this Windows XP version, the 2nd display doesn't show up either.

 

[happy medium]

safe mode, system restore.

 

[Muse]

safe mode, system restore.

Um, what's "system restore?"

Anyway, a couple of boots later and Windows showed up, but on the 2nd display! I knew I was OK then. I changed the multiple display configuration and now dual view is working. Don't know why this happened. I think possibly the 2nd display was working, then wasn't because the DVI cable connection was dodgy. :\ I adjusted it, then after a reboot it worked. Well, it's a theory...

 

[happy medium]

Um, what's "system restore?"

Anyway, a couple of boots later and Windows showed up, but on the 2nd display! I knew I was OK then. I changed the multiple display configuration and now dual view is working. Don't know why this happened. I think possibly the 2nd display was working, then wasn't because the DVI cable connection was dodgy. :\ I adjusted it, then after a reboot it worked. Well, it's a theory...

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/306084

 

[Muse]

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/306084

Nice, never noticed that.

 

[NoQuarter]

In the future you could boot into safe mode and just go into device manager and remove the graphics card driver too

 

[Muse]

In the future you could boot into safe mode and just go into device manager and remove the graphics card driver too

True. I've done that several times in the past. Didn't think of it last night. If things hadn't worked out, I suppose I would have gotten that idea. Many's the time I've resorted to that tactic.

Sometimes dual monitors is just the thing!

 

[AlucardX]

uninstall video card drivers, run driver sweeper in safe mode. get back into windows and install latest video card drivers, reboot.

now that you're starting fresh with new drivers, goto nV display options and look for where it has the dual display options, you'll want DualView. This will extend your desktop to the right monitor.

 

[WelshBloke]

uninstall video card drivers, run driver sweeper in safe mode. get back into windows and install latest video card drivers, reboot.

now that you're starting fresh with new drivers, goto nV display options and look for where it has the dual display options, you'll want DualView. This will extend your desktop to the right monitor.

This man, he speaks the truth. ()

I had this problem and it was a borked driver.

 

[Muse]

This man, he speaks the truth. ()

I had this problem and it was a borked driver.

Best practices, I imagine. However that's a lot of work. Somehow things sorted out, I think because I fiddled with the connection of the DVI cable to Monitor 2. Next time I rebooted, things were evidently working OK.

The "latest" nVidia driver I think is not what I want for the combination of vidcard and OS I'm running. I'm running a driver recommended to me, here in Anandtech Forums, IIRC.