How to Troubleshoot Computer Monitors:
- Check to make sure your monitor is on! Some monitors have more than one power button or switch - check to make sure they're all switched on.
- Check all your power connections. Your monitor might be working fine and your only problem may be a loose or unplugged monitor power cable.Note: A disconnected monitor power cable could be the cause of your problem if your monitor's power light is completely off.
- Check for the cables. Again, your monitor might be turning on without a problem but no information can get to it because the cable that connects your monitor to your computer is disconnected or loose. Note: A disconnected monitor data cable could be the cause of your problem if your monitor's power light is on but is amber or yellow instead of green.
- Turn the monitor's brightness and contrast settings completely up. Your monitor might be showing information but you just can't see it because these display settings are too dark. Note: Most monitors today have a single onscreen interface for all settings, including brightness and contrast. If it turns out that your monitor isn't working at all then you'll likely not have access to this interface. An older monitor might have manual knobs for adjusting these settings.
- Test that your computer is working correctly by connecting a different
monitor that you are certain is working properly to your PC. Your monitor
may be working fine but your computer might not be sending information to it.
- If the new monitor you connected does not show anything either, proceed to Step 6.
- If the new monitor you connected does show information from your computer, proceed to Step 7.
- Determine why your computer isn't sending information to your monitor. Since neither monitor works, you now know that the computer is not sending information to the monitor. In other words, you've proven that your computer is the reason that nothing shows up on your monitor. Chances are your original monitor is working fine.
- Test your original monitor with a monitor data cable that you know is working. It's possible that the monitor itself is working properly but it can't receive information from the computer because the cable that connects the monitor to the PC is no longer working. Note: If possible, test using the data cable from the monitor that you successfully tested with in Step 5. If not, purchase a replacement monitor data cable to test with. Note: The data cable on some older monitors are permanently connected to the monitor and are not replaceable. In these cases, you'll have to skip this step and proceed to Step 8.
- Replace the monitor.