Cannot enter BIOS due to broken screen

Question

Lately my laptop (HP g42 247sb) screen is damaged, so I hook it up with an external monitor (LG something) and it works fine now.

The only annoying thing is I cannot navigate the BIOS menu for some tweaking because the BIOS not shown on the external monitor, instead, it only shown on the broken laptop screen, and it only output to my external monitor when Windows/OS is logged-on.

So, is there anyway I can force output during BIOS/BOOT/POST to my external monitor?

Things I have done and didn't work:

1. Set my LG monitor as primary display on both window properties and Intel Graphics panel

2. Enter the BIOS (F10 key) and press the Fn+F4 key (change display output).

3. Disable and uninstall my internal screen (broken laptop screen) using device manager and restart, but Windows (BIOS?) install it back on log-on.

4. Closed lid/Magnet on sensor.

Solution 1

Please try to close the lid right after you press the start button. This works on my HP 6730b here, i can see the BIOS then.

Solution 2

A closed lid should force the output to the external monitor.

Most laptops detect a closed lid with a magnet and a sensor. There is a small magnet probably somewhere on the top edge of the screen, and a sensor in the area of the body of the laptop that it would be near when closed. You can use a small refrigerator magnet placed on the sensor to trick the laptop into thinking it's always closed, while still having access to keyboard and buttons.

You can find the location of the magnet by either taking off the plastic cover on your screen, looking for disassembled pics online, or just moving a magnet over the outer edge where it likely is.

Solution 3

You say you're having problems trying to get the "boot with lid closed" method working; I just want to make sure you're actually trying to boot with the lid closed, and not pressing the power button/quickly closing the lid.

If you are able to boot into Windows 10 and log in on the second screen, try the following:

1. Connect an external keyboard and mouse.

2. Go into Settings

   System -> Power ->Advanced Power Settings -> Change what closing the lid does ->
   Set both "When plugged in" and "When on battery" to "Do Nothing".

3. Close the lid. Your Windows login session should stay up and visible on the external monitor.

4. Restart the computer, leave the lid closed. (I opened a command line prompt and typed

   shutdown -r -t 0
   

   but a restart from the Windows 10 start menu should also work).

You should see the boot screen on the second monitor and you should be able to use the external keyboard to get into the BIOS.

Solution 4

I had the same problem. I took the bezel off my screen and disconnected the laptops monitor. This forces the computer to use the external monitor and shows the bios menus.

Solution 5

According to page 38 of the manual you can switch screen output between the display devices with FnF4

I expect this also works for the output before POST has completed.

View more solutions

Comments

[Admin]

If you can find someone with an identical machine, then you can do a blind walk through: Both people do the same thing on both laptops, the one with the working screen guiding the other.

[Admin]

In addition to what richard said. Some BIOS allow do deactivate the internal Screen. If you are able to achieve that blindly it could be working after a reboot.

[Admin]

Thank you for the input, but is there any other way than that because finding one with identical machine is quite hard, maybe a bios map?

[Admin]

It sounds like its time to replace te laptop and/or send it in for repairs.

[Admin]

Have you tried contacting the laptop tech support? It'll be a PITA but they might have some solution for you. Can you get the BIOS information (version no. etc) then possibly find more information about the BIOS, you might find information on external displays. Otherwise from all the other answers I see, probably just get the screen repaired? ...

[Admin]

You don’t need another laptop to do a blind walk, just check the manual to see what the BIOS options are like, then you can take notes about positions and locations. (Incidentally, several years ago, my monitor died around Christmas and I ended up using my dot-matrix printer as a monitor to do a few things like copying files and such until I could find a replacement.)

[gamer]

Didn't work, I press the start button and quickly closed the lid... even entered the bios(F10) tap some key to verify I'm in BIOS (by the beeping sound it made,I think I'm in BIOS) later I press the start button again to logon into windows and comment your answer.

[gamer]

It didn't work,look like the bios(mobo?) won't even send output to vga during start-up/memory test, but thank you for your input.

[DaleSwanson]

It may not work if you close the lid while already in the BIOS. Try finding the sensor location while you are in windows, that way you can have it think it's closed when it's turned on.

[gamer]

Okay,I will try to find the sensor location now. Thank you for the quick reply.

[Langhard]

also: at some notebooks usb keyboards work at boot time to enter bios

[gamer]

I found the sensor and place a magnet on it(the internal monitor goes off) then I restart but nothing happen, the external monitor just come up at windows logon.

[Langhard]

This seems weird to me. Your notebook should output your BIOS to the external screen... Do you have another screen to test? Maybe its an issue with unsupported screen resolution / framerate on the LG Monitor during the bootup process..?

[Synetech]

This is promising, assuming that the key works during the BIOS phase and is not limited to Windows (the backlight key probably works at a hardware level, but some of them may work in conjunction with a hotkey program in Windows).

[Antônio Medeiros]

This works on my Acer Aspire E 15 too! Thank you. I shared your solution, among many others I tried, here: unix.stackexchange.com/a/312326/106621

[speedyrazor]

Closing the lid also worked for me on a 4540s, thanks.

[ensignr]

This was the only thing that worked for me (though I disconnected the cable at the main board end). I dunno what happened as before I could use Win-P to "project" to external monitor and F10 did similar, but rebooted and nothing I tired could switch to external screen.

[Burgi]

I'm not sure your answer actually describes a valid process for accessing the BIOS on a second screen.

[mafu]

To make sure I understand this correctly: You are saying that setting the "closing the lid" will modify not just Windows behavior, but behavior at BIOS level, too?

[Spencer]

@mafu No. It will, however, enable you to reboot the computer with the lid closed. I can't speak for all BIOSes, but they are pretty resilient: the BIOS wants some screen to show the startup status on. If the lid of a laptop is closed, but the laptop is connected to an external monitor, it will fall back to using the external minitor.

[zakiakhmad]

It works on my Lenovo E480!

[HKIT]

i am facing the same situation. How can you disconnect from the mother board?