"Display connection might be limited" - Windows 11

[ldoodle]

Hi,

I've been trying to find an answer to this problem on Reddit, HP Forums, and Anker directly. This is my last hope since Thunderbolt ("TB") was partly designed by Intel.

My setup:

Hp Spectre x360 13" laptop - supposedly full TB4 certification
Anker PowerExpand 5-in-1 dock - supposedly full TB4 certification; 1 upstream / 3 downstream. All 4 are USB-C and supposedly provide TB4 capabilities
8K capable 4-in / 1-out HDMI switch
Philips Momentum 32" 4K HDR monitor - DisplayHDR 400 certification
Both Anker original and Cable Matters TB cables (different lengths) - supposedly both full TB4 certification; the Anker is 0.7m so passive and the Cable Matters is 2m so active
Cable Matters USB-C to HDMI adapter - supposedly full TB4 certification

The laptop is connected to the dock with either of the 2 TB4 cables mentioned above
The dock is connected to the HDMI switch via the USB-C to HDMI adapter, with an 8K capable HDMI cable being used
The HDMI switch is connected to the monitor directly, also with an 8K capable cable
When docked, I use the monitor only ("Second screen only" option in Windows), not Extend or Duplicate

Every time I connect my laptop to the dock, it immediately pings up the notification mentioned in the title of this topic. At random points during the day my screen will go black for a couple of seconds and then come back - during this time I lose audio also (video calls for example) since the audio is passed to the montior

I have both HP Support Assistant and Intel's equivalent and neither show any driver updates available - the graphics driver is the latest available from Intel already.

Anker have completely replaced the dock (which comes bundled with the Anker TB4 cable above) - the replacement has exactly the same problem.

If I bypass the dock and connect the monitor directly to the laptop using all the same path (USB-C port on the laptop -> USB-C to HDMI adapter -> HDMI cable to switch -> HDMI cable to monitor) this notification never appears. I haven't been able to test this setup for a prolonged period to see if the black screen problem is solved also.

Given that everything is TB4 certified, I would not expect this problem. So does anyone have any other insight that could possibly help? Anker have admitted defeat. I like this Anker dock because it's small - I don't want something massive with millions of ports or even full-size ports.

Thanks so much!

HP Spectre x360 13-aw2024na Convertible Laptop - Core™ i7 - HP Store UK
PowerExpand 5-in-1 Thunderbolt 4 Mini Dock - Anker UK

[Andres_Intel]

Hello ldoodle,

Thank you for posting on the Intel®️ communities. I am sorry to hear that you are having black screen issues with your Intel® Graphics, I will be happy to help you.  

To have a better understanding of the situation, please answer the following questions: 

• How many external displays are you trying to use?
• Does the issue happen with the internal display?
• Download, run, save and attach the report for the following tool Intel® System Support Utility for Windows (SSU), you can find the steps on the link How to get the Intel® System Support Utility Logs on Windows. 

Regards,  

Andres P. 

Intel Customer Support Technician

[ldoodle]

Hi Andres,

Thanks for the reply.

Just to confirm:

Only 1 external display (32" 4K - by the way HDMI on this model is 2.1)
No I don't experience this directly on the laptop
I also don't experience this problem if the laptop is directly connected to the monitor using the same USB-C -> HDMI adapter and HDMI cable to the monitor

I only get this problem if I connect to the Anker dock. I totally appreciate there's many (non-Intel manufactured) parts here but any pointers would be brilliant.

I've just noticed something else also - Windows is showing me the option to enable HDR mode. My monitor is also HDR compliant but if I enable it in Windows my whole screen goes black also - although this applies when connecting through the dock. I haven't tried yet when directly connected from laptop to monitor.

I'll download that and get some logs.

Thanks again

[Andres_Intel]

Hello ldoodle,

Thank you for your response and all the information provided it has been really helpful. 

I will wait for you to attach Intel® System Support Utility for Windows (SSU) requested before to start with the troubleshooting.

Regards,  

Andres P. 

Intel Customer Support Technician

[ldoodle]

Hi Andres,

I've attached the file. This was with the dock and monitor connected, and the "Full Logging" option enabled in SSU.

Thanks

[Andres_Intel]

Hello doodle,

Thank you for your answer, it has been very helpful.

To continue with the troubleshooting please answer the following questions: 

• Update the graphics driver to version 27.20.100.9079 on HP Support. For guidance, How to Install an Intel® Graphics Driver in Windows® 10 & Windows 11.
• Update the graphics driver to version 31.0.101.4311. Following previous installation steps.

Regards,  

Andres P. 

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Andres_Intel]

Hello ldoodle,

Were you able to check the previous post?  

Let us know if you still need assistance.   

Best regards,  

Andres P.  

Intel Customer Support Technician

[ldoodle]

Hi Andres 

Thanks for the reply. I will undertake these steps today and report back later.

PS: When I install Graphics drivers directly from Intel I choose the option to perform a clean installation (deleting the previous installation)

[Andres_Intel]

Hello doodle,

Thank you for your response, and for letting me know that you will complete the steps later.

Yes, you can choose the option to perform a clean installation, for a proper installation.

Let me know the results.

Regards,  

Andres P. 

Intel Customer Support Technician

[ldoodle]

OK, so I've tried a couple of things:

1) Installing the HP driver, rebooting, then upgrading to the latest driver you linked to, rebooting. This doesn't rectify the problem. Actually it made it worse in some ways as I sometimes couldn't get my external monitor to work; it took half a dozen disconnects and reconnects of the dock to eventually kick it in to life. Literally unplug -> wait 10 seconds -> replug

2) Based on 1), I've completely re-installed Windows (11 22H2, using the true clean method of bootable USB, not the in-Windows 'Reset this PC' option) just in case there was a residual issue. I then re-installed all the drivers available from HP directly. This also doesn't rectify the problem

Is there any value in me providing another set of logs since the complete re-install to compare?

I am trying to borrow another laptop to test - unfortunately with TB4 laptops (and docks and cables) being really expensive I don't just have a spare one lying around 😁

Do Intel have a relationship with OEMs? I'm struggling to find how to contact HP to flag this problem to see if they know anything to try. It seems to me that my laptop is not honouring the capabilities of the dock (which as above is confirmed TB4 certified).

Thanks again.

[Andres_Intel]

Hello doodle,

Thank you for your answer, it has been really helpful.

I will start with an investigation to provide you with the next steps, as soon I have further information I will let you know.

Regards,

Andres P. 

Intel Customer Support Technician 

[ldoodle]

Thanks Andres.

As another update - I completely powered off my laptop last night after finishing with it, then powered it back on this morning. The Ctrl + Alt + Del login screen visually looked okay, but a few minutes after logging in and starting to use it, the screen went black again for a few seconds then came back and now it it looks like this - this is an example app, but the whole screen including taskbar and other apps etc. are the same.

What you are seeing isn't an image save compression thing - my whole screen actually looks fuzzy!

[ldoodle]

Well that doesn't really help! I took a screenshot of the screen thinking it would capture the problem but after rebooting the screen is OK again and that image also looks okay. If it happens again I'll take a picture with with my phone!

When I powered on this morning the laptop was connected to the dock before powering on. It immediately showed properly on the external monitor - then the screen went black and came back fuzzy as mentioned in previous post. So I restarted and on boot up it was not on my external monitor anymore - as previously mentioned I have my laptop closed when connected to the dock and ONLY use the external monitor ('Second screen only' option). Opening my laptop also did not show anything on it (suggesting 'Second screen only' was still set), but I managed to get it back by blindly setting to 'PC screen only' option using keyboard shortcuts (Win key + P then arrow keys). Then when I set it back to 'Second screen only' nothing showed on the external monitor or laptop screen again. So back to 'PC screen only' using keyboard shortcuts and I had to disconnect and reconnect to dock 3 times before it eventually went straight to 'Second screen only' option, and back working again.

Very weird this problem! Could it be some sort of HDCP problem?

[ldoodle]

From what I can see I do have everything set to 'Recommended':

[ldoodle]

PS: Not sure why Windows can't find HDR Certification since my monitor is 'DisplayHDR 400' certified. Works fine on all other sources (PS4, Chromecast 4K etc.), but when I enable HDR in Windows it goes black and never comes back.

Certified Products - VESA Certified DisplayHDR™

[Andres_Intel]

Hello doodle,

We have been working on the investigation, since the issue does not happen straight connected without docking, we recommend that you check first with your computer manufacturer and use the driver software provided by them to avoid potential installation incompatibilities and possible compatible display adapters or docking stations. Computer manufacturers might have changed the features, incorporated customizations, or made other changes to the graphics driver software or software packaging.

Let me know if you have further questions.

Regards,  

Andres P. 

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Andres_Intel]

Hello doodle, 

Were you able to check the previous post?  

Let us know if you still need assistance.

Best regards,  

Andres P.  

Intel Customer Support Technician

[DeividA_Intel]

Hello doodle,  

I was checking your thread and see that we have not heard back from you.  

I’m going to close your post, but if you need further assistance, please do not hesitate to create a new thread. 

Regards,  

Deivid A.  

Intel Customer Support Technician  

[ldoodle]

Hi Andres and Deivid,

Apologies for the lack of response - hope it's not too late to update.

I've been doing some testing...

I've since tried with another model laptop (Dell XPS 9315, 2023 model) and another model TB4 dock (CalDigit Element Hub 4). Both of these are brand new and claim TB4 capabilities. Interestingly I have exactly the same issues with this combination as I do with the HP Spectre x13 and Anker dock, and I even have the same issues using the Dell XPS 9315 laptop with the Anker dock, and the HP Spectre x13 laptop with the CalDigit dock.

I cannot be so unlucky to now have 3 defective docks and 2 defective laptops, all exhibiting exactly the same combination of issues. The only conclusion therefore is that there has to be a major inherent issue in the TB4 (and possibly previous generations as well) spec/hardware and/or possibly even the Windows 10/11 driver, specifically when connecting a laptop to an external monitor via a TB4 dock - since I don't have any of these issues when connecting either the Dell or HP laptops directly to the monitor using all the same adapters and cables I'm using with the dock.

I don't have access to a non-Windows TB4 laptop or other device, otherwise I would test that as well.

Therefore I have opened a support request directly with Intel - case number 05913869 if you're able to see them. If there's anything either of you can do to escalate this post to the relevant teams/people at Intel that would be brilliant.

TB4 is the most expensive and apparent superior method of all USB-C type connections, so something as basic as connecting an external monitor via a dock should not suffer such a terrible experience.

Thanks again

[ldoodle]

In addition, if I connect either laptop to either dock with the external monitor and cables completely disconnected from the dock, I still get the '"Display connection might be limited" error in Windows. I'm not sure how this is possible unless Windows is actually thinking the dock itself is a display device.