NUC11 PAHi5 - no HDMI signal if monitor is powered off upon boot

[NZQmeister]

Sorry if this has been posted previously... I'm new here...

I am seeing "No signal detected" for HDMI input from my new NUC11, but only if the monitor was powered off when I turned on the NUC, then the monitor was powered on after.

I have a dual input HP monitor at home. The Displayport input has an HP laptop connected for work. The NUC is connected to the HDMI input.

If I see "signal not found" from the NUC, I either have to power down the NUC and restart it, or unplug the HDMI cable and reconnect it. Either way, I now have signal. It also works every time if the monitor was powered on before the NUC.

I didnt have this problem with my old NUC5. THe HP laptop also has no problem.

I installed the latest Xe driver by downloading it separately. I also have the latest BIOS, according to Intel's checker tool.

Ideas?

Thanks for your help,

NZ Q (this is my third NUC).

[Alberto_R_Intel]

NZQmeister, Thank you for posting in the Intel® Communities Support.

In order for us to provide the most accurate assistance on this matter, we just wanted to confirm a few details about your system:

What is the model of the monitor?

Is this a new Intel® NUC?

When did you purchase it?

Did the Intel® NUC ever work with this same monitor?

When did the issue start?

Did you make any recent hardware/software changes besides installing the drivers and the BIOS update?

Which Windows* version are you using?

Does the problem happen at home or in the work environment?

While the monitor works, please gather and attach the SSU report so we can verify further details about the components in your platform, check all the options in the report including the one that says "3rd party software logs":

https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/25293/Intel-System-Support-Utility-for-Windows-?product=91600

Any questions, please let me know.

Regards,

Albert R.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[NZQmeister]

Hi Albert,

Thanks for your help, to answer your questions...

- What is the model of the monitor?:   HP E273q

- Is this a new Intel® NUC?: Yes

- When did you purchase it? Purchase date on invoice receipt=11 May 2021.

- Did the Intel® NUC ever work with this same monitor? Answer: It always worked, except for that one repproducable condition I described: The monitor displays "No signal detected" when the NUC is powered on before the monitor is turned on from the mains power switch. It works perfectly if the monitor was already on when the NUC boots or reboots, or if the HDMI cable is unplugged then plugged back in.

- When did the issue start? The problem has existed from new.  For comparison, my previous Gen 5 NUC, which the NUC 11 replaced, did not have this problem.

- It is worth noting that I can use the NUC's power switch to soft shut down the computer, then when I boot it again (with the monitor still powered on), the NUC outputs graphics to the monitor correctly.

- Did you make any recent hardware/software changes besides installing the drivers and the BIOS update? I have made no changes since that first purchase day, when I installed the RAM and SSD. As previously stated, once the monitor is displaying the NUC output, it never once crashes.

- Which Windows* version are you using? I installed Windows 10 release 21H1 from USB thumb drive.

- Does the problem happen at home or in the work environment? At home. Note that the monitor is shared with my work laptop, which connects using the Displayport connector. (The monitor has an HDMI and a DIsplayport connector, and can switch between the two).

The NUC is always turned off when I use the laptop, and the monitor does not exhibit the same problem with the laptop. It will always display, whether I powered the monitor on before or after the laptop,

Get-ComputerInfo shows:

CsModel : NUC11PAHi5
CsProcessors : {11th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-1135G7 @ 2.40GHz}
BiosVersion : INTEL - 28
BiosReleaseDate : 14/04/2021 12:00:00 pm
BiosFirmwareType : Uefi
WindowsProductName : Windows 10 Pro
WindowsInstallDateFromRegistry : 12/05/2021 11:00:25 am
CsSystemSKUNumber : RNUC11PAHi5000
OsName : Microsoft Windows 10 Pro
OsVersion : 10.0.19043
OsBuildNumber : 19043

[LeonWaksman]

1. Update the Graphics Driver to the latest version 9415 

2. You may want also to set Allow wake timers to Enable (current Power Plan, in Advanced Power Settings). See the attached image.

Leon

[NZQmeister]

Hi Leon

Thanks for linking me to the updated graphics driver. I downloaded, extracted and installed it, then tested: Still getting the same problem as noted, i.e. no display if NUC is powered on before the monitor is switched on at the wall. As previously noted, there is no problem if I power the monitor on first.

Next, I checked Allow Wake Timers... I had to enable it in the view first by following advice in https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/65716-add-remove-allow-wake-timers-power-options-windows-10-a.html... but the problem is unresolved.

It seems like the NUC stops looking for activity on the HDMI connection if the monitor was initially turned off during the NUC bootup, so it doesnt respond and start displaying anything when the monitor is turned on. In other words, the NUC thinks it is "headless" when it boots, but fails to detect that a monitor was attached (by simply powering it on), until I remove and plug in the HDMI lead.

[NZQmeister]

I just stumbled across this https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000033413/intel-nuc.html (What is Display Emulation and How Do you Enable it on Intel® NUC products?) ... in relation to headless operation.

Will give it a try...

[NZQmeister · Accepted solution]

Well, that Display Emulation link wasn't exactly it, but it was a good lead and I found the fix I needed. Read on...

The option to enable Display Emulation was completely missing from my BIOS config. Perhaps this has something to do with it being a different NUC 11 model sold in New Zealand (Asia Pacific), versus USA.

But I found a setting that worked:

1. (this probably wasn't needed) I set "IGD Primary Video Port" to HDMI instead of Auto, and disabled the second display, which showed as Displayport by default. This was my first test, but it was unsuccessful. The problem was unresolved.

2. (this fixed it) I set Wake on Display to "From Sleep/S4/S5". It was Disabled by default.

I can now run the NUC headless, and if I power on the monitor after the NUC is running, it has no problems.

...Looks like we can close this case now.

Thanks for all your help and advice,

-Q

[NZQmeister]

Looks like I spoke too soon. It still fails.

I suspect there was some residual current on the HDMI wires that signalled to the NUC that there was a monitor  present.

I came back after some time away and tested again, and the old problem has returned. No display. So I still either have to remove the HDMI lead and plug it into the NUC again, or reboot blindly.

[Alberto_R_Intel]

Hello NZQmeister, I just wanted to confirm if the problem with the HDMI signal persists and if you still need further assistance on this matter?

Regards,

Albert R.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Alberto_R_Intel]

Hello NZQmeister, Since we have not heard back from you, we are closing the case, but if you have any additional questions, please post them on a new thread so we can further assist you with this matter.

Regards,

Albert R.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[NZQmeister]

Hi Albert,

Sorry it took me a while to reply. I replied to your email but it took days before I got an undelivered message. I didn't notice the recipient (a problem with text being hidden on small phones).

The issue is most definitely not fixed. Please dont close the call.

thanks

[Tingyao]

I have the same problem (HDMI no more activity until next reboot)

Please reopen this case.

[Alwyn]

Hi Tingyao, recently i bought nuc 11pahi3, and i experienced the same problem.

But I think, i managed to solve the problem. at least until this moment i write. LOL.

Here are what i'v done:

1, goto bios, by pressing F2, on pc booting.

2. goto advanced tab, look for "HDMI CEC control", check it. Then disable all setting on display.

3. save and reboot. 

check if your problem solved.. cheers,

if not try to disable HDMI CEC control again , save and reboot, goto bios again, and do all 3 steps above again.

i think there is a bug in intel's bios. so it won't save correctly.

[Alwyn]

Works only for a few hours, must do all the bios things, to resolve. This nuc is bad.

[NUC111]

Hey i got the same problem!How do i fix this please?

[NZQmeister]

The HDMI problems came back after BIOS updates etc failed to fix it.

In the end I switched to using the DVI cable. Haven't had a problem since.

If you are using HDMI, I found that having my monitor powered off when I booted the NUC was the cause. When powering the monitor on after booting, there is nothing displayed, and it can only be fixed by a reboot. Messy.

At a guess, the NUC may be defaulting to DVI when there is no powered-on monitor detected. I have no problems when using a DVI cable and monitor.

-Q

[NUC111]

DVI kabel??Ihave only HDMI and Thunderbolt,my monitor is conected to the NUC with a thunderbolt 4 kable and still have this problem

[Sri4iot]

I tried the solution which was mentioned by OP, however found that mentioned configuration setting was already there. So it didn’t fix the blank display issue in my case. The issue arises when the NUC11 was booted without changing the HDMI port to respective port it is connected in the TV or Monitor or NUC 11 is powered on but the TV or Monitor is not powered on.  The configuration that fixed the display issue is by following the below given steps.

Press F2 to enter the BIOS.
Go to Advanced -> Video -> Display Emulation-> Persistent display emulation (from no display emulation).

My BIOS version is TNTGL357.0064.2022.0217.1550 on i3-1115G4 model. Now the CEC is working as well with my LG TV without any issue which I did not use earlier due to the blank display issue. 

[NUC111]

I will try this later,tank you.