Black Screen with a Twist

[mrg_50_68]

Hello,

I am in the process of resetting this computer to put it up for sale.    I spent all evening Sunday doing the "reset this PC" option from Windows.    It did a clean install of Windows 10.   I did notice during the process that it ran into a disk issue, because it ran the "scan and repair option" once or twice , as well as the Windows Repair option.   

The computer does boot up, but after about 10-15 minutes, the screen goes black.   The twist is that the day prior, I spent almost all day clearing partitions and drives that were not in use in Windows Safe Mode.    The screen did not go black once during that time.

I've read elsewhere the possibility about Overheating, but that does not seem to be supported given the fact the computer was on for almost all day the day prior without having a black screen.     There is nothing external connected to the power supply other than the DVD-RW and the main hard drive.   There is no PCI-E drive in use.   I know that the power supply on this model is not particulary strong, which I should have checked before buying the model.

I do suspect some type of Windows "conflict", though I believe it started occurring with the October 2018 update.   The BIOS of the computer I believe is at the most recent download, or the one before it.   I will be checking that later today.  I've also read that Windows conflicts typically result in Blue Screen errors not Black screen.

Safe Mode does not seem to have the issue whatsoever.

I have not installed any additional software at this point, unless someone recommends I do.   Just running all of the native stuff that comes with the machine and Windows.

Does anyone have a path that might at least point out the issue?    I am considering contacting Microsoft, but I know they are doing to try to pin it on the machine (hardware issue).   The machine is a refurbished unit, and is no longer under warranty.

But I have owned it for just over 3 months.    I am getting rid of it, because it has underwhelming performance.

I know with a black screen there are many possibilities , but I am hoping with the background I've provided, it may trigger additional discussion.    I do wonder about the hard disk errors, if they are causing general faults in windows, but that will require more investigation.    The Windows Reset process I believe is supposed to wipe the drive if you tell it to, so I am beginning to wonder if I have a faulty hard-drive.

[KrazyToad]

@mrg_50_68

Welcome to HP Support Forums. A really great platform for posting all your questions and finding solutions.

I have gone through your Post and I understand your concerns

I suggest you run a Hard drive test to confirm the Hardware Functionality
 

- Hold the power button for at least five seconds to turn off the computer.
- Turn on the computer and immediately press Esc repeatedly, about once every second. 
- When the menu appears, press the F2 key.
- On the main menu, click Component Tests and Hard drive

If the Test pass, I suggest you perform a System Recovery using the Recovery Media

If you do not have the Recovery Media, please follow the instructions I sent in the private message

Please check your private message icon on the upper right corner of your HP Forums profile.

Next to your profile Name, you should see a little blue envelope

Thank you 😊