Troubleshooting GPU Issues: A Frustrating Encounter with My Nvidia 3060

As an IT professional, it’s not uncommon to face unexpected challenges, but sometimes, technology can leave even the most seasoned experts feeling a bit stumped. Recently, I found myself dealing with a troublesome issue involving a used laptop I purchased from my previous employer.

Equipped with an Nvidia 3060 notebook GPU, the laptop performed brilliantly for two weeks. However, out of the blue, the graphics card ceased functioning, prompting a series of troubleshooting attempts that yielded no success.

Here’s a breakdown of the steps I’ve taken so far in hopes of restoring the GPU to its former glory:

1. Driver Reinstallation: I began by uninstalling and reinstalling the latest drivers from Nvidia’s website, thinking this might resolve any conflicts.

2. Updating BIOS: Ensuring the laptop’s BIOS was up-to-date seemed like a logical next step, so I promptly executed a BIOS update.

3. Reverting Updates: In case the issues were sparked by recent updates, I decided to revert both BIOS and Windows updates to previous versions.

4. Driver Rollback: I also tried rolling back to older driver versions to see if the issue stemmed from a recent change.

5. Windows Reinstallation: Finally, I went for the nuclear option and performed a complete reinstallation of Windows, reverting to an earlier version in hopes of resolving software conflicts.

Despite these efforts, the GPU is still visible in the Device Manager but isn’t being recognized by other applications. This ongoing technical conundrum has led me to reach out to the community for insights.

Have you experienced a similar issue with your GPU? Any tips or suggestions on potential solutions would be greatly appreciated! Let’s collaborate and find a way to tackle this perplexing problem together.