Troubleshooting GPU Issues: A Tech Professional’s Frustration

As an IT professional, encountering technical issues is part of the job. However, sometimes even the most seasoned experts can feel stumped. This was my experience recently with a used laptop, purchased from my company, that boasted an Nvidia GeForce 3060 notebook GPU—an impressive piece of technology that functioned flawlessly for two weeks, before abruptly letting me down.

After its sudden failure, I took all the usual steps you might expect a tech-savvy individual to try. I began by reinstalling the graphics drivers and checking for BIOS updates, hoping to breathe new life into the GPU. When that didn’t yield results, I went the extra mile: I reverted both the BIOS and Windows updates to earlier versions in case something had gone awry.

Determined, I uninstalled the drivers entirely and attempted to revert to older versions, convinced that a fresh start might resolve the issue. Even a complete reinstallation of Windows didn’t bring the performance back to life—I even tried downgrading to a previous Windows release without success.

Interestingly, the GPU still appears in the Device Manager without any warning signs, leading to an even greater sense of confusion. However, the moment I launch any graphics-intensive program, the GPU seems to vanish from recognition.

Now, I turn to the community for insight. Has anyone else faced a similar predicament with their GPUs? What suggestions do you have for troubleshooting this issue? Your guidance could help shed light on this perplexing problem.