PanP7 colored lines on screen.

[Tank Jr]

Hi all:

I have a panp7 that I purchased in 2011. Recently while use, suddenly a number of colored lines appear on the screen, and the computer seems to hang. A hard reboot sometimes fixes this, but the problem simply reappears later. A picture of what it looks like is attached.

IMG_0931.JPG

This problem I have seen in Ubuntu 14.04, 15.04, 15.10.

I hooked the laptop to my TV, and the lines also show up there.
Sometimes the lines can be seen on the first screen when I power the computer on, with the system76 screen.

I am guessing that my graphics card is toast. Is there a way to upgrade/repair it?

[re1d]

Tank Jr -

I just had a failure of a similar sort on my 2010 PanP7 - in my case, the vertical lines were narrower and more numerous, and they appeared on the external monitor, while the laptop's built-in monitor just went black. Subsequent restarts only result in inert black screens, no beeps or noises, and no response to any inputs. You can hear the CPU fan running, however.

My P7 had the optional ATI 4570 graphics card. Like you, I suspect that the graphics card is a goner. Now I'm wondering whether the optional card plugged in (as opposed to being soldered in) so that maybe I could obtain another one to swap out. That would be a fairly painless fix. I'd like to keep this thing running for several more years, as it's been my main work machine since new and I've always loved it. It's still faster than many brand-new computers I see running Windows.

I have a Q in with System76 support, and I hope they'll give me some clues. If I learn anything, I'll post it here. Good luck!

[Tank Jr]

Thanks for replying.
I saw your other post, and the issue seems very similar to mine (if not identical). I believe I too have the ATI 4570 card, but I will check once I get home tonight.
The laptop does not show anything on the screen, but it boots, because it shows up on my router as a connected device.
Typically once I have the problem, the blank screen persists for a day or two.

Can some one from System76 please let us know if the graphics card can be replaced? The laptop is one with solid performance, and I would hate to discard it.

[re1d]

Tank Jr - see my other thread, but it turns out the 4570 in the Pan P7 is not replaceable. ATI apparently sold it as a discrete board that plugged in, or as an integrated MB component. I understand that in the Pan P7 it's integrated.

They have offered send a quote for replacing the MB - not sure whether I'll do it. This has been a great computer, and still has lots of life left in it - even at almost 6 yrs old, it's faster & more responsive than a friend's new Win10 box - but we'll see what the damage is for the MB replacement first! I've used it primarily as a desktop replacement, so if it's too much for the MB I may just replace it with a Meerkat.

Good luck!