Surface Pro 4 "Plugged in, Not Charging"

Anonymous
2016-03-16T13:08:47+00:00

So I did a search and found a lot of similar issues with the Pro 2, but nothing that really fits what I'm dealing with regarding my pro 4.

I've already swapped it out once before for this same issue, so I don't believe this is just a one off issue.

I have a Surface pro 4, i7, 256gb, 16gb RAM. I use the Surface pro 3 docking station with insert and have connected through the dock the following:a Single Dell 24" monitor off the displayport out of the docking station, Satellite/sub sound system, wireless keyboard, wired mouse, and a bluray drive. So that's the setup.

here is the issue. When ever I attempt to do anything that is somewhat power intensive, I get the  "Plugged in, Not Charging" issue. For instance if I play "Call of Duty: Heroes" which is a download from the app store it stops charging. Doesn't matter if I have the surfaced docked or connected directly to the supplied power cable.

The batter charges, it lasts 4-5 hrs when not on the charger. If I'm just doing word processing or watching a video, if I'm not compiling code, digital circuits, or playing a very very very low demand game it works just fine.

Anyone with a similar issue? Anyone able to get this resolved?

Surface | Surface Pro | Power and battery

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

0 comments
Answer accepted by question author
Anonymous
2018-03-15T15:48:24+00:00

Here's what worked for me just now.

I've got a Surface Pro 4 i7/16GB  with the Microsoft Dock, and it stubbornly refused to charge.

I went into Device Manager, ![](https://learn-attachment.microsoft.com/api/attachments/1f924923-6af6-422b-8472-31c1b800abbc?platform=QnA and for each of the "Microsoft AC Adapter" and "Microsoft Surface ACPI-Compliant Control Method Battery" devices, I selected them, right-clicked, "Uninstall Device", then went to Action, Scan for Hardware Changes, and it re-appeared.  After doing that to each of them, my SP4 started charging again.  No reboot necessary.

More info can be found in the Surface battery won’t charge troubleshooting article.

Hope that helps someone out there.

Your mileage may vary.

-KwM-

Was this answer helpful?

80+ people found this answer helpful.
0 comments

97 additional answers

Sort by: Most helpful
Most helpful Newest Oldest
  1. Anonymous
    2018-01-13T02:09:29+00:00

    I agree.  Microsoft is a software company not hardware.  I'm on my 4th surface and all have been replaced at least once.  Thankfully I purchased the extended replacement from Best Buy and when my current SP4 started experiencing the "Plugged in Not Charging" issue it was replaced.  Not exactly the way I purchased the protection plan as BB told me MS revised their policies and MS had to verify the problem before BB could replace it even though the Geek Squad tech verified the problem.  They made me purchase an open box to use while mine was evaluated which I was able to return when my replacement finally arrived back to BB after being "evaluated" by MS.  A real pain to say the least as I only installed the basics apps.  I experienced the same issues with the MS Bands which I really liked but gave up and now have a Samsung smartwatch.  I am really torn as to what I will do when the current SP4 is out or protection and dies as when the MS hardware works it it great but extremely unreliable long term.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  2. Anonymous
    2018-01-10T19:56:10+00:00

    I leave my SP4 docked in the SP3 docking station all the time, it fully charges but after 5 hours it stops charging(plugged in, not charging/discharging) and then continues to drain the battery while still docked in the docking station for about two days when it shuts down when battery level gets under 10%.....only when I unplug the adapter from the wall or remove the SP4 from the docking station and plug the AC adapter or place it back in the docking station does the charging start again but after the battery is fully charged, this process starts all over again....it's clearly a software issue of the SP4 that stops accepting a charge after five hours of being fully charged.....

    Your issue is most likely a software issue as sometimes your battery charges.  Mine was clearly not a software issue.  Mine would never charge under any circumstance (I tried a dock and two other chargers) or even boot up off battery power.  I completely wiped the hard drive and started from the recovery partition and it still wouldn't charge with a clean image on the SP4.  This only happened after about 20 months of trouble free use.  It's clear that there are multiple issues around SP4 batteries.  Some may be software and some may be hardware.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  3. Anonymous
    2018-01-10T16:51:47+00:00

    ....it's clearly a software issue of the SP4 that stops accepting a charge after five hours of being fully charged.....

    What you're experiencing is exactly the issue I have and mine started right after the Creators Update was installed, no issue at all prior to that. I've been working with Microsoft through our corporate premier support and they've tried everything with no fix. I've just received a replacement SP4, which I don't expect to fix the issue, but I'll see what happens. If I still have the issues on the replacement I may blow it away and install the Anniversary Update to see what happens.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  4. Anonymous
    2018-01-10T15:53:14+00:00

    Your issue sounds like a battery issue...every since the July cumulative updates I've had this issue even after I replaced the SP4.....Microsoft doesn't seem to give a crap about their customers having this issue or correcting the problem.....

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments