Surface Book 3 Nvidia Graphics card disappears after updates.

I've said it before. Unless the group here, as a collective whole, is willing to consider a class action suit against MS for the damages incurred by not solving the issues with this platform then nothing will change. I know that this was also an issue with the SB2 as well and would encompass those individuals. I had not realized that this was an issue with both platforms until it became clear using both that it was consistent.

Otherwise, we simply put up with the issues and never again purchase Microsoft hardware. I'm done with them. And, where possible, not leverage MS software as well. A monetary hit is the only way they will recognize the issue.

I've tried every possible solution provided from this thread as well as other third-party sites and I discovered the real solution:
THERE ARE NO SOLUTIONS FOR THIS ISSUE! IT'S OBVIOUSLY A HARDWARE ISSUE WITH MICROSOFT SURFACE PRODUCTS THAT MICROSOFT FAILS TO ADMIT OR ACKNOWLEDGE.

All of these so-called solutions only provide temporary fixes where the NVIDIA graphics card reappears for a very short period. And by temporarily I mean until you try running a resource-heavy program or game then it crashes whatever you're doing and the card disappears. Honestly, I believe it has something to do with the detachable screen, and will never purchase another 2-in-1 device or at this point another Microsoft product. So many people have even gone as far as returning their device for a new replacement, just to experience the same issue on their new device. Which is ridiculous given the pricepoint of these products.

I reached out to Mircosoft Tech Support last week but unfortunately, my device was already out of warranty because Microsoft is well aware it makes faulty products and only offers a 1-year warranty on their devices. They offered to send me a replacement device if I paid $600. I expressed my frustrations and told them I could get a better, more stable/reliable device at that price or open-boxed from BestBuy. The rep understood my frustrations and offered me a one-time courtesy replacement and an upgrade to the new Surface Studio for FREE. I was ecstatic and had a change of heart about Microsoft but knew it was too good to be true. The department that processes the replacements has denied me the free exchange because my device is out of warranty. I've been going back and forth with them explaining the rep was well aware of this and that if a one-time courtesy replacement for free was not an option then she would have never offered it. However, they won't proceed and just closed the ticket without resolution. I even have screenshots of the conversation between the rep and me. I feel this is evident enough to stand up in court but do I even have a chance against Microsoft?

So I was told all this just to get an email from Microsoft that denies everything:

I received my new device about a month ago and haven't had ANY issues!!

When I got the replacement device, I called Microsoft Support so I could receive instructions for avoiding any similar issues, and I received the following instructions from a very nice and knowledgeable support technician:

• Do not install any NVIDIA drivers - the Surface Book 3 has very specific requirements for its NVIDIA drivers and these updates will be provided through Windows Updates. If any are currently installed (check in the add/remove programs list), you should uninstall them.
• The Nvidia Control Panel is the ONLY Nvidia software that is OK to have installed. This is what you will need to use to specify which application uses internal or high-performance graphics.
• On a weekly basis, it is good practice to:
  • detach the screen and re-attach it
  • use the surface diagnostic toolkit to be aware of your device's health
  • open the Command Prompt as an administrator and run the command sfc /scannow to find and fix corrupt files

I'm very happy that I no longer have this issue with my new device and have steps to prevent the issue from happening again. I hope my 2 posts help anyone out there who's as frustrated as I was.

This seems to be the solution for my SB3 13.5" as well so thank you for the response. Sometimes I have to re-dock it facing the opposite way for it to work. Kind of ridiculous given the price we all paid for this device.

I have the same issue with my Surface Book 3 15" with Windows 11 21H2 and latest firmware installed. While playing a few fullscreen games (e.g., The Sims 4, The Division, Tomb Raider, Surgeon Simulator, Lost Ark, Genshin Impact), it would make the "device disconnected" jingle and then the game would freeze. Thankfully, the mouse would still work, and I could alt-tab to another application.

The temporary solution I used was:

1. Go into Device Manager
2. Check under Display adapters
3. Find that the "NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti with Max-Q Design" is missing
4. Right click Display adapters
5. Scan for hardware changes
6. Find that the "NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti with Max-Q Design" is back

Unfortunately, the issue would happen multiple times a day, and it became pretty much impossible to play any games, so I've restricted my use to anything but games. I've been experiencing this issue since I purchased this Surface Book 3, but I realized that my extended warranty is expiring this year in August, so I figured I should try something more.

I called Microsoft Support, and they connected with me remotely. We went through all the usual troubleshooting steps of checking for Windows updates, firmware updates, and running the Surface Diagnostic Toolkit. After all the troubleshooting steps, I tried opening a game (The Sims 4) while the agent was connected, and within a couple minutes, the Surface made the disconnected device jingle, and the graphics card was missing from device manager. I was relieved that I could show the agent that it was a real issue that persists beyond simple troubleshooting.

We tried a full factory reset (Settings > System > Recovery > Reset PC > Remove everything), and I was advised by the Microsoft Support agent that I should NOT install NVIDIA Control Panel or NVIDIA GeForce Experience tool after the reset. He recommended I only try to update the NVIDIA display driver using the Device Manager - no external tool or anything from the NVIDIA website.

After the factory reset, the issue didn't happen for a couple of days, but then happened once.

The Microsoft Support agent offered a device replacement, so that's what I'll be trying next.

Good luck, everyone.