I have a black screen after the latest Windows 11 update l've followed all the different advice and have drawn a blank. At 75 I'm finding it all very stressful.

Dear Evelyn Beer,

Welcome to the Microsoft Community

I completely understand how frustrating and stressful it must be for you to deal with this situation, especially when you need your computer for important documents. Please don’t worry – I’m here to help guide you through some steps to troubleshoot the issue.

Here’s what we can do to try and fix the problem:

Step 1: Perform a Hard Reset

First, let’s try a hard reset to see if that resolves the issue.

Turn off your computer by pressing and holding the power button until the device completely shuts off.

Disconnect any peripherals (USB drives, printers, external monitors, etc.) that are plugged into your computer. This helps to rule out any external devices causing the issue.

Press the power button again to turn your computer back on and check if it boots normally.

If this doesn’t work, let’s move on to the next step.

Step 2: Boot into Safe Mode

Since the computer is showing the HP logo and then going black, we might be able to access Safe Mode, where we can perform more troubleshooting steps.

Turn on your computer and wait for the Windows logo (or the HP logo) to appear.

As soon as the logo shows up, press and hold the power button until the computer shuts down.

Turn the computer back on, and when the logo appears again, repeat the process: press and hold the power button to turn it off.

After repeating this 2-3 times, on the third attempt, Windows should display the Recovery screen.

Select See advanced repair options.

From the options that appear, choose Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Startup Settings > Restart.

After the restart, select option 4 or press F4 to boot into Safe Mode.

Step 3: Uninstall Recent Updates

If you’re able to access Safe Mode, you can try uninstalling the most recent update that may have caused the issue. Here’s how:

Press Win + I to open Settings.

Navigate to Windows Update > Update History > Uninstall updates.

Look for the most recent update listed and select it.

Click Uninstall and follow the on-screen instructions to remove the update.

After uninstalling the update, restart your computer and check if the issue is resolved.

Step 4: Perform a System Restore

If uninstalling the update doesn’t solve the problem, and if you have System Restore enabled, we can try rolling back to a previous system state before the update caused this issue.

While in Safe Mode or Advanced Startup Options, go to Troubleshoot > Advanced options > System Restore.

Follow the on-screen instructions to restore your computer to a previous point in time before the issue started.

This should help revert any changes that may have caused the black screen problem.

If after trying these steps the problem still persists, it might be time to contact HP Support for further assistance, especially if there’s a hardware-related issue. They can guide you through more advanced troubleshooting, and if needed, provide support specific to your device.

I understand this is a stressful situation, and I’m here to support you through every step. Please take your time and let me know if you need further assistance or clarification.

Best Regards,

Martin | Microsoft Community Support Specialist

Thank you so much for your reply. After I posted on the community my husband finally managed to get to a stage where we could go back to a date before the update problem. It worked! Many thanks for all the advice. I will print it off and save it for future reference.

Regards Evelyn