I often lock Windows and turn my screen off when I’m away for 10 – 20 minutes. Sometimes when I turn the screen on again and I enter my password the screen goes black. Then the system is unresponsive and I can’t do anything about the state except pulling the plug.
How can I troubleshoot this and are there any steps I can take to prevent this from happening?
Solution:
This Microsoft Support article seems to address this problem:
Windows Vista and Windows 7 Black Screen on Computer Unlock.
The suggested solutions are:
- Turn off the Aero graphics display
- Update display drivers from the manufacturer’s website
- Turn off security software
If none of these helps, have a look in the Event Viewer for interesting error messages.
