Adaptive Brightness Driving Me NUTS. Unable to disable. Help!!

Dannemand really appreciate your help. It works now!
So, if somebody will have similar problem on Windows 7, what I have done now:
I uninstalled Intel graphics, then uninstalled AMD driver, then uninstalled all AMD apps. After that I also removed IntelliMemory and WiDi.
I turned off in services.msc Adaptive Brightness and restarted computer.
After fresh start, using SW Update I installed only Intell Driver and AMD driver.
It works very well now (firefox starts, brightness can be changed in settings ad using fn+f2/f3

Another thing that maybe would be usefull for anyone - I have newest wifi drivers from intell site (15.9.2.1)

 

Good job getting it working! And thank you for posting the update.

Normally you shouldn't have to disable the adaptive brightness service, if you make sure it's disabled in all the right places. But sometimes we just have to do whatever it takes to get the job done

 

I checked it - service enabled and it works still. But I wanted to be sure to make everything possible

 

I have the Samsung 740u Ultrabook and my brightness FN F1/F2 is completely disabled. The screen is 100% bright all the time. I am about ready to get rid of this laptop. I have disabled the adaptive brightness in all 5 locations, uninstalled the graphics driver, tried countless replacement drivers, used SW Update to search model numbers for other GPU drivers, reinstalled windows... nothing has worked for me. Can someone please direct link me to the driver that shipped with this laptop? I am not even sure if that will work at this point.

Thanks for any help!

 

Reinstall the Samsung Settings program. This contains the links between the Fn key controls and the rest of the system.

John

 

My FN key works with the exception of the brightness. Sound, WiFi, ect... all work. I have the Samsung settings installed. Updated everything.

 

Is your graphics driver one provided through SW Update or direct from the manufacturer or provided by Windows Update?

Or does your notebook have switchable graphics which adds another layer of complexity?

John

 

I think it is one of those iGPU processors. SW Update used to give me a display driver option when I would reinstall Win8 64 but not anymore. It auto installs the display driver with the reinstall now. I uninstall it and have tried SW update and countless drivers from Intel's site. When I do hit FN and F1/F2 the display in the upper left acts like everything is ok and runs up or down but there is ZERO effect in screen brightness. Something has is disabled or overridden....

 

Use the find model function in SW Update to find your model then export the driver to save it on your computer. Then run it.

If it installs but makes no difference to the brightness control then reinstall Settings.

John

 

No luck. When installing the display driver that way, as well as several I downloaded through Intel, it says my system does not meet the specifications and closes out. Reinstalled settings and no luck.

 

That message indicates that you need to try uninstalling the existing driver and clean up any traces of it.

John

 

I have tried uninstalling the display drivers, rebooting and reinstalling. Usually upon rebooting Win8 automatically installs a driver. Are there particular steps needed to do this correctly?

Thanks for all your help!

 

You can try a "deep clean" of your graphics drivers as described here. And test brightness control using the Adjust screen brightness slider in power options. It needs to work there in order for Settings (Fn-F2/F3) to work.

 

Followed those instructions and no luck. The power options slider does not work either.

 

Hmmm.

I think you said you already disabled Adaptive Brightness in all the places mentioned here, including Win8 Charms menu, Intel graphics settings, and Samsung Settings, right?

Did you also disable Adaptive Brightness in the UEFI firmware settings? Did you re-install Windows with UEFI disabled? (which could prevent you and Samsung Settings from accessing that UEFI setting).

The only other thing I would suggest is to use Find Model in SW Update to look up NP930X5J-K02UK and download the latest Settings version 2.3.0.15. Newer Settings versions have improved in their ability to defeat Adaptive Brightness. First uninstall the current Settings, reboot, then re-install the new one, reboot and login, wait 5 minutes, then reboot and login again (seriously).

I do recall one or two other members who never managed to defeat this thing. I don't know why.

 

Tried all of that. No luck. I even reinstalled Windows 8.

 

Did you see the questions I asked about UEFI?

Also, did you try a factory restore (using F4) and see if you are able to make brightness work on there? That will almost certainly be the first thing Samsung will suggest if you call their support. If it doesn't work on a factory installation, then presumably there is a defect in the ability to adjust brightness.

 

Yup, got them all disabled.

Yes, disabled Adaptive in the BIOS. Is there a different location or are you talking about the BIOS/F2/Boot tab?

I installed Windows 8 via a USB drive. It will not boot unless I choose CSM and UEFI OS. Three is no recovery left (my mistake some time back when installing a fresh copy).

Done this and no luck.

Seriously, should not be this difficult.

 

If you had to choose CSM & UEFI OS (hybrid mode) in order to boot, it's because your USB install media was formatted as NTFS (Win7 style, probably with Microsoft's ISO/USB creation tool). UEFI needs FAT32 in order to boot (which Microsoft's tool doesn't support). This may have caused Windows to install in Legacy BIOS mode instead of UEFI mode -- which was exactly what happened to another member who subsequently couldn't change Adaptive Brightness and make it stick, because he could not get to the UEFI Firmware Settings (see this).

You can check with DISKPART (or Minitool Partition Wizard) if you have an EFI boot partition. If you DON'T, that means your installation is good old Legacy BIOS (non-UEFI).

If that is the case, you can try installing Windows again in pure UEFI mode, making sure to format your USB install media as FAT32 (create it manually or use Rufus).

Before installing, convert your disk to GPT using DISKPART: While you're still in CSM & UEFI OS mode, boot Windows Setup, then press Shift-F10 for a command prompt.

DISKPART (to start the Disk Partition manager)
LIST DISK (to show all your disks. Notice which one is your SSD)
SELECT DISK 0 (assuming 0 was the number of your SSD)
DETAIL DISK (just to verify that you selected the right disk)
CLEAN (to wipe the disk)
CONVERT GPT (to convert the disk from MBR to GPT)
EXIT (to close DISKPART)
EXIT (to close Command Prompt)

Restart after this, then change OS Mode Selection to UEFI OS and try installing Windows again. Let SW Update automatically install drivers (not ones you picked from vendor websites) since we want to get as close as possible to a factory installation.

Once you have Windows running in UEFI mode, try and disable Adaptive Brightness under UEFI Firmware Settings after using Charms-Settings-PC settings-General-Advanced Startup (similar but a bit different in Win8.1). Of course disable it the other places as well.

I don't know if this will solve your issue. If it does, I agree that it is much too difficult. I don't think Microsoft ever imagined that their switch to UEFI would cause this much pain for users and PC vendors.

If this DOESN'T solve your problem, I have to suspect that there is a defect of some kind, and you have to contact Samsung for a solution.

Please keep us posted. Your findings could be very valuable to this thread.

 

Thank you for helping! I will have to follow through your steps on my next day off. One question though. Whenever I make a USB Windows 7 or 8 drive I use the Microsoft USB program and it automatically formats the USB. Is this not the correct way?

 

No. Unfortunately Microsoft's tool only knows how to format the USB as NTFS -- which doesn't work with UEFI. Lots and lots of people have fallen through that trapdoor, then enable hybrid mode (CSM & UEFI) in order to make it boot. But if the disk is already in MBR format, there is a risk in hybrid mode that Windows Setup will proceed to create a Legacy BIOS (non-UEFI) installation.

The best way is to create the USB as FAT32 then set pure UEFI mode in BIOS. That way Windows Setup has no other choice than to create a proper UEFI installation. Again, you can use Rufus to create a FAT32 USB (Google it) or create it manually (see this guide).

But before you re-install, check if you already have an UEFI installation (if you have an EFI boot partition). If so, set OS Mode Selection=UEFI OS, reboot, then try those UEFI Firmware Settings through the Windows Advanced Startup options.

This may not have anything to do with your problem. I am merely trying to make a qualified guess at something to try.

 

Followed the steps on your previous post. The SSD is now GPT. I went to reboot and change the bios to UEFI OS mode and now there is nothing to boot to. Nothing is listed under boot device priority or boot to device. Tried switching back to CSM and UEFI OS and didn't have any luck there either. USB is recognizable in my desktop though as a bootable USB.

 

To reinstall Windows after converting your disk to GPT, you need to use a FAT32 formatted USB installation source (or a DVD).

Choose your disk (not the USB) as boot source by temporarily switching to CSM mode, then back to UEFI mode after saving and rebooting into BIOS. Not sure it makes a difference, but couldn't hurt.

Now boot your install media by pressing F10 at boot to temporarily select a boot device. The USB/DVD should show up.

 

On a side note, I disabled adaptive brightness in the BIOS. Then I hit FN F1/F2 - amazingly the screen dims or brightens now in the BIOS.

 

I used Rufus to create a Fat32 Windows 8 USB. It is still unrecognizable after converting the GPT. I've done something wrong.

edit:

This is an Ultrabook so I don't have an internal DVD drive. I have a Samsung external DVD drive with a Windows 7 DVD though - I switched the mode to CSM OS but nothing is recognizable.

re-edit:

The external DVD drive has to be spinning for it to be recognized in CSM OS mode. I inserted the DVD as I reboot and hit F10 (hitting CTRL, ALT & Del if the timing is bad until its recognized) and now it recognizes the DVD, USB and Realtek as a boot device. Is it at this point I need to re-enter setup to enter UEFI mode? If I do that nothing become recognizable anymore.

Current process:

Enter BIOS and change to CSM mode
Put DVD into external drive and as it is spinning up hit F10 until I get it to recognize as bootable (along with USB and Realtek)
Enter BIOS and change to UEFI mode
Select the 'boot to device' tab in the BIOS and select the USB
Save configuration and reset? Yes
Following error: All boot options are tried. Press F4 key to recover....

 

I am sorry, I think my last post was a bit unclear:

I definitely want you to be in UEFI mode when you boot your installation media (whether USB or DVD). But since you are unable to select anything in boot priority while in UEFI mode (because there is no EFI boot partition yet on your SSD) I meant to suggest you temporarily switch back to CSM mode and select the SSD under boot priority (NOT the USB or DVD), save that, go back into BIOS and now set pure UEFI mode.

But honestly, I don't think it really matters. Just make sure you are in pure UEFI mode (OS Mode selection=UEFI OS) and have Fast Boot/Fast BIOS disabled and AHCI=Auto.

As for your USB installation media, one member reported a gotcha where you have to format it as FAT32 (manually) and THEN create it with Rufus (still selecting FAT32 there). Others prefer to create it manually as described in that guide I linked in my last post.

Once you have those, insert the USB and boot back into BIOS. You now should be able to see the USB under boot priority. Save your BIOS settings after that. Now you really should be able to boot your USB installation media and install Windows.

I know it can be tricky, you're not alone there. Many end up switching to CSM & UEFI OS mode because they cannot get it to boot -- and in some cases they still get the UEFI installation they want (and can subsequently switch to pure UEFI mode). Others end up with a Frankenmix of UEFI and CSM.

Great that you were able to control brightness in BIOS. That means it really is just a software issue -- however frustrating that is.

I'll be away from my computer till late afternoon. I hope you can make some progress with this. I look forward to hearing the outcome.

 

I got nothing. Same old error if I move it from CSM to UEFI mode.

 

Did you re-create the USB install media as I described? Format it manually as FAT32 before letting Rufus create it. Then booting into BIOS with the USB inserted and saving settings after that?

If so, I am afraid I got nothing more to suggest for UEFI installation. You can do a pure CSM installation instead (convert the SSD to MBR first) and see if that works.

 

Yeah, reformatted the USB drive to FAT32 then let Rufus create the USB. I don't know that I am following you exactly on the latter part.

Once the USB drive has been created I left it in the USB

Rebooted to BIOS

From here I have no choice but to change to either CSM or CSM & UEIF mode so that the USB is recognized so I do that

Reboot

Enter BIOS again and select my 1st boot priority (USB) and change to UEIF mode

Reboot

Error: All boot options are tried. Press F4 key to recover....

 

I meant to set pure UEFI mode in BIOS, disable Fast Boot/Fast BIOS, save settings and reboot (even power off). Then insert the USB key and boot into BIOS again, see if the USB doesn't show up on the boot priority page. Assuming it does, now save that and reboot. You want to perform a save in BIOS AFTER it has been switched to pure UEFI AND detected a proper FAT32 boot media.

Also, verify on another computer that your USB install media really is FAT32.

Even if it doesn't show up in the boot priority page, try and and press F10 immediately after power on to temporarily choose a boot device. But ONLY after BIOS has had a chance to detect the FAT32 formatted USB key WHILE it was in pure UEFI mode AND subsequently had its settings saved.

I this still doesn't work, something must be wrong with your BIOS -- or maybe your install ISO. Many others have UEFI boot issues, it is very common. But they normally resolve when this (correct) combination of installation media and BIOS settings is used.

Again, if you cannot make it work with that, my only other suggestion is to convert the SSD to MBR, switch to pure CSM mode, then re-install that way. Maybe we're lucky brightness will still work now that you managed to disable it in BIOS.

 

Right clicked and checked USB in properties on my desktop - says its NTFS.

 

Great, that explains it! I do recall something about the options in Rufus being confusing. Try a few things in there, it does work, others have done it successfully. You can also try and create the USB manually as described in the link I posted earlier.

 

Victory! Well with the EFI portion of it anyway. I just got the machine booted to the desktop and checked in the Disk Management for the 100mb EFI partition. Its there and all looks good.

Now, install SW Update and let it update as normal?

 

Excellent, great job being so persistent!

FIRST, see if you can adjust brightness with the Windows Power Options slider using just the default Windows driver. That will be a great indication. Then yes, let SW Update do its thing, but also run Windows Update.

I personally like to make an image backup (Terabyte, Acronis, Paragon etc) of the "naked" Windows installation before I install any drivers or start tweaking it. That makes it easy to test different combinations of drivers and quickly restore if I don't like the outcome. But since you're installing from USB to SSD I guess running Windows Setup anew is very fast too.

Once again, great job there!

Edit: Also, please post a summary of how you created the USB, your BIOS settings and your steps -- even if just a few lines. It'll be useful for others in the same situation, including ones who arrive here from Google.

 

Got everything up and running late last night but I regretfully must report that the adaptive brightness has not been defeated. Although I am very confident that it is a driver issue - in particular the display driver. I can adjust brightness in the BIOS now with or without the adaptive brightness turned on in the BIOS - which is something I never could do prior to this setup. Also, I can hold my hand over the sensor (camera area) on the screen and it will dim or brighten - again something I could not do prior.

Now that it has a true UEIF installation I am going to go back through and download the drivers and once I find it we need to sticky it to the first post with a short guide.

Rufus said it was formatting the USB stick in Fat32 but if you watch closely, once it started it would flash NTFS across the progress bar at the bottom. I checked off all the correct settings prior but never could get it to format in Fat32. I used your manual method - which IMHO was way easier than using Rufus anyway.

Format your 8gb USB drive to Fat32

Right click and mount your Windows 8 ISO - I think you can download a ISO direct from Microsoft if you don't have one and enter your own key.

Locate all the contents of that ISO and copy them to the Fat32 USB drive

It was that simple

Side note: Since my laptop already came with Windows 8 from the factory I didn't have to enter any serial. I believe the serial is BIOS stored and it was auto-activated upon installation.

 

Thank you for sharing that. Too bad Adaptive Brightness still won't be defeated. I assume you already looked in UEFI Firmware Settings as we originally discussed (and which started this whole re-install). Otherwise do check there: Charms - Settings - PC Settings - General - Advanced Startup (off the top of my head).

 

I am trying to run through these drivers and am getting a bunch of "your PC is not configured for this driver...". Someone said it was because the previous driver was not uninstalled correctly. What is the proper way of uninstalling a display driver on a laptop? Whenever I uninstall it the computer wants a reboot at which point it reinstalls the generic Microsoft driver.

 

Hi,

i did not read the 14 pages, and i think solutions for the adaptiv brightness are solved for the most people, but still here are my observations...

I noticed (900X3G, Win8.1 - original installation) changes in the adaptiv brightness or contrast (not sure) even with adaptiv brighness off. Disabling power saving modes within the Intel grafic settings worked for me.