Windows 8.1 Update Issues and Discussion

Hello,
I have Samsung 730U3E with windows 8. Is it now safe to update it to windows 8.1? Is it true that we have time to update it to 10th June?

 

Hello Qula, welcome to NBR.

As I understand it, Microsoft's forced update policy only applies to existing Win8.1 users: They have to install the 8.1 Update in order to continue receiving security patches. And I believe the deadline was extended. Win8 users should still be safe.

Assuming my understanding of that is correct, it is up to you whether you feel the benefits of Win8.1 warrant the potential problems of updating. That said, the number of update complaints here has fallen dramatically.

Please read the update in the opening post for general advice, and scan the last few pages for relevant posts.

 

The solution posted here still WORKS:

"A fellow called RikMar advised to delete or rename Program Files\Common Files\InstallShield\Professional. Renaming the directory to Professional.old and running the install again indeed solved the problem." Take a look at Program Files (x86) maybe the folder is there...

Thanks. Regards.

 

Microsoft's Patch Tuesday brought a slew of updates for Win8.1 (and other Windows versions too). I accepted them all, and after letting Windows complete it's installation (much of it only happens in the background after reboot and login) AND completing my own housekeeping (CCleaner, Disk Cleanup-System Files, defrag) I believe my Win8.1 doesn't do as much background disk churn as before -- one of my main complaints about 8.1 compared to Win8. I do those housekeeping steps regularly, so the difference here is in one of those updates (or just placebo).

Clearly this piece of software has a mind of its own, about as complex as that of the Microsoft developers behind it, and complete with subconscious compulsions and other mental machinery (Win8.1, I mean). So the experience could be different for others.

Among the updates offered was a new AMD graphics driver (version 13.251.9001.0). As I have mentioned previously, my older Series 7 doesn't have official Win8.1 support from Samsung, but I have had great results using the Microsoft-provided graphics drivers -- both for the Intel IGP and the discrete AMD GPU. Catalyst Control Center, Switchable graphics, brightness control and everything else is working.

For those who may still have graphics issues, I recommend giving these drivers a try. To increase your chance of success, use the following steps:

1) Make a backup or Restore point so you can go back if something fails.

2) Uninstall all existing AMD graphics drivers in the Windows Programs and Features Control panel (or even use the AMD Cleanup Utility). Reboot.

3) Uninstall existing Intel graphics drivers in the Windows Programs and Features Control panel. Reboot.

4) Optional (I didn't do this myself, could be bad if you had black screen problems in 8.1): Clean out previous iterations of graphics drivers and devices in the device tree by Uninstalling Display adapters in Device Manager and checking Delete the driver software for this device, then Scan for hardware changes. Repeat this as long as you still get that Delete the driver software for this device option. That's how you cycle back and delete each of the previous driver versions you have installed. When you do NOT see that option anymore, you're back to the original Windows driver. Don't uninstall that device (don't click OK). Reboot.

5) After cleaning out all previous graphics drivers, let Windows install its own. Accept any drivers from Windows Update. Reboot as needed. Possibly more than once (seriously).

6) Test that everything is working: Test brightness control using the Adjust screen brightness slider and Fn-F2/F3. Test Catalyst Control Center. Test Switchable Graphics. If it doesn't work, roll back to your backup or restore point.

Obviously, only do this if you have problems. If everything is already working, then don't change it!

For those who do try this, please post your results here, along with your model number. Mine is NP700Z3A.

 

I did a clean W8.1 install on a new evo ssd this weekend. I'm having a fex issues I'm not sure how to resolve. The elan software does not offer me the inverse scroll option. Fast start with IRST is only working occasionly. It seems I have to open up settings after a restart or else it won't wake from sleep on lid open. Finally, chrome looks terrible.

edit: It looks like fast start only works if I manually sleep the laptop from windows/power button. I have it set to sleep on closing the lid but it won't wake on lid open that way.

 

Hi everyone, since I followed this thread from the beginning and it proved very useful, I'd like to report my experience to contribute. I own a 2013 Samsung NP730U3E-S03IT and I had tried to upgrade to win 8.1 in the first days of availability. The problems with swtchable graphics and touchpad forced me to revert to win 8, but two days ago I decided to try again.
I can now say that the update process went really well. I had no problems whatsoever and, unlike the previous upgrade, I retained my installed programs and apps. The only thing to do after the upgrade is update AMD drivers, either via SWUpdate of directly from AMD site.
Thank you all for your help!

 

Hello Mr Big, welcome to NBR.

Well done getting that Win8.1 working, and thank you for sharing your experience here!

Indeed, Microsoft and Samsung improved a lot since the first release of Win8.1. But too many front line foot soldiers had to pay with their lives in order to get us to this point (metaphorically speaking, of course).

Sorry, man, I missed your post.

I have the inverse scrolling option in Win8.1 running Elan driver version 11.7.10.4, which I found in SW Update under Win8 drivers for model NP880Z5E-X03CA almost a year ago -- and never bothered to update since because everything works to my liking. Samsung have since added Win8.1 drivers for that model (and other newer models) including Elan driver version 11.7.19.9, which I have not yet tried. Maybe this is one more case where older is better (I am strictly speaking software here )

I assume you must be using an older Settings version 2.0.x if you have Fast Start working at all. I know we discussed this before and I got it working on version 2.0.0.55, but NOT versions 2.1.x and newer. It is really odd that it won't work for you. My guess is that IRST (which I don't have) somehow interferes. How you tried without IRST? Could you live without it?

 

NP. Yeah I think I will try a different touch pad driver. For some reason the one I was using that worked fine in W7 doesn't do two-finger tap very well either. Yes, I used 2.0.0.55 and fast start/IRST works on lid open, but only if I sleep it from the start screen/power menu or the power button. If I let it go to sleep on timer or by closing the lid then I have to press the power button to wake up. I am not sure if this is related to IRST, I don't think so, but I will try turning it off. Very peculiar, I guess I will try to live with it as is. It's nice to have my bluetooth working properly and the evo seems to run a little cooler. I did fix the chrome problem, turned off the scaling option on the exe. Thanks.

 

Hi all! I finally decided to update do Windows 8.1 (I was still with Windows 8 and Samsung drivers), after that I can't change display brightness anymore. I know it's a discussed theme, so I followed this procedure:
1) uninstall AMD drivers
2) uninstall HD4000 drivers
3) reboot
4) installed the OLD Samsung's HD4000 drivers (9.17.10.2963 previously extracted from SW Update)
5) reboot
6) installed AMD drivers
7) reboot
but I still can't change display brightness (I made sure I have adaptive brightness disabled obviously).

I tried this procedure a few times, using in step 6
- Samsung AMD drivers 10.18.10.3304, previously extracted from SW Update looking for NP870Z5E-X01IT (my model) and choosing Windows 8.1
- Catalyst 14-4-mobility-win7-win8-win8.1-64-dd-ccc-whql downloaded from AMD
- Catalyst amd-catalyst-14.6-rc2-windows-june23 downloaded from AMD (I believe these are the latest beta, right?)
but I always get the same result. Everything else seems to work, what should I do?

 

Hey guys! What's the most compatible graphics driver for Windows 8.1? I'm having serious trouble with the switchable graphics because my Adobe Premiere doesn't recognize the AMD hardware, even if I force "high performance" in the switchable panel. I tried Leshcat's last version, but it doesn't work.

 

Did you check the actual performance? I'm asking because many softwares won't recognize your AMD and will tell you they're using HD4000 even if they are actually using AMD

 

After you had uninstalled both Intel and AMD drivers and rebooted, did Win8.1 install its own drivers, and were they working? Also, did you try to run Windows Update and install any drivers it offered? I would definitely try that first to (hopefully) establish a stable base, before trying new drivers from AMD or Intel.

Knowing how thorough you usually are, you probably already scanned the thread for relevant posts. I posted about my suggestions here (more recently) and here (earlier) that I found graphics drivers from Windows Update to work very well. But as you know, I have an older Series 7 with AMD PowerXpress and Intel HD 3000.

If none of those will allow you to adjust brightness (even after installing Samsung's Brightness Fix and disabling Adaptive Brightness) I suggest you try member Shinji_U's registry hack, which he has posted in the NP770/780/870/880 Owners Lounge. I don't have a direct link, so you'll have to search for it.

From your earlier post, I believe you have model NP700Z4A, which has similar graphics system to my NP700Z3A. I would suggest you follow the posts I linked to member alfling above for my findings and recommendations.

 

Hello Dannemand! Thank you for your reply. About the first question, yes I had left Windows to install its own drivers, but not the Windows Update ones. Everything ws working but the the brightness control.
I tried uninstalling everything again (HD4000 and AMD). I rebooted and Windows installed its own drivers both for HD4000 and AMD 8800. Then I ran Windows Update and found two available updates:

1) Intel Corporation - Graphics Adapter WDDM1.1, Graphics Adapter WDDM1.2, Graphics Adapter WDDM1.3 - Intel(R) HD Graphics 4000

2) Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. - Graphics Adapter WDDM1.3 - AMD Radeon HD 8800M Series

I selected both. The first one succeded, the second one failed. I rebooted and tried again with the second update, but I keep getting the same error (Code 80070103). A quick search on Google told me that usually that error means that I'm trying to install a driver which is already installed or less compatible than the one currently installed.

I also checked in Charm-Settings-PC Settings-PC and Devices...and adaptive brightness is disabled there. I also checked in the BIOS but I couldn't find any mention about adaptive brightness.

I'm going to try uninstalling AMD 8800 in the Device Manager and running Windows Update again before rebooting, to prevent Windows from installing its own driver, but other than that I don't know what else to try

Edit: I tried uninstalling AMD8800 from Device Manager (selecting to delete the software too), and ran Windows Update. The problem is that after a few seconds the screen goes all black and the laptop automatically installs Windows' driver for the AMD 8870. And this makes Windows Update fail again.

Edit2: I tried uninstalling everything again. I found the two updates again in windows update, but this time I installed the AMD driver first, and then the HD4000. In this way, both the updates succeded. However, the brightness controll still doesn't work.
I'll now look for Shinji_U's registry hack, hoping it will solve my problem

Edit3: I believe I found the registry hack you were talking about.
I edited the value to FFFF and rebooted, but brightness control is still not working.

Do you know how can I uninstall Samsung brightness fix? I'm asking because I had installed it the first time I updated to Windows 8.1, and it might be good to try to install it after the whole driver refresh

 

Hello, first let me apologize if this issue was solved before, I didn't read the whole 67 pages of this thread.

I own a Samsung series 3 laptop (NP350V4C-S01CO). It came with Win 7 installed, but recently I did a clean Windows 8.1 installation and using Samsung drivers installed with SW Update everything was working great.

Everything but switchable graphics, my GPU (AMD Radeon HD 7670M) wasn't working at all, couldn't launch Catalyst Control Center and gaming experience was limited to the Intel HD 4000 GPU.

I installed Camtasia Studio 8 and Vegas Pro 11 and neither of them could be launched, both failed in initializing GPU device.
I tried installing updated drivers from AMD's site, did not work, also tried beta drivers with same result.
So, for my own deception, I had to go back to Win 7.

I would love to use Windows 8.1, but just can't afford losing the dedicated graphics device.

 

@alfling: Thank you for the update. Yes, that was the registry hack I meant. I believe Samsung's Brightness Fix merely does something similar (changing a registry value) so unless there is an uninstaller in the Programs and Features control panel, I don't think there is a way to remove it -- not that removing it should be needed.

Which Settings version are you using? Try version 2.0.0.72 (under model NP880Z5E-X03CA in SW Update). And if that doesn't work, try version 2.3.0.17 (under model NP940X5J in SW Update). Of course fully uninstall the previous Settings version first (and reboot), and disable Adaptive Brightness in all the places mentioned here and here after re-installing it. Also make sure to reboot twice after re-installing Settings.

Are you testing brightness control with Fn-keys or with the slider in Windows Power Options? If it works in the latter, then this is probably a Settings problem. But if it doesn't work in either place, it is more likely a display driver problems.

I wish I had a specific fix for you. We know from the Owners Lounge that several of your fellow NP770/780/870/880 owners got it working -- even without struggling with Adaptive Brightness.

Edit: Is this a clean install or the original Samsung installation? I seem to recall you did a clean install and got everything working, but just to make sure: You did install Chipset drivers as the first thing after the clean install, right? Sorry, I had to ask

 

Hello Sergy, welcome to NBR.

I believe your graphics system is an older generation like the one on my NP700Z3A. I would suggest you try what I suggest in this post. But please make sure you have backups first, since you currently have a working system (except for the switchable graphics).

 

Hi Dannemand, thank you so much for your answer and welcome.

Switchable graphics wasn't working on Windows 8.1, that's why I was forced to move back to Windows 7, now they work just fine.

I will try to install Windows 8.1 in the next days, I'm not feeling like doing a clean install of it, just want to test the solution you suggest, but I know that Windows 7 and 8/8.1 boot is different and may cause some troubles

 

I'm using Settings 2.0.0.72, updated yesterday from SW Update for my model. I searched for the model NP740X5J but it didn't find that model at all (it doesn't find any NP740X).
I checked adaptive brightness in all the places mentioned in those posts and it is already disabled everywhere (I don't even have adaptive brightness options in my BIOS).
And I don't have the brightness slider in Windows Power Options. Actually, if I go to Charm-Settings-Brightness there is the vertical slider to change brightness, but it doesn't change no matter the level I set.

Unfortunately, I still have the original Samsung system: I collected a lot of informations about how to do a clean install back in those days, but I never managed to get a Windows 8 ISO legally

I noticed that when I installed Samsung video drivers (one single 828MB file containing both HD4000 and AMD drivers) yesterday last time, directly from SW Update, it automatically installed also the brightness fix, so I decided to do some more testing: I uninstalled every driver again, this time using AMD Cleanup Utility, and I uninstalled HD4000 too, rolling back to the basic drivers with Device Manager. Then, I rebooted. After that, I let Windows install his own drivers (no windows update) and checked the registry: there wasn't any key in the registry called "FeatureTestControl". Brightness control still not working.

Thus, I figured it is created by Samsung drivers. Besides, I noticed that deleting every driver removed also the brightness fix and made it available again in SW Update (maybe thanks to the Cleanup Utility, which completely erased the "FeatureTestControl" key). So I installed Samsung video drivers, but this time I previously downloaded them from SW Update to my hard disk, to be sure I was installing just the drivers and not the brightness fix (just to be clear, I'm referring to the 828MB single file, version 10.18.10.3304, which is the one SW Update gives me for my model for Windows 8.1). After that, I rebooted and checked the registry again: "FeatureTestControl" was back there, and its value was F900. Brightness control still not working.
Then, i installed the brightness fix from SW Update, and after another reboot I saw that it changed "FeatureTestControl" value to F908, but brightness control still wasn't working.

So I did some more research on Google, and found out that many laptops with AMD graphics lost brightness control updating to Windows 8.1, and changing the value of the key "FeatureTestControl" seem to be a common workaround. Fine, but it turns out that the actual value to set is hardware dependant, and it takes a bit of trial&error to find the correct one. I tried all the values I could find on the internet (FFFF, F940, F800, F048, 0000, 0001) always rebooting after every change, but none of them fixed my brightness control.

So, I would like to start a little survey here if possible: you guys whose brightness control is working, what value do you have for the "FeatureTestControl" key? My model is NP870Z5E-X01IT, but I'm willing to try every value that works for you. (If someone doesn't know how to check it: just search regedit in the computer, open it and press F3. Then write FeatureTestControl and find the key. Double click on it and check the hexadecimal value).

Thank you very much for any help!

PS: Fun fact. I noticed that when I am without any video driver or when my video drivers are "messed up" (for example when I have uninstalled some of them but I haven't rebooted yet) I experience serious image persistance on the screen. However, as soon as windows install its own drivers or when I install Samsung or official AMD drivers the problem disappear. And I have never had image persistance in almost a year of intense usage, almost always at 100% brightness. So maybe it's just a driver-related problem.

 

@alfling: Sorry that you still haven't got it working. Some good stuff there in your post. I'm sorry, I made a typo: It's NP940X5J that has the latest Settings version 2.3.0.17. I think that is worth trying in combination with the cleanout + Samsung combo-driver.

 

I tried again the cleanout, and this time I also replaced Settings with version 2.3.0.17: it's very nice, with a lot of useful informations and tools
However, brightness control still doesn't work. This time I reached an acceptable compromise though: now I have the brightness control slider also in Power Options, even though it doesn't work. BUT at least now it's stuck at 100% brightness, which is what I usually use most of the time (except when I'm watching a movie in the dark, but I will just deal with it until they release a better driver). Besides, finally now Teamviewer works correctly (with all the other combinations I tried I always got black screens or screens stuck at desktop and not refreshing), so i'll just stick with this configuration for a while since I really don't want to waste anymore time on this damn driver. In case anyone was interested, I'm now using Windows own drivers for HD4000, and AMD Catalyst 14.4 WHQL.

I hate not being able to optimize my system, but it seems to be a leit motiv with this Samsung (both Samsung and Microsoft to blame on this side)

 

@alfling: It's been a couple days now. If/when you're ready to take another stab at getting brightness working, I suggest you repost in the owners lounge. Somebody there is bound to have ideas for you, as many have managed to update and get it working.

I am sorry I don't have more suggestions myself

 

Thank you for the effort, but I just managed to get legally a Windows 8.1 ISO, so i'll just try a clean install, hoping that it will solve everything

 

Hi all!

I just picked up a NP900X3E second hand that came with 8.1, and am having a few issues. I've installed the latest updater, though it found that all the software was already up to date.

1. Touchpad - I can't seem to find any way to make adjustments to its functionality at all. As far as gestures go, one and two finger ones work, but not 3 or 4 finger ones. I found an older version of the touchpad driver earlier in this thread that was supposed to address this, but that made the touchpad far worse, it wouldn't respond to clicks anywhere except the bottom right corner, which was a left click!

2. Backlight on keyboard. This does not appear to respond to the controls in the settings, or the function keys on the keyboard. I can see it does come on, but only in a pitch black room. Either the backlight is faulty (seems unlikely as it does work) or it's stuck at a very low level.

I still have a number of things to check out such as bluetooth, but the two issues above jumped out at me immediately.

Any help much appreciated

Merged

Ok, so it seems that the backlight issue doesn't actually exist, I just didn't appreciate how dim the light is compared to my desktop mech keyboard!

I've tested bluetooth with my phone and a headset, so it's fine.

So that just leaves the touch pad. Any suggestions?

 

Hellow megapleb, welcome to NBR.

Did you install the Elan Touchpad driver from SW Update? All updated drivers must be obtained though this utility since Samsung doesn't post them on their website anymore. It should provide the gestures you are looking for.

 

Hi, thanks for your reply

I did indeed install the latest drivers, but I couldn't find where the settings were. After a lot of poking around I managed to find them. Everything seems to work, except for the two finger tap to get a right click, which is temperamental, and can take a few attempts to make work. There's also the fact that the laptop doesn't remember the settings after a reboot. Is there a fix for that yet?

Overall I like this laptop, though I'm having to use high magnification in Chrome to make things readable (125% for most page, though here it's 150% because the reply text is so small!).

I've always hated laptops because they were underpowered, heavy and ugly. This is none of those things, and is growing on me

BTW, one other query, I've noticed that processor turbo is not engaged when on battery, is there any way to change this behaviour?

 

I think it is indisputable that what you have there, is one of the most beautifully designed laptops ever made. So I can understand your liking it.

Yes, FHD in a 13-inch is tight. The 1600x900 on my own NP700Z3A (14-inch) is perfect for me. But you can scale things to your liking, and Windows and apps should only get better at that with time.

The problem you describe with the Touchpad forgetting its settings sounds like what is described here. BTW, that post also describes how to get a more powerful Touchpad control panel.

I would try a re-install of BOTH the Elan driver AND Samsung Settings and see if that helps. The post here describes how to find the latest Settings version and some tips for it.

Turbo Boost not being engaged on battery is a common complaint on the ULV models. For example, see this discussion.

 

Thanks Dannemand! All those problems are resolved except for the no turbo on battery which appears insoluble.

While using the laptop I've had a number of freezes lasting up to a minute, mostly in Chrome, that I'd like to get to the bottom of. The computer becomes unresponsive except for the mouse pointer. Do you know if there are any common causes of such behaviour?

 

Sorry it took me a few days to respond to this. Glad to hear you got the issues solved.

Freezes like you describe are usually caused by unexpected delays in hardware device drivers -- either due to poorly written or incompatible drivers or due to a problem or conflict with the actual hardware. They are referred to as latencies, and tools such as LatencyMon are the best way to diagnose them. See the thread linked below for a case where we go through diagnosing -- and finally pinpointing -- such an issue. In this case it was a defect HDD, but it can be any number of things. I recommend you read (or at least scan) the entire thread -- it's only a few pages.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/samsung/750256-samsung-5-series-laptop-freezing-issues.html

 

So recently I realized I haven't upgraded my Samsung Ativ Book 4 to windows 8.1, and I haven't figured out how to do it yet. However I found this post and read that there were a lot of problems when Samsung users made the switch. Now I'm confused as to weather or not I should continuing pursuing this idea; as I currently don't have a means to back up my files.

So should I upgrade or should I leave my computer alone.

Thanks

 

Hello XxHAMADEHxX, welcome to NBR.

I assume your model came with Win8 (not Win7), is that correct? If so, here is what I suggest:

1) Check on Samsung's Win8.1 update page if your model is officially supported for Win8.1. I think all models with the Ativ Book brand are supported, but better check your model number. This should factor into your decision.

2) Find a way to backup your data files and your current installation to an external drive. Without that, I wouldn't consider this update at all (or any major system operation for that matter). Samsung Recovery Solution (F4 after boot) can create complete backups, but doesn't have a way to separate just your data. Alternatively, manually copy your data to an external drive or use an online backup service, then follow the first two steps in this guide to create a bootable factory image backup on a USB stick so you can always get back to factory state.

3) Read the update in the opening post of this thread (which I think you already did) then scan the last 8-10 pages for posts that may be relevant to your model (or models with similar hardware).

4) Once (and if) you are ready to update, follow the steps on Samsung's update page (the same as linked in step 1 above). In particular, make sure you perform updates of drivers from SW Update and from Windows Update both BEFORE and AFTER the actual Win8.1 update. The Samsung guide points this out as well.

Note: If there are BIOS updates for your model, flashing the latest BIOS can be critical to a successful Win8.1 update. But DON'T perform the BIOS update directly in SW Update. As described in our BIOS Update thread you want to run the BIOS Update utility outside SW Update, save the BIOS update file itself, and run it standalone. This minimizes risks of problems during the flash process.

5) The Win8.1 Update itself should be offered to you in the Windows Store (accessible on the Metro Start Screen).

I recently switched from Win8.1 back to Win8. Even though I like 8.1's features better, I simply find Win8 faster on my computer (an older Series 7 which does NOT have official Samsung support for 8.1, but which works fine with drivers from Microsoft).

Presumably, most Win8 users will need to upgrade sooner or later, but so far Microsoft still provides security updates. You can also wait till 8.1 Update 2 comes out, reportedly mid August. At this point Win7 users should probably just dig in and wait for Win9, I am guessing a year from now.

 

Hmm that's weird because I upgraded all my drivers and stuff but I haven't received the update in the store.

Another thing is you said normal windows 8 runs faster on your computer. My computer isn't slow or anything but I prefer the options that uses less hardware. So I might just go ahead and keep windows 8 like it is now.

Though if I do make the switch I'll be sure to back up like you said.

Thanks for the help friend

 

anyone had problems with windows file explorer since last win update?
every time i right click on a folder explorer stops responding.
I have removed any programs recently installed that didnot help and even stopped the virus checker and reinstalled from a fresh download no different.
so downloaded explorer ++ and that seams to work alright

 

updating driver and apps doesnt let you have access to upgrade windows 8.1. You have to update your windows through Windows Update

 

Hello again Dannemand

Edit: After I posted this Windows Update did its magic and installed a newer driver and now everything is working perfectly, everything: Brightness control, Switchable graphics, Sony Vegas...

I can't tell you how much I love you >.<

Thank you very much for your time.

Its been a while since my last post here, finally I found the time to install Windows 8.1 on my Samsung.
Unlike you, my laptop does have drivers for Windows 8, but once they are installed, dedicated GPU (AMD 7670M), stops working
So I followed your advice and uninstalled every driver and software from AMD and Intel, then Windows installed some generic drivers for both GPUs.
Now my AMD graphic card is working, but Switchable graphics settings are inaccessible.

What a bummer, I really really like Windows 8.1.

Thank you so much for your help through all this process, even though I might not get this to work, your help has been invaluable.

Kind regards.

 

Hi Sergy,

Thank you for your update. Sorry it took a couple days for me to respond.

So if I read your post correctly (and your update), at first Windows did not provide its own drivers for your AMD 7670M, but after awhile, Windows Update offered one -- and now everything is working correctly. Is that correctly understood.

That's great. Thanks a lot for confirming this

I would recommend you make an image backup of that Windows installation, or at least save a Restore point. Then, if you are tempted to experiment with newer drivers directly from AMD, you can do so knowing that you have an easy way to roll back.

 

Anyone got Samsung settings for Windows 8.1 ? SW update doesn't work on my system, it's struck at " LOADING PROGRAM" for about half a hour now! Brightness key is not working nor does settings's F1 shorcut. I heard updating to latest Samsung's settings will fix it. Can anyone got direct link ? I've NP535u4c

F1,F2,F3 shortkeys are useless now.

 

Hi Dannemand,
That's right
I had to wait for a couple of updates, as you recommended, but eventually Windows Update installed the necessary drivers and now everything is working like a charm. Now in Catalyst Control Center I can access some features that were not even available with regular AMD drivers downloaded using SW Update

Thank you again, never is enough, your help has been truly invaluable.

I used my SW Update to download Settings 2.0.0.31, now I'm uploading that to Mega, when it finish the upload I'll share it with you, maybe someone else can give you the link before that.

 

Ok cool thanks! Waiting for the link!

My amd Catalyst control center software is gone after upgrading to Windows 8.1 Is there any way to get it back ? Since i can play games and Windows 8.1 has all graphics gimmicks enabled i assume graphics driver is already there but CCC is gone ??



EDIT: I can't use my Keyboard and touchpad simultaneously , any fix ? It's crucial to play games only when mouse is not available. (I already have optical mouse near me but i want it to function as it should)

 

I think it is possible that those games and settings are running on the Intel GPU instead of the AMD one.

Although I had drivers for AMD graphic card installed (obtained from SW Update), I wasn't able to load Switchable graphics nor Catalyst Control Center and neither Sony Vegas nor Camtasia Studio could be launch as I keep getting the error message: "GPU device couldn't be initialized"

All of that was solved following Dannemand instructions for install Microsoft's drivers instead of Samsung's.

Those (Microsoft's) are generic drivers, as you can see in the following image:



It shows an AMD Graphic Card but the model isn't quite right as it should be showing 7670M instead of 7600M series

It's kind of funny, when I had "official" Samsung drivers installed (from SW Update), the model number was being shown correctly, but everything else wasn't working at all

I don't know if our situations are that similar, but still, Catalyst Control Center is included within the installation of AMD driver for your GPU.

PS. Upload is now 33% complete, I apologize for the long wait but right now I am on a very poor connection so I will take a bit more to complete it.

 

Hey it seems like you got an intel cpu but i've AMD's APU.

After contacting Samsung through live chat, they told me to uninstall SW update and reinstall it through their website. That solved SW update issue and it's working fine.

I'm downloading Samsung's Settings 2.0.0.72 (seems newer than 2.0.0.31)
It's 90% completed, will be rebooting pc in few minutes. Feeling sorry that your upload is being wasted now! i apologized for taking your time.

# I would still like to use my touchpad and keyboard simultaneously, is there any fix for that ?
@sergy Are you able to move your mouse while typing ?

 

No problem, glad you could solve it!

No, as soon as I start to type, mouse gets freezed.
I wouldn't notice that if not for you, but still doesn't really bothers me since I don't feel like gaming using the touchpad so I always use a mouse for that.

 

The touchpad being disabled when a key is pressed is a very frequent issue posted here. Strangely, I don't have that issue on my Series 7 (older model) and don't think I ever had it: I can move my cursor all I want while any key is pressed. I wonder if it is due to differences in driver versions or differences in hardware.

I recently rolled back from Touchpad Driver version 11.7.19.9 to version 11.7.10.4. I found my touchpad to behave erratically with the newer driver, whereas the older one had worked perfectly for me for the last year, before I tried the new one. I am very happy again after rolling back.

I do NOT recommend rolling back through Device Manager, as this can leave a mess behind. Instead, I recommend you just uninstall the current Elan driver using the Programs and Feature control panel, reboot, then install the driver you want. Version 11.7.10.4 is available in SW Update under Win8 drivers for model NP880Z5E-X03CA -- among other places.

Most of our useful discussion about the Elan touchpad can be found in the thread linked below, which covers all models despite its thread title:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sam...hronos-np700z5a-trackpad-discussion-only.html

There is also the small thread linked below, which contains relevant links.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sam...5c-s01us-keyboard-mouse-same-time-gaming.html

Also, the Owners Lounge thread linked below has seen quite a bit of touchpad discussion, particularly if you scan the last 2-3 months:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/samsung/733030-2013-ativ-book-9-plus-owner-s-lounge-np940x3g.html

Edit:

Oh, and good job there, @ChairmanSaab getting your graphics driver working. I am surprised that a different SW Update would have that effect. I wonder if merely re-installing SW Update was what did it. In any case are the AMD APU models different in several ways, and much of the discussion here doesn't always take that into account.

And @Sergy, thanks a lot for helping out!

 

Hi

Is it safe to update my Samsung Series 7 Ultra Notebook 13.3" (model NP740U3E-S04UK) yet?

SSD: upgraded to 512GB mSATA Samsung SSD, RAM: (6GB DDR3 System Memory at 1600MHz (on BD 2GB + 4GB x 1)

Or should we wait until Windows 8.2 ?

J

 

Hi ship mate

There are no guarantees when it comes to 8.1 updates, but I don't think it will get any better than it is now. So if you want to update, now is as good a time as any. Alternatively wait for Windows 10 next year.

Before you update, make sure to backup everything important to you. Also create a recovery backup if you don't already have it (see this post). And finally, make sure to update your BIOS before you start, using the safe procedure described in John's BIOS Update thread.

Then follow Samsung's procedure here, including running SW Update AND Windows Update both before and after the actual Win8.1 update.

When it comes to choosing graphics drivers for your model, you'll have to refer to reports in this thread and the NP730/740 Owners Lounge. From my experience, the drivers built into 8.1 are a good place to start. So you could make an image backup (or Restore Point) if they are stable for you, before you start playing with newer drivers from Intel/AMD/Samsung.

 

Among other items I have three Samsung computers. There is one laptop (NP305E7A) running Win 7. I plan to leave it that way until MS quits supporting that software.

The other two are All in One style machines running Win 8.1. Both are DP700A3xxxx. One machine was purchased with a Win 8 key and subsequently “upgraded” to Win 8.1 using the MS free or nearly free offer. It is identified as Build 9200. The second machine was purchased several months later for my spouse and it came with a Win 8.1 key. It is identified as Build 9600.

The machine with Build 9200 has been unstable with lots of compatibility issues since the upgrade. The machine with Build 9600, for the most part, performs as anticipated.

However, the NAS equipment I purchased recently to use as a network backup repository and network server has been impossible to use with the Build 9200 machine. It works great with the Build 9600 machine and the Win 7 laptop

So now I'm looking for a way to migrate from Build 9200 to Build 9600. My first thought is to purchase a new Win 8.1 key and load that onto the problem machine. If I do that will I need to delete the Build 9200 in its entirety? Will there be excessive driver problems? Is there a better way to migrate to Build 9600 functionality? Thankfully, the bulk of my data is on a partition separated from the OS.

As things stand right now, the value of my NAS investment is severely restricted. Help and suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

 

Do both those AoI machines use the same BIOS and is the BIOS up to date? (Use the BIOS update program linked to in the first post of this thread). If UEFI enabled and the partition layout the same on both machines?

Then, are you familiar with Samsung's SW Update program? There's a link to it here if you haven't got it installed. When it is running it checks Samsung's database for the latest version of your problems. There are also Find model and Export functions so you can save the software and driver packages (eg onto a flash drive ready for reinstallation).

Windows 8 / 8.1 keys are hard-coded into the computer and the OEM Windows installer should automatically find and use the key. However, see here if you want to have a backup record of the key.

Before you start wiping anything use Samsung Recovery Solution to make a backup of the recovery partition. If both computers have the same BIOS then it is possible that you would be able to restore the backup of build 9600 onto the build 9200 machine.

John

 

Is it possible, from the good machine, to make a recovery DVD with all the software etc.. Then use those to do a recovery on the old machine?

 

John,

Thanks for your input. Both All in One computers do have the same BIOS. The link to the Nirsof program was helpful. I can only presume it is the latest since I can't find anything to the contrary. The Samsung SW Update is a friend. I use it regularly and and have the drivers etc., backed up on a flash drive. I have a backup of the "C" partition and and also a Win PE emergency disk.

Again, thanks for your help.

I have hesitated to do this for fear I'll make thing worse but I may give it a try. Thanks.

 

@moonvine: While Win8 Product Keys cannot be used to clean install 8.1 directly, you should be able to clean install 8.1 by entering a temporary Product Key during Windows Setup, then change the Product Key to your Win8 Key after installation, and only THEN Activate Windows. This guide in our Windows forum describes the process. You can change the Product Key EITHER using the slmgr command OR through Charms - Settings - PC settings - PC & Devices - PC Info. Of course you need to first extract your Win8 OEM key as described by John.

Or, as suggested by TANWare, you can create a Bootable Factory Image backup to a USB stick using Recovery on the Win8.1 machine, then use that to re-image the drive on the Win8 machine. This guide describes that process (in the context of installing a new SSD and cloning the factory installation onto it). Admittedly, I don't know how the 8.1 factory image will behave when it is deployed on a computer with a Win8 OEM key.

In ANY case would I recommend you create such a Bootable Factory Image backup on the Win8 machine BEFORE making any of these experiments. If something fails, you will be able to re-image the drive back to factory state, no matter how messed up it might have become. Again, that last link describes how to make that backup (and ensure it works).

 

Dear fellow Samsung owners,

As one of the laggards, I finally update on Win 8.1 as well. I haven't read through the entire thread, but couldn't find anything through the search function, so I'm not sure, if I'm actually the only one. BUT: since the update my battery life is basically half! I have a Samsung NP700Z5C and on Win8 it got a battery life of 8+ hours, while now it only survives for a mere 4 hours anymore... Did anyone of you experience similar issues and knows a way to fix it? Besides the OS update there were literally no changes to the laptop whatsoever. Same CPU and GPU usage in idle, same battery savings settings and I updated after the update all Samsung drivers and also the "Settings" app through SW Update. Can anyone help me? This is driving me crazy!

Best,
Sepp