Why is my Microsoft Surface touchscreen not working following a Windows update?

[BeezArt]

My Microsoft Surface 2 touchscreen stopped working after an update two days ago. Tech support was unhelpful. I KNOW this is software -- nothing wrong with the hardware. Is there a fix?

 

[Pleaselisten]

I've had the same problem today with my Surface 2 - UNBELIEVABLY BAD SERVICE from MS - I called technical help - went through extremely time-consuming "Refresh" and "Reset" - no help at all - then told me Microsoft were "working on the problem" and it would take them 3 weeks to find an answer!!!!! I can now only use my Surface 2 with keyboard - really embarrassing as I use it for work - apparently Microsoft doesn't mind that I have to tell all my business contacts that Microsoft updates mess up Microsoft's own products!!!! Why get me to do a re-set pointlessly?????? Did you get a solution????? Does anybody at MS read this forum and care enough to help me?????

 

[Laura Knotek]

Does anybody at MS read this forum and care enough to help me?????

WindowsCentral is a fan-based site. It is not affiliated in any way with Microsoft.

 

[Duane Harlick]

There have been many threads started on this issue. It appears to be related to something that occurs during Windows Update. Not sure if it's firmware or driver related. Nevertheless, some of us have had success getting our touchscreens back by performing the "battery kill" sequence. It goes something like this:

- Run the battery completely bone-dry dead
- Leave the unit sitting dead on a table for - literally - a couple of days (cool down time?)
- REMOVE the external keypad
- Plug in the charger and allow the Surface to charge and/or start up on its own.

I hope this helps you. I know it has worked for me several times...

One other trick that worked for me (albeit surprisingly) was checking for updates (using the keypad, as the touch screen was dead...) and running the updates WITHOUT the keypad attached. Somehow, after the update and re-start, my screen came back to life! (???!!)

So, there's something strange going on with Windows Update on the Surface 2.

Best of luck to you!!