Surface Pro 7 5-10 Sec Freeze (i7, 16GB)

[Boris Hristov]

Hey everyone!

Just got the new Surface Pro 7 + changed the key to Pro Windows as it turned out to be a home first. Have a ton of licenses though as I am MSFT MVP so did that - no issues.

Everything was updated to the latest cumulative updates, etc.

However, since day 1 I noticed that from time to time at no specific moments or apps the machine freezes for 5 - 10 seconds and then it moves on normally.

Has anyone seen anything like that on this or Surface devices recently cause that is kinda annoying especially on a device like this.

If you need more details, let me know and I will provide them (did a complete Memory test btw, all good!)

Thanks,
Boris

 

[HeyCori]

Try uninstalling the updates (but leave the security updates) and see if that improves it.

 

[Boris Hristov]

I saw one update that was considered problematic but I don't have it on my machine. Do you think that any of those could be the problem? I have just two that are not security updates - KB4522355 and KB4519573....

 

[HeyCori]

They could be but I don't have a way to tell. You could always uninstall them and reinstall if that doesn't fix the problem. You could also grab try reinstalling the firmwares.

[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,Calibri,Geneva,sans-serif]https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4023482/surface-download-drivers-and-firmware-for-surface[/FONT]

 

[Ryujingt3]

Do you have any antivirus software installed?

Keep Task Manager open and keep an eye on it to see if CPU or RAM spikes just before it freezes. If yes, you can use Task Manager to also see what is taking up the most resources before it is about to freeze then delete each in turn through process of elimination.

 

[Boris Hristov]

Noup. Not the CPU or disk. Just froze and all was good. 11% CPU almost no disk. I am downloading the firmware stuff now and will reinstall. Otherwise will return it back to MSFT as there are not even 7 days...

I am wondering if the keyboard could be a problem somehow?

 

[Boris Hristov]

Just saw the Q for the Antivirus - noup. Just the Defender. Now updated to 1909 and few hours ago reinstalled the firmware from the above link. Will monitor in the next few hours.

 

[Boris Hristov]

Just an update to everyone. I requested a repair because even after updates, rollbacks, resets, etc. the issue persists. It just freezes for 5 - 10 secs and sometimes it happens 3 - 4 times in a minute and sometimes it happens once for 10 minutes. It's super brutal and I have never seen a behaviour like this from these devices and we have in our company Pro 4 -> Laptops -> Laptops 2 -> Book -> Book with Performance Base -> Book 2. Will report back when I get a new device.

 

[HeyCori]

Bizarre! I hope it works out.

 

[Axeelant]

This has been going on for years on my SP4, with no solution whatsoever... The freezes are less frequent though. Somehow CPU speeds drop to 0.4 Ghz when it happens. Only WIN+D (desktop) unfreezes it. Annoying I must say...

 

[HeyCori]

Try running DISM and SFC to fix corrupted files. Sometimes you have to run SFC in safe mode.

[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,Calibri,Geneva,sans-serif]https://www.howtogeek.com/222532/how-to-repair-corrupted-windows-system-files-with-the-sfc-and-dism-commands/[/FONT]

 

[anon(5327127)]

This has been going on for years on my SP4, with no solution whatsoever... The freezes are less frequent though. Somehow CPU speeds drop to 0.4 Ghz when it happens. Only WIN+D (desktop) unfreezes it. Annoying I must say...

Are you connected to the Surface Dock, when it drops to 0.4Ghz? There's currently an issue, with the SP6, that does that when docked and at 100% battery charge. It's annoying, but quickly resolved by disconnecting the dock and re-connecting.

 

[Axeelant]

Are you connected to the Surface Dock, when it drops to 0.4Ghz? There's currently an issue, with the SP6, that does that when docked and at 100% battery charge. It's annoying, but quickly resolved by disconnecting the dock and re-connecting.

Wish that was the case, but no dock :/

 

[Boris Hristov]

Now I am looking at the i7 10th gen specification: https://ark.intel.com/content/www/u...1065g7-processor-8m-cache-up-to-3-90-ghz.html

At the same time (i don't know if that's OK / normal / expected), every single time I was going to This PC to see the processor speed, i was always seeing (I believe 1.30GHz @ 1.50Ghz). Again - not sure if that has to do anything with the issue.

I am getting the new machine tomorrow so let's see. Will report back how is the new one going.

 

[Boris Hristov]

Update: Got the new one - no problems what so ever with it... Super strange what happened with that first one.

 

[HeyCori]

Excellent!

 

[rbrownell]

I also have this problem with the same unit. With my unit, I also experienced screen contrast issues (colors lacked such definition they were difficult to see) and brightness controls stopped working for a brief period.

I ran the Windows Memory Diagnostic tool in standard mode, no issues came up. When I ran the tool in Enhanced mode, it would freeze completely.

Convincing Microsoft there was a problem was not fun. :unhappy:

I'm also in limbo now because I purchased the Surface during the Black Friday. The two options were to send it and wait 3 weeks for them to confirm there is an issue. Or, return it and buy another one for more money but somehow price match it after the order was placed. In the beginning it was a nice experience but experiencing this after only 4 days with the unit is very very discouraging.

 

[HeyCori]

I also have this problem with the same unit. With my unit, I also experienced screen contrast issues (colors lacked such definition they were difficult to see) and brightness controls stopped working for a brief period.

I ran the Windows Memory Diagnostic tool in standard mode, no issues came up. When I ran the tool in Enhanced mode, it would freeze completely.

Convincing Microsoft there was a problem was not fun. :unhappy:

I'm also in limbo now because I purchased the Surface during the Black Friday. The two options were to send it and wait 3 weeks for them to confirm there is an issue. Or, return it and buy another one for more money but somehow price match it after the order was placed. In the beginning it was a nice experience but experiencing this after only 4 days with the unit is very very discouraging.

Regarding the contrast issue, that might be related to an Intel setting. It's called adaptive contrast. Windows Central has an article about how to turn it off. The process is fairly simple though as you just have to download Intel Command Center from the Store and turn it off in the settings.

[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,Calibri,Geneva,sans-serif]https://www.windowscentral.com/disable-adaptive-contrast-surface-pro-7

Fingers crossed that's the problem and not a sign of something worse.
[/FONT]

 

[rbrownell]

Regarding the contrast issue, that might be related to an Intel setting. It's called adaptive contrast. Windows Central has an article about how to turn it off. The process is fairly simple though as you just have to download Intel Command Center from the Store and turn it off in the settings.

[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,Calibri,Geneva,sans-serif]https://www.windowscentral.com/disable-adaptive-contrast-surface-pro-7

Fingers crossed that's the problem and not a sign of something worse.
[/FONT]

Thanks HeyCori for the advice regarding the contrast issue, I followed that guide earlier today and have not yet experienced the same problem.

I worked my way through Microsoft's mostly unhelpful store support process and have (finally) received a new Surface Pro 7 to replace the other. I am happy to report no issues have yet shown up, even after putting the unit through its paces, stressing it out by trying to play Mass Effect 3 for a short period of time. Though it got really hot, it worked surprisingly well and continues to operate normally.

 

[anjan84]

I have tried updating, rolling back, starting fresh and disabling adaptive contrast. Nothing seems to work and there are plenty of threads about this issue. I am not sure why this has not become a larger issue recognized by microsoft. It is frustrating and unusable at times.