Fix: ThinkPad T400 Series Blue Screens and Freezes After Installing XP

Problem Description

On ThinkPad T400 models with a discrete ATI graphics card, blue screens and freezes may occur intermittently when reinstalling Vista (non-SP1) or XP. The machine has no cooling fault, no virus, and is running a completely clean system. If the graphics switching function is used, a blue screen occurs immediately.

Cause Analysis

The models above use AMD's ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3400 series discrete graphics card. With the BIOS and power management, this graphics card can switch graphics modes to save energy and power. However, proper support requires Vista SP1 or later, as well as a driver version that supports switchable graphics. If this function is used under XP or a non-SP1 version of Vista, it may cause various abnormal symptoms such as system crashes, no response, freezes, and blue screens.

Solutions

Solution 1

Install Vista SP1 or a later operating system version.

Solution 2

  1. Under XP or Windows Server 2003, uninstall the graphics driver.
  2. Re-enter the BIOS and disable hot switching for the graphics card.
  3. Restart the system and install the correct discrete graphics driver to resolve the issue.

BIOS Settings

ThinkPad T400 BIOS procedure:

Press F1 at startup (it may also be F2, Esc, etc.) to enter the BIOS, then select Config → Display:

  1. Set OS Detection For Switchable Graphics to Disabled.
  2. Set Graphics Device to Discrete Graphics.

Anyone encountering the problem above can use this as a reference.

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