Small black squares all over screen


H

highstream

Member
Local time
7:07 AM
Posts
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OS
Windows 11 Home OEM
Lenovo Yoga 6 13ABR8 laptop (refurb), Win 11 Home (OEM), latest build. Received this laptop today from a YouTube refurb operation with a good reputation and am noticing little black squares/rectangles all over the screen w/in browsers. Sometimes they move as I'm typing. Any idea what might be going on? The first photo is with Edge, the second Opera.
 

Attachments

  • Black dots - Edge.webp
    Black dots - Edge.webp
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  • Black Dots Opera - 2.webp
    Black Dots Opera - 2.webp
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My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home OEM
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo Yoga 6 13ABR8
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 7730
    Memory
    16.0 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon
Hi, welcome.

Looks like you have a font rendering issue.

(EDIT: Removed steps and replaced them with forum tutorial)

Have a read through this tutorial and run the included batch file.

www.elevenforum.com

Rebuild Font Cache in Windows 11

This tutorial will show you how to rebuild the font cache to repair it in Windows 10 and Windows 11. The font cache is a file or set of files used by Windows to manage and display the fonts installed on your PC so they load faster. Sometimes the font cache may become corrupted and cause fonts...
www.elevenforum.com www.elevenforum.com

See if that helps
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 Build 22631.5624
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Sin-built
    CPU
    Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-4770K CPU @ 3.50GHz (4th Gen?)
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus VI Formula
    Memory
    32.0 GB of I forget and the box is in storage.
    Graphics Card(s)
    Gigabyte nVidia GeForce GTX 1660 Super OC 6GB
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    5 x LG 25MS500-B - 1 x 24MK430H-B - 1 x Wacom Pro 22" Tablet
    Screen Resolution
    All over the place
    Hard Drives
    Too many to list.
    OS on Samsung 1TB 870 QVO SATA
    PSU
    Silverstone 1500
    Case
    NZXT Phantom 820 Full-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Noctua NH-D15 Elite Class Dual Tower CPU Cooler / 6 x EziDIY 120mm / 2 x Corsair 140mm somethings / 1 x 140mm Thermaltake something / 2 x 200mm Corsair.
    Keyboard
    Corsair K95 / Logitech diNovo Edge Wireless
    Mouse
    Logitech: G402 / G502 / Mx Masters / MX Air Cordless
    Internet Speed
    1000/400Mbps
    Browser
    All sorts
    Antivirus
    Kaspersky Premium
    Other Info
    I’m on a horse.
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 Build: 22631.4249
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    LENOVO Yoga 7i EVO OLED 14" Touchscreen i5 12 Core 16GB/512GB
    CPU
    Intel Core 12th Gen i5-1240P Processor (1.7 - 4.4GHz)
    Memory
    16GB LPDDR5 RAM
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel Iris Xe Graphics Processor
    Sound Card
    Optimized with Dolby Atmos®
    Screen Resolution
    QHD 2880 x 1800 OLED
    Hard Drives
    M.2 512GB
    Antivirus
    Defender / Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    …still on a horse.
Thanks, but they are still there, unless I needed to reboot.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home OEM
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo Yoga 6 13ABR8
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 7730
    Memory
    16.0 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon
highstream said:
Thanks, but they are still there, unless I needed to reboot.
Click to expand...


Sorry I edited my post, did you run my steps before I edited my post or did you run the batch file in the tutorial?
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 Build 22631.5624
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Sin-built
    CPU
    Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-4770K CPU @ 3.50GHz (4th Gen?)
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus VI Formula
    Memory
    32.0 GB of I forget and the box is in storage.
    Graphics Card(s)
    Gigabyte nVidia GeForce GTX 1660 Super OC 6GB
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    5 x LG 25MS500-B - 1 x 24MK430H-B - 1 x Wacom Pro 22" Tablet
    Screen Resolution
    All over the place
    Hard Drives
    Too many to list.
    OS on Samsung 1TB 870 QVO SATA
    PSU
    Silverstone 1500
    Case
    NZXT Phantom 820 Full-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Noctua NH-D15 Elite Class Dual Tower CPU Cooler / 6 x EziDIY 120mm / 2 x Corsair 140mm somethings / 1 x 140mm Thermaltake something / 2 x 200mm Corsair.
    Keyboard
    Corsair K95 / Logitech diNovo Edge Wireless
    Mouse
    Logitech: G402 / G502 / Mx Masters / MX Air Cordless
    Internet Speed
    1000/400Mbps
    Browser
    All sorts
    Antivirus
    Kaspersky Premium
    Other Info
    I’m on a horse.
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 Build: 22631.4249
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    LENOVO Yoga 7i EVO OLED 14" Touchscreen i5 12 Core 16GB/512GB
    CPU
    Intel Core 12th Gen i5-1240P Processor (1.7 - 4.4GHz)
    Memory
    16GB LPDDR5 RAM
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel Iris Xe Graphics Processor
    Sound Card
    Optimized with Dolby Atmos®
    Screen Resolution
    QHD 2880 x 1800 OLED
    Hard Drives
    M.2 512GB
    Antivirus
    Defender / Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    …still on a horse.
Before
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home OEM
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo Yoga 6 13ABR8
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 7730
    Memory
    16.0 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon
Run the batch. Sorry about that.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 Build 22631.5624
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Sin-built
    CPU
    Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-4770K CPU @ 3.50GHz (4th Gen?)
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus VI Formula
    Memory
    32.0 GB of I forget and the box is in storage.
    Graphics Card(s)
    Gigabyte nVidia GeForce GTX 1660 Super OC 6GB
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    5 x LG 25MS500-B - 1 x 24MK430H-B - 1 x Wacom Pro 22" Tablet
    Screen Resolution
    All over the place
    Hard Drives
    Too many to list.
    OS on Samsung 1TB 870 QVO SATA
    PSU
    Silverstone 1500
    Case
    NZXT Phantom 820 Full-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Noctua NH-D15 Elite Class Dual Tower CPU Cooler / 6 x EziDIY 120mm / 2 x Corsair 140mm somethings / 1 x 140mm Thermaltake something / 2 x 200mm Corsair.
    Keyboard
    Corsair K95 / Logitech diNovo Edge Wireless
    Mouse
    Logitech: G402 / G502 / Mx Masters / MX Air Cordless
    Internet Speed
    1000/400Mbps
    Browser
    All sorts
    Antivirus
    Kaspersky Premium
    Other Info
    I’m on a horse.
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 Build: 22631.4249
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    LENOVO Yoga 7i EVO OLED 14" Touchscreen i5 12 Core 16GB/512GB
    CPU
    Intel Core 12th Gen i5-1240P Processor (1.7 - 4.4GHz)
    Memory
    16GB LPDDR5 RAM
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel Iris Xe Graphics Processor
    Sound Card
    Optimized with Dolby Atmos®
    Screen Resolution
    QHD 2880 x 1800 OLED
    Hard Drives
    M.2 512GB
    Antivirus
    Defender / Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    …still on a horse.
highstream said:
Lenovo Yoga 6 13ABR8 laptop (refurb), Win 11 Home (OEM), latest build. Received this laptop today from a YouTube refurb operation with a good reputation and am noticing little black squares/rectangles all over the screen w/in browsers. Sometimes they move as I'm typing. Any idea what might be going on? The first photo is with Edge, the second Opera.
Click to expand...
Since this a refurb, check if the latest Radeon driver is installed.
https://pcsupport.lenovo.com/ec/en/...phics&id=635380F4-448F-4129-AA77-265289D96F6F

The black squares could be a failed attempt at HW acceleration.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7
@antspants -- That seems to have solved it, thanks! But what might have caused it?

@garlin -- Good idea. The laptop build date was in Sept 2023. Since I'm new to Win 11 -- and dreading it already* -- I updated everything with a 2024-25 date.

* I can't even find a New Folder option in File Mgr.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home OEM
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo Yoga 6 13ABR8
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 7730
    Memory
    16.0 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon
I'm still getting the black dots. After running the batch file and rebooting, they seem to disappear, but another reboot later they're back. Any more ideas.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home OEM
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo Yoga 6 13ABR8
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 7730
    Memory
    16.0 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon
  • Press Win + R, type fonts, and hit Enter.
  • Check if commonly used fonts (e.g., Segoe UI, Arial, Times New Roman) are present.
  • If a font looks missing or broken, re-install it:
    • Download the font from fonts.google.com or a trusted source.
    • Right-click the .ttf or .otf file → Install.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 Build 22631.5624
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Sin-built
    CPU
    Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-4770K CPU @ 3.50GHz (4th Gen?)
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus VI Formula
    Memory
    32.0 GB of I forget and the box is in storage.
    Graphics Card(s)
    Gigabyte nVidia GeForce GTX 1660 Super OC 6GB
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    5 x LG 25MS500-B - 1 x 24MK430H-B - 1 x Wacom Pro 22" Tablet
    Screen Resolution
    All over the place
    Hard Drives
    Too many to list.
    OS on Samsung 1TB 870 QVO SATA
    PSU
    Silverstone 1500
    Case
    NZXT Phantom 820 Full-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Noctua NH-D15 Elite Class Dual Tower CPU Cooler / 6 x EziDIY 120mm / 2 x Corsair 140mm somethings / 1 x 140mm Thermaltake something / 2 x 200mm Corsair.
    Keyboard
    Corsair K95 / Logitech diNovo Edge Wireless
    Mouse
    Logitech: G402 / G502 / Mx Masters / MX Air Cordless
    Internet Speed
    1000/400Mbps
    Browser
    All sorts
    Antivirus
    Kaspersky Premium
    Other Info
    I’m on a horse.
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 Build: 22631.4249
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    LENOVO Yoga 7i EVO OLED 14" Touchscreen i5 12 Core 16GB/512GB
    CPU
    Intel Core 12th Gen i5-1240P Processor (1.7 - 4.4GHz)
    Memory
    16GB LPDDR5 RAM
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel Iris Xe Graphics Processor
    Sound Card
    Optimized with Dolby Atmos®
    Screen Resolution
    QHD 2880 x 1800 OLED
    Hard Drives
    M.2 512GB
    Antivirus
    Defender / Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    …still on a horse.
Fonts are there. When you say look broken, you mean black on the type I'm looking at on screen? For example, the font of this forum text, whatever it is?
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home OEM
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo Yoga 6 13ABR8
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 7730
    Memory
    16.0 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon
I've been going through four browsers -- Opera, Edge, FF & Chrome -- and different websites. It seems that the black dots show up more with some browsers than others, some sites than others and some pages than others. For example, In Opera and Edge, they show up on Yahoo articles and on this forum, but not on the NY Times page. On this site, they show up on the pop ups when I hover over most forum post titles (in bold) and not others, e.g., "Headless - Boot..." but not my own. In Chrome, they are few and far between, and in FF I'm not seeing them at all, even on this site.

I really need to figure this out, or find another laptop (this Lenovo refurb is replacing a Win 7-based 11.6" Zenbook, limping along on Win 10). I'm headed for surgery in another region in a few weeks and a laptop is needed especially now for the person accompanying me, as well as for me to some extent (I also have an iPad Mini). Thanks,
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home OEM
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo Yoga 6 13ABR8
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 7730
    Memory
    16.0 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon
I can add that I've just seen the black dots for the first time outside of a browser, in the set up of OneDrive (reconnecting so I can get rid of it).
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home OEM
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo Yoga 6 13ABR8
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 7730
    Memory
    16.0 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon
garlin said:
You can try booting into Safe Mode with Networking. If the black squares disappear, it could be driver related. Otherwise your graphics adapter might be damaged (bad VRAM).

Boot to Safe Mode in Windows 11
Click to expand...

Good idea, but for some reason the laptop is not making an internet connection in Safe Mode w/ Networking. It seems to not be able to find an app. How could that come about?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home OEM
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo Yoga 6 13ABR8
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 7730
    Memory
    16.0 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon
Wireless. I use Spectrum cable and have an eero router. The network adapter card is a MediaTek Wi-Fi 6 MT7921 Wireless LAN Card. I think that's one of the drivers I install the latest version of yesterday.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home OEM
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo Yoga 6 13ABR8
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 7730
    Memory
    16.0 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon
You don't have an option to plug the PC into the router by network cable? I don't think Safe Mode works with WiFi. The services aren't started, or something.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7
For compactness, the laptop doesn't have an ethernet port. AI says a USB C to ethernet adapter will work, but I don't have one. Oh well. Any other ideas?

Follow up. The local Target has one, so I'm headed over there. Hope AI is right.

Questions: There's no open port on the eero. I assume plugging into the Spectrum router accomplish the same thing, since the eero follows it. Is there any network change I'd have to make beyond plugging in the cable?
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home OEM
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo Yoga 6 13ABR8
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 7730
    Memory
    16.0 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon
Do the black squares only show up in a browser? Appear anywhere else in the system?

Is there another PC around? I would copy a large enough movie file to an USB flash drive, and play a movie from it. The goal is to "stress" the graphics chip and see you see weird blockiness or color artifacts during playback. Assuming your driver is up-to-date, then it points to bad HW.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7
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