Crash when using monitors

So Windows 10 did an update on my HP pavilion laptop. After the update, I checked for updated graphics card and UD-3900 drivers and have them installed. When I launch Civ VI, the launch screen appears and the game crashes. If I click the “launch game” button before the crash, it begins to launch, then crashes. If I unplug the UD-3900, game runs fine on the laptop. Ideas?

Hi Jeff,

Thank for contacting Plugable about your issue!

Unfortunately, we do not recommend or support our USB graphics adapters like those used in the UD-3900 for use with games. We do our best to mention this in the product page and Amazon listing, but we’re always looking for better ways to convey these details.

The behavior you are experiencing when playing a game is to be expected as the DisplayLink software used by our adapter in addition to the DisplayLink chipset within the adapter is not suitable to support the bandwidth required for games to run optimally. Using the laptop screen or a monitor directly connected to a video output port on the laptop would be recommended for gaming.

I am sorry that we cannot be of more help. If preferred, we can certainly assist with a return for full refund as we do not want you to feel stuck with an adapter that is not suitable for gaming use. We’d just need your Amazon Order ID number to begin this process, so please send that to support@plugable.com and include “Ticket #279614 attn: Andrew” in the subject line.

Thanks!
-Andrew T.
Plugable Technologies

Thanks for the reply. No knock on the product at all. Worked just fine for a year and a half, then just quit after the last windows update. Photoshop shuts down now too, which will cause a bigger issue as I need the dual monitors to work. I’ll look for another solution.

Hi Jeff,

It sounds like the issue might be related to an issue with OpenGL as we mention in the last FAQ on the UD-3900 product page at https://plugable.com/products/ud-3900/#faq. We speak to the application “SketchUp” as an example, but this is applicable to any OpenGL based application or game.

I’ve pasted the text of the FAQ item below for your reference in case it helps your situation. The last paragraph outlines some workarounds that may help here:

After the Windows Anniversary or Creators Update, applications that make use of OpenGL (like SketchUp for example) are not working properly and/or produce an error message when launched while the dock is connected to my system. Why is this happening and how do I fix this?

Microsoft and DisplayLink (the maker of the chip in our dock and author of the driver) have identified a bug within the Windows 10 Anniversary and Creators Update. With the Anniversary or Creators Update to Windows 10, Microsoft has now integrated support for the DisplayLink technology used in our docking station into Windows itself, and in certain cases applications which make use of OpenGL may not work as expected.

For example, the SketchUp application requires the use of graphics adapter that supports a standard known as OpenGL → http://help.sketchup.com/en/article/114278

In some instances, Windows mistakenly directs the tasks intended for the system’s internal graphics adapter (which does support OpenGL) to the DisplayLink-based docking station. Our docking station is not a traditional graphics adapter in and of itself (it relies on the CPU and internal graphics adapter to work), and this results in the incorrect behavior or error message. DisplayLink speaks to this issue directly here → http://support.displaylink.com/knowledgebase/articles/942862-my-device-is-not-working-properly-on-windows-10-an (under the section ‘OPENGL 1.1 REPORTED INSTEAD OF 4.X’)

Pending Microsoft fixing the issue within Windows itself, there are two possible workarounds. The first is to configure Windows to have the ‘Main’ display set to a display directly connected to your internal graphics adapter, whether that is an internal laptop display or another external display connected to one of the systems built-in video outputs (a quick guide to doing so is here → https://youtu.be/7nnKztRZXsw).
If that doesn’t prove a suitable workaround, booting the system without the dock connected, launching SketchUp (or any other OpenGL application), and then connecting the dock may also help.

Thanks!
-Andrew T.
Plugable Technologies

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