How to Check GPU Output Signal Status

Last updated 27 July 2026

How to Check GPU Output Signal Status

See, per output, whether a link is up, what the display is asking for, and whether the current link actually has the bandwidth to carry it. This is the page to open when a projector shows nothing, drops out intermittently, or falls back to a lower mode than expected.

GPU Status is read-only and visible to every role. Unlike the GPU configuration tabs, you do not need the Administrator role to look at it.

[USER-ACTION-REQUIRED: Attach a screenshot of the GPU Status page showing one OK output and one EXCEEDED output here]

Before you start

  • You are signed in to System Management on the server you want to inspect
  • The cable is physically connected — an unplugged output reports as unused, with no link data to read

Steps

1. Open the GPU Status page

In the System Management sidebar, under Maintain, select GPU Status. Outputs are grouped per graphics card, headed GPU 1: <card name>. Use Refresh to re-read the current state.

2. Read the status dot

Each output carries a coloured dot and a headline naming the connector, the port number, the signal type, the attached monitor, and the active mode — for example DP(2) DisplayPort BSM-4K - 3840x2160@60Hz. The dot is the fastest read on the page.

3. Compare requirement against link on DisplayPort outputs

For an output driven as a DisplayPort link, the page shows a table with three things side by side: the EDID requirement (the highest mode the display advertises and the bandwidth it needs), the Current link (negotiated link rate, lane count, and usable bandwidth), and the Capability column (the best the link could do). A DPCD version line above the table identifies the link, and marks internal DisplayPort links as such.

Read it as one sentence: the display is asking for X Gbps, the link is currently carrying Y Gbps, and it is capable of Z Gbps.

4. Act on the verdict

Below the table the page states its verdict — OK, EXCEEDED, or NO LINK — often with an explanatory message. See the verdicts table below for what to do about each.

5. Check the history in Logs

Port status is monitored continuously in the background, not only while you have the page open. Every change since startup is recorded in the Logs page under the GPU source. This is where you catch an intermittent drop-out that has already recovered by the time you look at GPU Status.

Verdicts explained

Verdict

What it means

What to do

OK

The negotiated link carries the mode the display asks for, with headroom.

Nothing. If the picture is still wrong, the cause is upstream of the link.

EXCEEDED

The mode needs more bandwidth than the current link provides. Expect dropouts, sparkles, or a silent fallback to a lower mode.

Reduce demand or raise supply: drop bit depth, switch to YUV 4:2:2, use a better cable, or take the display out of a daisy chain.

NO LINK

No usable bandwidth was negotiated at all. The physical link is not training.

Treat it as a cable or connector fault first: reseat both ends, swap the cable, try another port on the display.

IDLE

The output is neither active nor connected — nothing is plugged in, or nothing has been detected.

Expected on spare ports. If a display is genuinely attached, check power on the display and reseat the cable.

Common Mistakes

  • Expecting bandwidth data on a non-DisplayPort output. The link, bandwidth, and DPCD detail only exist for DisplayPort links. An HDMI or DVI output shows the headline and status dot, and states that it is not driven as a DisplayPort link. That is not a fault.

  • Reading "active, resolution unavailable" as a broken output. It means the driver reported the output as active but returned no mode. This is the stale-display state that a server restart clears — it is not a signal problem.

  • Chasing an EXCEEDED verdict in the cable when the settings caused it. Raising an output to 12 bpc RGB can push a 4K60 link over its limit on a perfectly good cable. Check what you last set on the Outputs tab before replacing hardware.

  • Judging an intermittent fault from a single page load. GPU Status shows the state right now. A link that dropped and recovered looks healthy here — the evidence is in Logs under the GPU source.

Tips

  • Capture this page during commissioning, while everything is known-good. A later comparison against that baseline turns a vague "it flickers" into a specific changed link rate or lane count.

  • When Current is well below Capability, the link trained down. That points at the cable or the run length rather than at settings — the port could do more but is not.

  • The EDID requirement column reflects what the display advertises. If you have forced an EDID onto that output, this is the forced EDID's demand, not the physical panel's.

  • The connector and port numbering shown here matches the Outputs, EDID, and Desktop tabs, so you can carry an identification straight from this page to the tab where you change something.

Display and GPU Configuration — the configuration tabs behind these outputs: EDID, Outputs, Mosaic, Virtual Monitors, Desktop, and Options.

Monitor Server Health and Hardware Status — the wider server health picture: sensors, power supplies, storage, and hardware errors.

How to Recover an Output When a Monitor Is Unplugged or Moved (Ghost Outputs) — recovering a Backstage output after a monitor is unplugged or moved.