Windows offers a lesser-known keyboard shortcut ‘Ctrl+Win+Shift+B’, which can be used to resolve black screen problems by refreshing the desktop surface buffer with the use of the Desktop Window Manager’s hardware acceleration. This feature was originally added in Windows Vista and is now present in all versions, including Windows 11 version 23H2 and Windows 10.

Although some people believe that this shortcut is intended to reset the graphics driver, it actually resets the graphics subsystem, resulting in a “beep” sound. It should be used to address potential black screen issues and can help troubleshoot display issues such as a black or unresponsive display when playing games or watching videos.

It’s important to be cautious, as using this shortcut when the black screen issue is not present may generate unnecessary data and save it in the system. While the driver may be reset or reinstalled as a side effect, this is not the intended behavior. The shortcut was initially introduced to help diagnose situations where the hardware appears to be functioning correctly but the screen remains blank.