DisplayPort on Thunderbolt suddendly stopped working on Mac mini 2012

Question

Level 1

10 points

DisplayPort on Thunderbolt suddendly stopped working on Mac mini 2012

Hi,

I've been using my HP Z27 monitor with my Mac mini 2012 quad-i7 for a few months, connecting them via a mini-DisplayPort to DisplayPort cable.

Everything worked fine, with the Mac outputting 4K video @30Hz on the display.

All at a sudden, the image disappeared. Connection via HDMI works fine. The cable works fine with my MacBook Pro and a different monitor. The Mac mini doesn't work with that other monitor via DisplayPort.

So, I guess the Thunderbolt of the mini has died. System Profiler says that it is alive:

Thunderbolt Bus:

Vendor Name: Apple Inc.

Device Name: Mac mini

UID: 0x0001000D1AB4FA20

Route String: 0

Firmware Version: 23,4

Domain UUID: 6B44B505-B2E0-D85C-B459-08B8B599D32A

Port:

Status: No device connected

Link Status: 0x101

Speed: Up to 10 Gb/s x2

Receptacle: 1

Link Controller Firmware Version: 0.12.3

Yet, no video from there.

I did the SMC reset procedure, and resetted the P-Ram, with no result.

Has the TB port really died? Is the Mac mini virtually dead, since as far as I know the only possible repair from Apple is replacing the motherboard?

Thank you for your help.

Paolo

Posted on Oct 17, 2019 9:55 AM

Reply

Answer 1

PaoloT. Author

Level 1

10 points

Oct 17, 2019 12:36 PM in response to PaoloT.

Hi,

I must add a reply to my own thread.

I tried a TB-Ethernet adapter on the same port.

It works. I'm writing while connected to the internet through it.

So, it's the TB-DisplayPort function that is broken. I had not installed any update. No new software. Just letting TM complete a backup.

What has happened? How can I restore the DisplayPort compatibility?

I've factory reset my HP Z27 monitor, so I would exclude it as a culprit. However, I'll try with my MacBook Pro.

Any hint would be welcome.

ADDED: When reconnecting the TB-DisplayPort cable, the HP Z27 goes dark for a little, then the HDMI sends the image again. It is as if the monitor has sensed the DisplayPort cable connected again. But then, there is no way to see this source in the list of video sources.

Paolo

Reply