Surface Book 3 owners have a fresh firmware update to grab

By Sean Endicott
published

Surface Book 3 owners can snag a new firmware update for their convertible laptop.

Surface Book 3 Review Tablet
Surface Book 3 Review Tablet (Image credit: Daniel Rubino / Windows Central)

What you need to know

  • The Surface Book 3 has a new firmware update available.
  • The update improves system stability and security.
  • As is normally the case, it does not contain any new features.

Microsoft's Surface Book 3 has a new firmware update available. As is normally the case with firmware updates, the Surface Book 3's update doesn't include any new features. It instead focuses on device stability and security improvements, including improvements to the device's display adapters and graphics.

Here is the complete changelog, as found on the Surface Book 3 support page (opens in new tab):

Swipe to scroll horizontally
Device Manager NameVersion and Update
Intel Iris Plus Graphics – Display adapters27.20.100.8681 - Improves system graphics performance, stability, and security.
Intel Iris Plus Graphics Extension27.20.100.8681 - Improves integration between system services and stability.
NVIDIA GeForce GTX - Display adapters27.21.14.5257 - Improves system graphics performance, stability, and security.
Surface UEFI – Firmware9.102.140.0 - Addresses security updates and improves system stability.

Microsoft highlights that Surface updates are released in stages. As a result, you might not see the update right away. It will eventually roll out to all Surface Book 3 devices. You may also see a "View optional updates" link within the Windows Updates settings. If you do see such a prompt, Microsoft recommends selecting the option to ensure that all Surface drivers in the release have been installed.

To grab the latest update for the Surface Book 3, follow these steps:

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Click on Update & Security.
  3. Click on Windows Update.
  4. Click the Check for updates button.

Your device should then download and install the update.

Sean Endicott
Sean Endicott
News Writer and apps editor

Sean Endicott brings nearly a decade of experience covering Microsoft and Windows news to Windows Central. He joined our team in 2017 as an app reviewer and now heads up our day-to-day news coverage. If you have a news tip or an app to review, hit him up at sean.endicott@futurenet.com (opens in new tab).

6 Comments
  • had an issue where the display would blink black.
    hope this fixes it
  • I have weird problems.
    Using razer chroma speakers and an external monitor, random usb stuff just disconnects.
    If I don't use the razer application its fine. Seems like the Bus gets over saturated.
  • Unfortunately my Surface Book 3 is unresponsive after installing the Feb 2021 KB4598291 update. Asked to be restarted, which I did and when I came back - like 15 minutes later, the screen was black and it looked turned off. Tried to turn it on, but no reaction although plenty of battery and connected to the grid. Now it's been 48 hours and I tried every solution I saw online, every key and button combination, screen attached/detached from the base, etc. Looked online and seems the dreaded "sleep of death" related with hibernation or the Surface's special sleep mode. I'm trying to solve this at home, and avoid delivering this to Microsoft during the pandemic (still has warranty), but I'm seriously disapointed this is still a problem with the Surface line. My advice: don't go away while your Surface is restarting after an update or else turn hibernation off as recommended in several forums.
  • UPDATE: after over 1 week trying to power my SF3 without luck, sent it to MS and received a replacement unit.
    The first thing I did with the "new" SF3 was to disable anything related with sleep/suspension/hibernation, including energy settings and the power button configuration. Now it's either always on, or off, and will keep it that way until I feel I can trust this device.
    Devinlars comment is right - the Intel driver included in this MS firmware update was not the most recent version, and doesn't address the "black screen" bug after sleep. So, got the 27.20.100.9168 version with that fix, directly from Intel.
    Lesson learned: don't rush any updates from MS.
  • Good stuff! It's nice to hear that MS honoured its warranty with such an expensive unit. Enjoy your "new" SB3!
  • Classic MS Rolling out this Firmware that actually causes more issues than it fixes. The Intel driver it forces to install is THE SAME ONE as it used before, so thus it does not fix the Black Screen and Blurry Font issues that plague oh so many. After you install this firmware I HIGHLY recommend that you download the known working driver direct from Intel. Version 27.20.100.9079 - it has been confirmed by several users that it fixes the black screen and blurry font issue. The newer drivers DO NOT fix those issues.