Surface Repair Tool (SRT) overview

The Surface Repair Tool (SRT) is a Windows desktop app that helps IT admins and service technicians diagnose hardware issues and run guided repairs on supported Surface devices. SRT pairs interactive diagnostics with step-by-step Field-Replaceable Unit (FRU) workflows, so every repair can be validated before the device returns to service. SRT and the Surface Diagnostic Toolkit (SDT) are available in parallel today, and SRT will replace SDT over time as device coverage expands.

Applies to

• Supported Surface devices
• SRT automatically checks device compatibility at launch
• If the device isn't supported, use the Surface Diagnostic Toolkit (SDT)

Use Surface Repair Tool to

• Run guided hardware diagnostics across device subsystems
• Get standardized pass/fail results to reduce ambiguity during triage
• Replace supported FRUs with built-in validation
• Verify device integrity after a repair with automated calibration and functional tests

Access the Surface Repair Tool

SRT supports multiple entry points depending on your role.

End users

• Install from the Microsoft Store
• Open the Surface app and go to Help & Support > Troubleshoot basic issues

IT administrators

Launch SRT from the Surface IT Toolkit on a managed device or management workstation.

Authorized Service Providers (ASPs)

Download SRT from the Microsoft Download Center and launch it from your service workstation.

Navigate the Surface Repair Tool

Home page

From the Home page, you can:

• Run a test
• Start a repair

The page also displays device information, battery information, Windows Update status, and access to the Surface Service Repair Guide.

Left navigation

Run hardware diagnostics

Select Test in the left navigation.

You can:

• Select individual tests
• Use Select All or Deselect All
• Run all selected tests in one session

Test controls

Each test ends with a results summary.

Available diagnostic tests

Diagnostic test details

Run individual tests from the Test page, or select multiple tests to run in sequence.

Battery

The battery diagnostics validate charging and discharging behavior and confirm accurate power delivery and reporting.

1. Connect your Surface power charger to the device, keep it connected, and select Start.
2. Wait while SRT runs the charging test. A progress indicator shows the test is running.
3. When prompted, disconnect the charger and select Start.
4. Wait for the discharging test to complete.

Keyboard

This test checks whether all keys on your keyboard respond correctly.

1. Toggle the Fn key on. If your keyboard is detachable, attach it to the device, and then select Continue.
2. Read the on-screen instructions. You are asked to press all physical keys except Fn and Q. If the keyboard layout shown on screen doesn't match your keyboard, select the correct layout from the available options, and then select Start.
3. Press each key once. As each key is detected, it turns blue on the on-screen keyboard diagram.
4. After pressing all keys, confirm whether all keys responded correctly.

Display

Display tests validate screen brightness, color accuracy, and visual defects.

Brightness test

The Brightness diagnostic test checks whether your Surface display can adjust smoothly across different brightness levels. It helps confirm that display brightness is working as expected.

1. Watch the screen brightness change gradually from 0% to 100%.
2. Confirm whether the brightness changed as expected (Yes / No). Brightness is restored to its previous level automatically.

Color and defects test

The Color and defects diagnostic test checks your Surface display for visible color and screen quality issues. It helps identify problems such as flickering, distortion, ghosting, blur, and other visual abnormalities.

1. View the multiple color columns displayed on screen.
2. Check for any of the following visual issues: flickering, noise or snowy dots, distortion, ghosting, or blur.
3. Select any detected issues, or select No display errors detected if none are present.
4. Select Finish to complete the display test.

Camera

Each camera test displays a live preview from the indicated camera. Confirm whether any defects are visible in the preview (Yes / No).

• Front camera (RGB) – Validates the visible-light front camera.
• Front camera (infrared) – Validates the infrared (IR) front camera using an IR preview.
• Back camera (RGB) – Validates the visible-light back camera, if applicable.

Audio

Speaker test

1. Disconnect any connected headphones and external speakers.
2. Increase the volume to an audible level.
3. SRT plays sound through the left and right speakers in sequence.
4. Confirm whether sound played from each speaker (Yes / No).

Microphone test

1. When prompted, record your voice by counting down from 5.
2. Listen to the automatic playback.
3. Select OK if the recording sounds clear, or Try again to repeat the test.

Sensors

Accelerometer

1. Move the device in the directions prompted on screen: left/right, up/down, and toward/away from you.
2. Confirm whether the on-screen movement indicator matches the physical device motion (Yes / No).

Ambient Light Sensor

1. Cover the ambient light sensor on your device or change the room lighting level.
2. Confirm whether the on-screen light level visualization responds to the change (Yes / No).

Touch

Touch tests validate continuous touch input across the full display panel.

Spiral test

1. Using your finger, trace a spiral pattern across the screen following the on-screen guide.
2. Confirm whether the tracing was successful (Yes / No).

Lines on the screen test

1. Using your finger, trace lines on the screen following the on-screen guide.
2. Confirm whether the tracing was successful (Yes / No).

Wireless

1. Connect the device to a Wi-Fi network.
2. Keep the connection active throughout the test.
3. SRT automatically verifies wireless adapter presence and network connectivity.

Touchpad

1. Double-select the on-screen touchpad image using the physical touchpad.
2. Confirm whether the action was detected correctly (Yes / No).

Storage

SRT automatically checks the internal storage device model, capacity, and health state. Results are displayed automatically when the scan completes.

USB ports

This test verifies that each USB port on your Surface device is functioning correctly.

Before you start, prepare your device:

• Disconnect all USB accessories and cables from your Surface device.
• Disconnect any Surface Dock connected to either side of the device.
• You can keep the power cable connected during this test.

When you're ready, select Next, then test each port.

Cellular

The cellular diagnostic test is available on Surface devices that include a built-in 5G cellular adapter. It validates the presence of the 5G cellular adapter and its connection state.

1. Make sure a 5G SIM card is inserted, if required by your carrier configuration.
2. SRT automatically checks for cellular adapter presence and signal status.
3. Results are displayed automatically when the scan completes.

Bluetooth

The Bluetooth diagnostic test checks whether your Surface device includes a Bluetooth adapter and can discover nearby Bluetooth devices that are in pairing mode. It validates the presence of the Bluetooth adapter and nearby device discovery.

1. Turn on Bluetooth on your Surface device and put a test Bluetooth accessory into pairing mode.
2. Start the test and confirm that the accessory appears in the list in SRT.
3. Review the results when the test finishes.

Surface Pen

The Pen test checks the functionality and connectivity of your Surface Pen.

1. Using your Pen, trace lines on the screen following the on-screen guide.
2. Confirm whether the tracing was successful (Yes / No).

Video out (external display) test

The Video Out diagnostic test checks whether your Surface device can detect an external display connected through its USB-C video output. It validates external display detection and video output functionality.

1. Connect your Surface device directly to an external display by using a compatible USB-C cable.
2. Start the test and confirm that the external display shows your Surface screen as expected.
3. Review the results when the test finishes.

Driver Health

The Driver Health test checks that all hardware components on your Surface device have valid, working drivers installed. A driver is software that lets Windows communicate with a hardware component such as the camera, keyboard, or wireless adapter. If a driver is missing, corrupted, or reporting an error, the affected hardware might not work correctly.

View test results

After you complete one or more diagnostic tests, the Test Results page displays a summary of all outcomes.

The results page shows:

• Pass or fail status for each subsystem tested
• Options to view detailed results per test
• Fix options where tests failed, linking directly to the relevant repair workflow
• Option to rerun individual tests or the full test session

Perform a guided FRU repair

Select Repair from the left navigation.

Repair workflow overview

Available repair workflows

Replace the battery

Step 1 (optional): Verify battery health

1. Select Step 1, then select Start to run the battery health check.
2. On the Checkup page, select Next to begin the check.
3. Review the result. SRT indicates whether the battery health is good or poor.
4. Select Yes or No to confirm the result, then select Finish to proceed.

Step 2: Enter System Repair Mode

1. Select Step 2 to initiate System Repair Mode.
2. When prompted, select Yes to confirm the device shutdown.
3. The device shuts down automatically. If it doesn't shut down within a few seconds, press and hold the power button until the device powers off.
4. After the device powers off, replace the battery FRU hardware.

Step 3: Validate repair

1. After replacing the battery, power on the device and allow it to boot to Windows.
2. Relaunch Surface Repair Tool.
3. Select Battery repair, then select Step 3.
4. SRT runs the repair validation automatically in the background. Wait for this process to complete.

Step 4: Run functionality tests

Select Step 4 and follow the guided workflow to complete the system functionality tests. Follow the on-screen instructions until all tests are finished.

Replace the Touch Display Module (TDM)

Step 1: Begin the repair

Select the Touch Display Module (TDM) repair and select Go.

Step 2: Enter System Repair Mode

1. Select Step 2 to initiate System Repair Mode, then select Continue.
2. When prompted, select Yes to confirm the device shutdown.
3. The device shuts down automatically. If it doesn't shut down within a few seconds, press and hold the power button until the device powers off.

Step 3: Replace hardware and run calibration

1. After the device powers off, replace the TDM FRU hardware.
2. Power on the device and allow it to boot to Windows.
3. Relaunch Surface Repair Tool.
4. Select Step 3 to complete the repair, then select Start.
5. SRT runs the TDM calibration automatically. Calibration might take a few minutes, so wait for the process to complete.

Step 4: Complete system tests

SRT proceeds automatically to the system functionality tests. Follow the guided workflow until all steps are complete.

Replace the motherboard

Step 1: Replace hardware before launching SRT

1. Power off the device with the faulty motherboard.
2. Remove the faulty motherboard and install the replacement motherboard FRU.
3. Power on the device and allow it to boot to Windows.

Step 2: Enter System Repair Mode

1. Launch Surface Repair Tool and select the Motherboard repair workflow.
2. Select Step 2 to initiate System Repair Mode, then select Continue.
3. When prompted, select Yes to confirm the device shutdown.
4. The device shuts down automatically. If it doesn't shut down within a few seconds, press and hold the power button until the device powers off.

Step 3: Run calibration

1. Power on the device and allow it to boot to Windows.
2. Relaunch Surface Repair Tool.
3. Select Step 3 to complete the repair, then select Start.
4. SRT runs the calibration automatically. Calibration might take a few minutes, so wait for the process to complete.

Step 4: Complete system tests

SRT continues into the system functionality tests automatically. Complete the guided workflow to finish the repair.

Replace the touchpad

Step 1: Start repair

Launch Surface Repair Tool, select the Touchpad repair workflow, and select Go.

Step 2: Enter System Repair Mode

1. Select Step 2 to initiate System Repair Mode, then select Continue.
2. When prompted, select Yes to confirm the device shutdown.
3. The device shuts down automatically. If it doesn't shut down within a few seconds, press and hold the power button until the device powers off.

Step 3: Replace hardware

1. After the device powers off, replace the Touchpad FRU hardware.
2. Power on the device and allow it to boot to Windows.

Step 4: Run validation

1. Relaunch Surface Repair Tool.
2. Select Step 3 to complete the repair, then select Start.

Step 5: Complete functionality tests

SRT verifies keyboard and touchpad functionality. Follow the guided workflow until all tests are complete.

Get support

Select Support to access troubleshooting resources and repair documentation.

The Support section provides:

• Troubleshooting guidance for common Surface hardware and software issues
• Links to the Surface Service Repair Guide and official repair documentation
• Help resources and escalation paths for issues that can't be resolved through self-service

Configure settings

Select Settings to configure preferences and view version information.

From Settings, you can:

• Configure general application behavior and preferences
• Manage diagnostic run preferences
• View tool version and build information

Related content

• Surface Diagnostic Toolkit (SDT)
• Surface IT Toolkit
• Surface Service Repair Guide
• Download Surface Service Guides