Dual monitors (occasionally)

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rb99

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#240526 12-Sep-2018 11:16

Fist world problem.

I am experimenting a bit with dual monitors on the Windows 10 PC. Most of the time I only use one but occasionally turn on the second. Am just wondering if anyone knows a reliable way to encourage Windows to see when the second monitor is turned on and off as it largely seems to ignore it when I turn it on (monitor goes back to sleep and can't mouse over to it) and when I turn it off I can mouse over to this blank screen and spend half the time looking for the mouse till it eventually notices.

The first monitor is connected via HDMI to the PC's inbuilt graphics while the second is via a old AMD card and that AMD Radeon stuff.

“The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness.” -John Kenneth Galbraith

rb99

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#2088131 12-Sep-2018 11:18

It's a little unusual to have the second screen just powered off.... you may be best to have a link to Device Manager on your desktop and do a right-click enable/disable on the second graphics card.

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sidefx

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#2088138 12-Sep-2018 11:24

Right click -> display settings -> find section on multiple displays and select disconnect or extend as required?

Or are you looking for an automatic way to get it to disconnect and extend when turned off and on?

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#2088140 12-Sep-2018 11:27

For this, I've only ever seen Displayport support detecting what is actually done.

Annoys the crap out of me when i try to use my DP screens on a second device, Switch input and bang, everything moves.

The only other issue you will have is applications that are sticky to a second screen. I only really find it with Citrix related applications though lately.

there are little ticks to pull offscreen content back on screen (on hover taskbar peak, right click move and arrow keys.)

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rb99

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#2088148 12-Sep-2018 11:34

Thanks. Yes am hoping to have the PC just pick up on the second monitor when I turn it on (and when I turn it off).

I'll see if I can connect via Display port (pretty sure monitor and PC have Display Port connectors, not sure I've got a cable) and see what happens. Hopefully I'll remember to move apps before I turn it off as well.

Will try that thing with the device manager if the DP thing doesn't work.

“The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness.” -John Kenneth Galbraith

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robcreid

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#2088152 12-Sep-2018 11:40

Your symptoms sound a bit unusual. What type of connection do you have to the second monitor? Any adapters that might be preventing the detection of monitor power on?

We have a bunch of old Viewsonics here that occasionally stop sending EDID info back to the computer, so they don't come on when the computer is woken from sleep and they don't correctly report their available resolutions.

Unplugging the monitor from power for 30sec get then working again for a month or two. Just switching it off and on via its own switch does not fix it.

rb99

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#2089192 12-Sep-2018 12:09

robcreid:

Your symptoms sound a bit unusual. What type of connection do you have to the second monitor? Any adapters that might be preventing the detection of monitor power on?

We have a bunch of old Viewsonics here that occasionally stop sending EDID info back to the computer, so they don't come on when the computer is woken from sleep and they don't correctly report their available resolutions.

Unplugging the monitor from power for 30sec get then working again for a month or two. Just switching it off and on via its own switch does not fix it.

HDMI to the second monitor from the AMD card using cable that came with the (LG) monitor, HDMI to the first from inbuilt PC graphics. No adapters anywhere.

I usually turn the monitor off at the plug after turning it off nicely on the monitor itself.

“The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness.” -John Kenneth Galbraith

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Ruphus

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#2089225 12-Sep-2018 12:43

Are you able to plug both monitors into the AMD graphics card? At the moment, the monitors are different graphics adapters and I suspect your computer may be disabling the second one automatically. Some computers this based on the settings in the BIOS.

If you have both monitors turned on when you start the computer, which monitor displays the startup (post) info?

rb99

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#2089244 12-Sep-2018 13:14

Ruphus:

Are you able to plug both monitors into the AMD graphics card? At the moment, the monitors are different graphics adapters and I suspect your computer may be disabling the second one automatically. Some computers this based on the settings in the BIOS.

If you have both monitors turned on when you start the computer, which monitor displays the startup (post) info?

Theoretically yes but not really cos I can't find a DisplayPort cable anywhere.

When I reboot the Windows blue window thing appears in the second monitor than as it gets further and I guess checks settings it switches and I log in on the first monitor. If it can do that maybe the graphics card more sleeps or just doesn't check after boot ?

“The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness.” -John Kenneth Galbraith

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