I have a dual-monitor setup on Windows 10. My main monitor is for work, and the secondary one is for other tasks. Every time I open a certain program, it always defaults to my main monitor, and I have to drag it over to the secondary monitor. Is there a way to set it so that the program always opens on the secondary monitor instead? It’s getting a bit annoying to keep moving it manually. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Why even bother with trying to get Windows 10 to do something it clearly can’t handle properly? Dual-monitor setups are supposed to make life easier, not force you to drag windows around all day. Microsoft’s “solution” is to just move the window where you want it and close it from there–like that’s going to stick. It doesn’t.
You’re better off using third-party software like DisplayFusion or UltraMon. Sure, it’s not great having to rely on third-party apps for basic functionality, but at least they work and solve the problem. Even those have their cons, though. They can be a bit of a resource hog, and sometimes they’re more complex than they need to be. And of course, you’ll have to pay for them, which just adds insult to injury.
Alternatively, you could dive into registry edits or hope for some magical update from Microsoft. Spoiler alert: good luck with that. Windows updates are more likely to break things than fix them.
And honestly, let’s not pretend that the issue is rare. It’s pretty embarrassing for a company like Microsoft to ignore something this basic while trying to sell fancy new wallpapers or whatever. If you’re expecting a miracle from the competition, don’t hold your breath. MacOS and Linux have their own sets of problems, though they might handle multi-monitor setups a bit better.
In the end, it’s all just a trade-off. How much time are you willing to waste wrestling with Windows 10 vs. dropping a few bucks on software that actually works?
I get why @techchizkid is a bit frustrated with Microsoft’s handling of multi-monitor setups, but honestly, there are some native options you might wanna try before diving into third-party software or those tedious registry edits. They’re not foolproof, but they work for a lot of people and might save you some cash and a bit of sanity.
First off, here’s a pretty simple method that many users often overlook:
- Open the program you want to set to a specific monitor.
- Drag the window to the monitor you want it to open on (OK, you’ve probably done this a million times, but stay with me).
- Resize the window if needed.
- Close the program using the close button in that window’s top-right corner (don’t use Alt+F4 and don’t maximize it).
Next time you open the program, Windows should remember that last position. I know it sounds too easy and sometimes Windows just ignores it, but it’s worth a try before moving on to more complicated solutions.
If that doesn’t do it, another trick involves making sure the monitor you want the program to open on is set as the primary monitor temporarily. Here’s a step-by-step way to do this:
- Right-click on your desktop and select Display Settings.
- Click on the monitor you want to open the program on, and scroll down to “Make this my main display.”
- Open the program.
- Close the program.
- Set your primary monitor back to its original setting.
For many programs, they will then open on that monitor in future sessions.
Some applications store window positions in their own settings files. For those, if you’re comfortable poking around, you can sometimes find configs or ini files in the app’s folders that let you manually specify window positions. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves—this usually involves quite a bit of trial and error and a lot of patience.
Now, if you’re feeling brave and are up for some registry editing (backup your stuff first!), you might try:
- Open the Registry Editor: Press Win+R, type regedit, and hit enter.
- Navigate to
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\[Your Program's Name]\[Version]\[Window Settings]. - Look for keys like
Left,Top,Right,Bottomto adjust where the program opens. This is like fine-tuning exactly where you want the window to appear.
Please note that messing with the registry can cause issues if you don’t know what you’re doing, so proceed with caution.
Honestly, if after all this Windows is still being stubborn, @techchizkid’s advice about third-party software isn’t wrong. However, an alternative you might like is AutoHotkey, which is a free scripting language for Windows. It requires a bit of scripting knowledge, but you can write a simple script to detect when a window opens and move it to the desired monitor. Here’s a basic script to get you started:
; AutoHotkey Script
SetTitleMatchMode, 2 ; This allows partial title matches
WinWait, [The title of the program window]
WinMove, [The title of the program window], , X, Y, Width, Height ; Where X and Y are the coordinates
Save this as a .ahk file, and make sure AutoHotkey is installed to run it. You can set it up to run at system startup if you want persistent behavior.
Lastly, some folks have luck with tweaking their graphics driver settings. Software from Nvidia, AMD, and Intel usually come with control panels that have settings for multi-monitor layouts. Sometimes adjusting settings there can nudge Windows into playing nice with your programs.
Hope one of these methods does the trick for you. Dual monitors should be making your life easier, not just adding to the hassle. Good luck! If anyone has any other tricks, jump in and share!
You know, it’s a bit of a tough nut to crack considering Windows 10 doesn’t exactly handle this flawlessly, even though it should be simple. I saw @byteguru and @techchizkid’s points, and they’ve got valid advice. But let’s not throw in the towel just yet. Here’s another angle – have you tried tweaking your graphics driver settings? Sometimes software from Nvidia or AMD comes with control panels that might help. These utilities occasionally allow you to set specific configurations for multi-monitor setups which could nudge Windows in the right direction.
Still, those solutions sometimes don’t cut it or become more of a chore than they should be. Instead of diving into third-party apps immediately, let’s look at a feature-focused alternative. You can use something simpler like Windows PowerToys, particularly the FancyZones feature. It’s a free Microsoft utility and usually gets updates. You can customize your window layouts and snap windows into designated zones across your monitors. It’s kind of like splitting the workload – yes, a bit of setup, but less hassle than it might seem.
For AutoHotkey, while it’s pretty powerful, a lot of people find starting with it intimidating unless you’re already comfortable with basic scripting. But here’s a quick nudge: many find community-sourced scripts or templates in forums that you can tweak to fit your needs.
Also worth a shot, if you’re frequently opening the same set of applications for specific tasks, is Windows Task Scheduler. You can write a small PowerShell script that positions the windows and then use Task Scheduler to run the script at startup. It’s a bit technical but reliable:
Add-Type -AssemblyName System.Windows.Forms
[System.Windows.Forms.Screen]::AllScreens[1].WorkingArea.Left
# Replace Task's path with the actual path of the application you wanna open.
Start-Process "C:\Path\YourApplication.exe"
# Sleep to ensure the window initializes
Start-Sleep -Seconds 3
$Window = Get-Process YourApplication -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
foreach ($proc in $Window) {
$proc.MainWindowHandle | ForEach-Object {
[System.Windows.Forms.SendKeys]::SendWait("% n")
[System.Runtime.InteropServices.Marshal]::LoadLibrary("user32.dll")
[User32]::SetWindowPos($_, 0, <x>, <y>, <width>, <height>, 0)
}
}
Replace <x>, <y>, <width>, and <height> with the pixel values for your desired screen position. Add this script to Task Scheduler to run on startup.
Finally, while it may seem overboard, consider the practice of “focusing” your work environment. Evaluate if having certain apps open on a specific monitor contributes to workflow efficiency or if it’s just a preference. Streamlining your setup with fewer active applications might make managing window positions a bit more redundant, albeit requiring a change in habits.
If after all this, Microsoft still hasn’t fixed it, bringing in third-party software like DisplayFusion or UltraMon might just be the necessary evil. Sometimes you need to trade simplicity for effectiveness. Quite the irony for a multi-billion-dollar company, right?