that's part of the terminal script to install displayplacer
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
External Displays Swapping - Arrangement Not Remembered!
- Thread starter Brenzo
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
This process creates just that a "shortcut" not a fix. but in lieu of a fix, a shortcut is far less frustrating.
Cordless Dog: Stay
cordlessdog.com
tried it, didn't work, another $15 down the drain trying to fix this issue
Update: Finally took a few minutes to install displayplacer. I got my list with my monitors arranged correctly, then wrapped that command into an Automator app.
To test, I turned my monitors off, then turned them back on in the wrong order (right to left instead of left to right). Predictably, this mixed them up. Ran my displayplacer app. No change.
So, I'm still in the "turn them off and back on in the right order" camp. I wonder if trying to give them unique names with SwitchResX or something would help displayplacer and macOS see them as unique devices. I think that's probably part of my issue: these monitors perhaps don't describe themselves in a unique way.
As a non-sequitur: the good news is I think my issue where my audio balance setting would crank itself all the way to the left stopped with 12.6. I'll take it!
@andyrharvey does your solution still persist? I have been having this issue for the last 5 months and this is the only solution that I haven't tried yet 😅
I now have solved the issue and now have different EDID for the same 2 monitor models.
The solution is simple: I now connect 1 monitor via DP and one via HDMI. Boom - I get 2 different EDIDs now. You can compare the EDIDs using
Background: I have 2 Benq PD3200U connected to a TB4 Dock from Sonnettech. As the dock only has TB4 ports I use Anker HDMI to USB-C and DP to USB-C adapters, both plugged into the dock.
Previously I had plugged in 2 HDMI Cables via the mentioned adapters, one in the dock and one directly in the MBP M1P 16". This lead to switching of primary monitors as described on multiple sites and posts.
My left monitor is oriented vertically, the other one in the center horizontally, not using the MBP screen (notebook is closed). Also both of my displays are set to use a different scaling than the native scaling (second setting from the right).
I will report back after a few days if the problem has been finally solved this way!
The solution is simple: I now connect 1 monitor via DP and one via HDMI. Boom - I get 2 different EDIDs now. You can compare the EDIDs using
ioreg -l | grep EDID. Also the AlphanumericSerialNumber is different.Background: I have 2 Benq PD3200U connected to a TB4 Dock from Sonnettech. As the dock only has TB4 ports I use Anker HDMI to USB-C and DP to USB-C adapters, both plugged into the dock.
Previously I had plugged in 2 HDMI Cables via the mentioned adapters, one in the dock and one directly in the MBP M1P 16". This lead to switching of primary monitors as described on multiple sites and posts.
My left monitor is oriented vertically, the other one in the center horizontally, not using the MBP screen (notebook is closed). Also both of my displays are set to use a different scaling than the native scaling (second setting from the right).
I will report back after a few days if the problem has been finally solved this way!
I was having this problem forever. I got super frustrated and finally think I solved it. For Mac owners, try the following:
System Preferences > Mission Control > Uncheck the box next to 'Automatically rearrange spaces based on most recent use' > Check the box next to 'Displays have separate Spaces'
Hope this helps.
System Preferences > Mission Control > Uncheck the box next to 'Automatically rearrange spaces based on most recent use' > Check the box next to 'Displays have separate Spaces'
Hope this helps.
I was having this problem forever. I have a 2019 Macbook Air. I got super frustrated and finally think I solved it. For Mac owners, try the following:
System Preferences > Mission Control > Uncheck the box next to 'Automatically rearrange spaces based on most recent use' > Check the box next to 'Displays have separate Spaces'
I was having this problem forever. I have a 2019 Macbook Air. I got super frustrated and finally think I solved it. For Mac owners, try the following:
System Preferences > Mission Control > Uncheck the box next to 'Automatically rearrange spaces based on most recent use' > Check the box next to 'Displays have separate Spaces'
This has worked for me, and mac has not forgotten my preferences yet. Even if I go from clamshell mode to open.
Tried this solution long time ago, doesn't work for me.
It doesn't work for me either. What seems to be semi-working is a solution close to @Fab1n 's.
I have 2 Huawei Mateview 28's if I connect both via USB-C it's a mess. In fact because I want just one cable I use OWC thunderbolt hub, mostly one of the displays doesn't even comeback from sleep. A restart of the mac or unplugging the OWC hub is needed.
But, since I started using HDMI for one of the displays the odds changed to my favor in the last 7 days. Now, the displays come back in correct config. from the sleep 85 percent of time. Sometimes when they come back confused I let the mac go back to sleep and wake up again, half of the time that works, half of the time it doesn't.
Sadly I am not that lucky with restarts, it is still almost 50 percent (maybe 55) correct, 50 percent the mac behaves like it is seeing these displays for the first time, everything lined up randomly and in wrong resolution, even the built-in display.
Last edited:
Hey! I've bought Mac Studio and 3 BenQ PD3220U. Connected them via Thunderbolt 3 cables each on different port and faced this problem. In most cases, the display is simply rearranged. Sometimes the settings with HDR turned on got lost. Rarely lost resolution settings. I am extremely disappointed. Should I return Mac Studio and go back to Linux, or should I trust Apple and wait for a fix?
I'm floored that this issue does not pop up so much within apple that some apple dev just fixes it for his own pain.
So this isn't a solution, but it is my workaround that keeps me sane.
I have 2 Lenovo 4k monitors that I use, both via USB-C. The problem we're all encountering is they swap positions sometimes on wake from sleep, power on, or plugging in the monitors. I tried just using displayplacer on its own when the monitors are out of order, but that doesn't change which desktop shows up on which monitor, it changes the positions of the monitors relative to one another to make dragging/cursor movement from one monitor to another make sense.
While I'd obviously like this to just work, my biggest gripe is when the logical order of my monitors is not right, meaning dragging my cursor across monitors doesn't do the right thing. In installed displayplacer, ran it to get its output at the bottom and saved that. I waited for the monitors to swap, fixed it on the Monitors system pref, ran displayplacer again and saved its output.
My simple script keeps a counter in a file that gets incremented each time I run it. If the number is odd, it executes one version of the monitor arrangement I saved; if it's even, it runs the other one. If the counter gets out of sync, I just run my command twice and I'm all good.
If it's helpful, here's the script I run; this includes my own displayplacer output which you'll need to replace with yours:
I have 2 Lenovo 4k monitors that I use, both via USB-C. The problem we're all encountering is they swap positions sometimes on wake from sleep, power on, or plugging in the monitors. I tried just using displayplacer on its own when the monitors are out of order, but that doesn't change which desktop shows up on which monitor, it changes the positions of the monitors relative to one another to make dragging/cursor movement from one monitor to another make sense.
While I'd obviously like this to just work, my biggest gripe is when the logical order of my monitors is not right, meaning dragging my cursor across monitors doesn't do the right thing. In installed displayplacer, ran it to get its output at the bottom and saved that. I waited for the monitors to swap, fixed it on the Monitors system pref, ran displayplacer again and saved its output.
My simple script keeps a counter in a file that gets incremented each time I run it. If the number is odd, it executes one version of the monitor arrangement I saved; if it's even, it runs the other one. If the counter gets out of sync, I just run my command twice and I'm all good.
If it's helpful, here's the script I run; this includes my own displayplacer output which you'll need to replace with yours:
Code:
#!/bin/bash
counterfile=~/fix_monitor_count
declare -i counter
if [ -f "$counterfile" ]; then
read -r counter <"$counterfile"
else
counter=0
fi
counter="$((counter + 1))"
printf '%d\n' "$counter" >"$counterfile"
if [ $((counter%2)) -eq 0 ];
then
displayplacer "id:37D8832A-2D66-02CA-B9F7-8F30A301B230 res:1728x1117 hz:120 color_depth:8 scaling:on origin:(0,0) degree:0" "id:473FAF63-CD67-42D9-8C04-5CE73F10FD16 res:3840x2160 hz:60 color_depth:8 scaling:off origin:(1728,-493) degree:0" "id:12C3DE25-4990-470C-9BD2-C555F1D67B8A res:3840x2160 hz:60 color_depth:8 scaling:off origin:(5568,-493) degree:0"
else
displayplacer "id:37D8832A-2D66-02CA-B9F7-8F30A301B230 res:1728x1117 hz:120 color_depth:8 scaling:on origin:(0,0) degree:0" "id:12C3DE25-4990-470C-9BD2-C555F1D67B8A res:3840x2160 hz:60 color_depth:8 scaling:off origin:(1728,-493) degree:0" "id:473FAF63-CD67-42D9-8C04-5CE73F10FD16 res:3840x2160 hz:60 color_depth:8 scaling:off origin:(5568,-493) degree:0"
fii have the same issue, i think its when you have 2 of the same monitors, it looks like the first monitor it detects when you power up is the one it will make the main screen, having 2 monitors the same either could be the first one detected, if you unplug the second screen when powering up then it will always make the first screen the main then plugging back in the second will then be the extended, its not a fix but easy enough to do, i suppose you could keep the second screen turned off at its power switch to do the same job.
I had 3 days conversation with apple support, and that got nothing. At least "engineers is known about problem exactly with this display model".
After that i complained to BenQ. They asked to collect information and disappear for two weeks. And today i've got answer:
After that i complained to BenQ. They asked to collect information and disappear for two weeks. And today i've got answer:
Not sure in what level my findings are related - but for M1 chip computers - and in my case a Macstudio, Apple seems to have problems with the software that is non native (non apple) to provide the right screen name.
Besides all of the problems shown in this thread - I detected with various non Apple software that when it's about screenshare/display features (eg with ZOOM, TEAMS) that the software doesn't get the device name - but simply shows display 1, 2, 3 etc. which is a big mess in case you eg want to share sensitive info - or acutally don't - and have sensitive info on eg screen 3 - but you can't tell from this screen share window if your screen 3 is the right one. Apple confirmed it's to do with the M1 chips - but didn't get any plan for resolution
Besides all of the problems shown in this thread - I detected with various non Apple software that when it's about screenshare/display features (eg with ZOOM, TEAMS) that the software doesn't get the device name - but simply shows display 1, 2, 3 etc. which is a big mess in case you eg want to share sensitive info - or acutally don't - and have sensitive info on eg screen 3 - but you can't tell from this screen share window if your screen 3 is the right one. Apple confirmed it's to do with the M1 chips - but didn't get any plan for resolution
So in theory if one had three apple 27" displays (the new ones)...
They are the same display name but not 3rd party, that issue will not occur? in theory.
Not sure on the type of monitors - I am now talking about 3rd party APPS - so software wise. But indeed - likely the mac native devices would be recognized I assume (or not - couldn't test that scenario)
It's definitely not an issue specifically with the M1 chips. My 16" Intel MacBook Pro also suffers from this issue.