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I am currently running Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit with a dual monitor setup with an NVIDIA 7950 GT graphics card. One monitor is dedicated to this machine and the other monitor is connected to a DVI KVM switch.

When I switch to my other computer, Windows 7 disables the monitor. However, when I switch back it does not re-enable the monitor. The only circumstance that automatically re-enables the second monitor is when I switch back after Windows has put the monitors into power save mode. I am continually having to bring up the NVIDIA control panel to have it re-enable the monitor.

Under Windows XP I would just disable the NVIDIA service to prevent it from auto-detecting the monitor (which doesn't solve the problem under Win7), and in Vista there was a registry hack that would prevent this. It looks as though that has been removed in Windows 7.

I have found similar questions posted on this site, but nothing that matches my problem exactly. The following link is the question that comes the closest, but does not provide a solution to the problem.

How do I fix monitor detection in Windows 7?

Is there a way in Windows 7 to disable monitor auto-detection?

Update: I just added a second graphics card to my Windows 7 64-bit machine. I plugged one monitor into each graphics card. Now, when I use the KVM switch to switch back and forth it will re-enable the second monitor like it should. There are however, a few quirks with this. If I have a program maximized on the second monitor and it has focus, when I switch it will move to monitor 1. If I have a program maximized on the second monitor and it does not have focus, when I switch it will behave like it is minimized and when I bring it back up it will show up maximized on monitor 1.

Definitely better than it was, but still looking for a way to disable the auto-detection.

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  • I closed, but reopened it, after noticing that the previous question didn't answer yours
    – Ivo Flipse
    Oct 18, 2010 at 16:56
  • My solution for (some?) Nvidia cards here: superuser.com/a/1509353/875119
    – mathog
    Dec 11, 2019 at 21:58

10 Answers 10

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+150

Maybe this is too simple, but have you tried just using the windows+p hot key? That works only in windows 7, but is a quick way to extend, duplicate, or select a single screen. (note: when it says projector is means your secondary display)

If you're dealing with Windows Vista you can turn off Auto-Detect through following this guide. It is supposedly only for nvidia cards but may work for others as well.

That post says:

  1. Open the Start Menu. A) Click All Programs -> Accessories -> System Tools -> Task Schedular.

OR

  1. Open the Control Panel (Classic View). A) Click Administrative Tools -> Computer Management.
  2. Click Continue for the UAC prompt.
  3. In the left pane, expand Task Scheduler, Task Scheduler Library, Microsoft, Windows, and click on MobilePC.
  4. In the middle pane, right click on TMM.
  5. To Disable TMM - Click on Disable.
  6. To Enable TMM - Click on Enable. NOTE: TMM is enabled by default in Vista.
  7. Close Task Scheduler.
  8. Logoff and logon, or restart the computer to see the change.

You can also do it directly from the registry:

Using Windows Registry Editor Open Windows registry editor(regedit) Navigate to this location

Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\TMM

Right click on the (UseIViewHelper) value and select modify. set the value data to 0 to disable TMM feature in Windows. If you want to re-enable TMM feature,set the value data to 1.

You also have to restart the PC afterwards.

reference

As far as windows 7 goes, it's not possible at the moment. According to moderators at microsoft's forums: "This behavior is by design and I don't think there is a way to override this functionality except to make sure that both monitors are turned on when you start the system." Pretty lame. Right now however there is a way to request this feature. Please go to the link and request this feature if you feel it is important. Also a ticket for the feature has been created officially as well. Only time will be able to tell.

A Third party software may be useful, but I have not personally used any for this purpose. I have found MultiMon which is built for multiple monitors. Hopefully this will be of some use until microsoft gets it right.

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  • 3
    The additional information you found applies to Windows Vista only, see Note within fourth paragraph Transient Multimon Manager (TMM) - the TMM task is absent in the Windows 7 Task Scheduler Library accordingly. Aug 27, 2010 at 12:10
  • I'm still curious if the Windows+p hotkey worked out. Aug 27, 2010 at 16:08
  • 1
    << this comment was originally posted as an answer but has been relocated along with it's replies --DMA57361 >> @KronoS: No, using Win+P does not solve the problem. Sure, it lets me reenable the second display, but it still forces every window on my system onto the small display when I switch to the other machine with the KVM. Feb 10, 2011 at 19:40
  • Being punished for being generous to resolve an important issue is a pity indeed, so have some chip in votes ;) Do you actually receive an upfront warning for this loss of abilities? Stack Exchange engine wise there is clearly room for improvement regarding these dependencies, though admittedly there are quite some 'messy real world' issues (i.e. edge cases) involved. Feb 10, 2011 at 19:40
  • @ Billy ONeal... How about disabling TMM through registry. Has that helped? Feb 10, 2011 at 19:40
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There is a piece of hardware can probably solve your problem.

The purpose of such a device is to sit in between the cable of your monitor and to make the computer think the monitor still exists. It does this by recording the EDID once and repeating it all the time afterwards.

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    Welcome to superuser. Without explaining how these tools help you solve your problem, and what they actually are (in case the links change) your answer is rather incomplete. You may want to elaborate on what these devices are and how they help disable monitor auto-detection.
    – Journeyman Geek
    Nov 1, 2013 at 2:24
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Have a look at your services. I had a similar problem and disabled "AMD External Events Utility" and it stopped looking for the monitor. I think on my old system it was called "ati hotkey poller"

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  • My issue was somewhat different than the posted question... but this solution solved my problem. I have two monitors... one via HDMI, the other via DVI... and every time my HDMI monitor would go to 'sleep', Windows would move all my open windows to the DVI monitor. Annoying! However disabling this service fixed it... I just hope there isn't anything else I've messed up by disabling the service...
    – Mir
    Dec 21, 2014 at 0:40
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To disable monitor detection, with AMD/ATI gfx cards under Windows 7, search for DMMEnableDDCPolling registry key and set it to 0 (it is DWord). There are several places in the registry where this key is located. Change them all and reboot. Doing this will disable constant polling of the display driver to detect if user attached a monitor.

If you lack the entry, look for UMD keys under HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Class{4D36E968-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318}\ and add it to those.

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  • I have a brand new ATI card with the Catalyst 10.5 driver on it on Windows 64-bit; I don't have any registry keys with this name. Do you know if it might be under another name? I searched a few pieces of "DMMEnableDDCPolling" and didn't have any luck hunting. Thanks a lot for the suggestion. May 29, 2010 at 3:35
  • 1
    He's looking for a NVIDIA Fix and not ATI. Aug 27, 2010 at 16:05
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    Yes, this is a fix only applicable to ATI / AMD devices, but it is a valuable contribution all the same. It worked for me.
    – David
    Sep 11, 2014 at 14:52
  • I second this, i helped me 7 years later :-)
    – Lothar
    Oct 19, 2017 at 18:55
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In case of NVidia card you need to disable "NVIDIA Update Service Deamon" services.

  1. Run "services.msc"
  2. Disable those services
    • Change execution to manual
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I have a similar situation to you, except instead of a kvm I have my main system plugged in with DVI and the secondary on VGA. That way I use the monitor's input select.

If that's not good enough: What KVM are you using? Do you have the same problem if you unplug and plugin the cables? Does turning the monitor on and off get Windows to detect it?

Maybe you need a better kvm? (That makes both computers think they're connected to a monitor.)

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    I'm currently using a gefen 2x1 DVI KVM. Unfortunately, when I switch it disables the monitor in Windows 7. It does not do this under XP. Changing the KVM is not an option. I can get the monitor to come back if I open the NVIDIA control panel. That causes windows to auto detect the monitors again. It is weird though, that if I have switched away long enough for Windows to put the monitors in "sleep" mode, when I switch back it will correctly auto detect the monitor.
    – Jay Yother
    Mar 26, 2010 at 3:04
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The only thing I can come up with, which isn't a very good solution is to buy a better KVM.

My first old KVM had the exact same problem as you are saying. I upgraded to a brand new digital one and it basically emulates/fakes a signal, even when you are not on the channel.

Other than that, I have created a registry fix for you that should disable TMM in Windows 7.

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  • Diabling TMM doesn't seem to work either. Any other settings in the registry that might do the trick of stopping Auto-Detection? Sep 1, 2010 at 22:46
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Here's a solution that worked for me. Windows 7, NVidia Quadro NVS 295. But that's largely irrelevant.

The important part is, these are HP monitors EliteDisplay 241i.

Go to the on screen menu > Input Control > DP Hot-Plug Detection > switch it from Low Power to Always Active.

Doing this on both monitors has resolved the problem for me. I suspect other monitors will have similar settings.

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Solution for (at least some) Nvidia cards. Better late than never I guess. For an Nvidia card (Quadro FX 1400, driver 9.18.13.908) using an Nvidia driver:

Right click on desktop
Select "Nvidia Control Panel"
Workstation -> view system topology
For the monitor in question click on "EDID"
Save EDID as text file.
Load EDID from text file (the one just saved).
Now EDID source is "File", previously it was "Monitor".

After doing this switching the KVM no longer altered the desktop.

It would probably be a good idea to switch it back to "monitor" before attaching a different display device!

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In Windows 10 and above, there is no way out, you NEED to jump the 19 pin with the external part of the monitor side connector.

enter image description here

Or if you want an elegant piece of hardware:

https://monitordetectkiller.com/

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