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By default, when chrome is maximized the tabs can be clicked when your mouse is all the way to the top edge of the screen:

enter image description here

However, when you use the Windows 10 split screen feature Win + the window is not longer maximized and produces a border:

enter image description here

Tabs can no longer be clicked form the 0px on Y axis and you get window resize cursor instead.

I've looked into virtual monitor solutions such as DisplayFusion and UltraView Desktop Manager but they all do the exact same -- a window is not really maximized... simply resized to some dimensions.

Any idea how to fix this for wide monitors?

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  • 1
    The border of floating windows is controlled by the OS, and is the same for all apps. You might be able to change it thhrough the registry as described in this article but I doubt you can completely eliminate it.
    – 1NN
    May 21, 2021 at 9:35
  • Would limiting the mouse cursor to a specific part of the screen be a valid workaround ?
    – 1NN
    May 25, 2021 at 9:34
  • as a side note: With Firefox, you can do what you're looking for out-of-the-box. When Firefox is maximised, press Win+arrow, and the tabs will have no border on top.
    – 1NN
    May 25, 2021 at 10:46

4 Answers 4

3

Answering my own question.

Turns out the only program that offers real maximizing to virtual monitors so far is Virtual Display Manager (VDM)

Virtual Display Manager - Ultra WideScreen 3 split

It also supports launching anything in fullscreen mode without taking the entire physical screen. DisplayFusion does not yet offer this despite high user demands: here and here.

Another free alternative to DisplayFusion is PowerToys FancyZones.) Although it doesn't fix my original problem it's a good tool to explore.

Finally, I was able to make chrome window extend beyond the screen and move it -15px on Y-axis by writing a small AutoHotKeys script which maximizes the current Chrome Window to these dimensions automatically.

AHK Script:

WinMove, ahk_class Chrome_WidgetWin_1,, Left, -15, Width, A_ScreenHeight-20

-15 is the number of negative pixels in Y-axis. The -20 of screen height is to compensate for taskbar height.

It doesn't look pretty but it works (that's the very top of the screen): chrome top edge tabs clickable on ultra widescreen with virtual display

Would love to find out other solutions to this. Hopefully a windows update will fix this in the future.


EDIT (New AutoHotkey solution for Windows 11):

F8::
WinGet, last_process, ID, A
WinMove, ahk_id %last_process%,, Left, -10, Width, A_ScreenHeight-30
Return

Using F8 as shortcut, this will resize the last focused window to account for the taskbar and negative 10px on top to be able to click the chrome tabs from MouseY:0px. (Since FancyZones doesn't really fix either of those issues)


EDIT 2:

I've put together this AHK script (also as .exe) that auto-resizes a window when left and right mouse buttons are down (for use with FancyZone). Works on almost any window but mainly designed for browsers and top edge tab switching.

http://deepcorelabs.com/fancyzone-taskbar-fix-and-chrome-tabs-fix-for-super-ultrawide-screens/

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  • thanks so much for this, i'm surprised this hasn't bothered more people yet. Chrome tabs at the top edge, is something that I can't live with once you get used to it.
    – tinker
    Aug 16, 2022 at 7:41
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+50

If a window isn't maximised, the OS will always display the "drag handles" on the border of a window. Only in maximised view the windows will have no border at all.

For the behaviour you're looking for, you can use the PRO version of DisplayFusion, at least according to their website:

Windows will maximize to the size of the "virtual" monitors.

The free version won't allow for that.

DisplayFusion PRO Comparison chart

PLEASE NOTE: I have not tested this but confide on the information on the DisplayGusion website. You might want to ask your question to their support channel before making a purchase!

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  • As I mentioned in the question, DisplayFusion does the same as windows split function -- it doesn't maximize a window... only resizes it to exact dimensions and thus produces a border. The presence of the border can be observed in this video
    – Miro
    May 24, 2021 at 17:29
  • Still not the right answer but awarding bounty for the effort ;) Thanks!
    – Miro
    May 27, 2021 at 17:12
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You may still use the Windows 10 split screen feature to maximize Chrome (or any window) to the left half of the screen, this way:

  • Maximize the window using snap : Win+Up
  • Move to the screen's left half with snap : Win+Left

Here is a screenshot of the top of my screen after executing the above sequence:

enter image description hereClick to enlarge the image

To see how many pixels this save you, here are enlarged screenshots of the upper-left edge of Chrome.

Before:

enter image description here

After:

enter image description here

There are now only two border pixels left at the top.

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  • 1
    This does not work for me. And it doesn't work for you either by the looks of the image. Notice that the middle button next to the close button is not a Restore Down but Maximize. Are you able to change tabs by moving the cursor all the way up to the top edge and clicking from the MouseY = 0px ?
    – Miro
    May 20, 2021 at 23:53
  • Not at Y=0px, but rather at Y=2px. I don't know of a better way to convince Chrome to stay in maximized state without taking up the whole screen.
    – harrymc
    May 21, 2021 at 8:25
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Instead of using FancyZones, you can try Alt Snap. It allows you to use ALT key + left click hold and drag, to move windows to zones. By default you need to hold down Shift as well, but this is configurable. The zone layout can be setup to go above the top edge, as a workaround to the "Chrome tabs not on the edge" bug.

RamonUnch/AltSnap: Maintained continuation of Stefan Sundin's AltDrag https://github.com/RamonUnch/AltSnap

Optionally, I use FancyZones together with AltSnap, they complement each other well. FancyZones have better support for saving of zone layouts. Altsnap only allows saving ONE layout that is strictly tied to monitor resolution. You need to specify a different layout for your laptop, vs your monitor.

This is my current workflow when I switch from 1 laptop to using multiple monitors.

First, I choose the fancyzone layout with my cursor in the monitor, using the keyboard shortcut setup prior in the settings.

enter image description here

enter image description here

Right click Altsnap tray icon, create "test window". You will need the same number of test windows as you have zones. Make sure "Snap to Layout" option is first enabled in the configuration.

enter image description here enter image description here

Move the created test windows to the zones setup by fancyzones. Make sure all the zones are filled with the test windows in the right places. Right click Altsnap tray icon again, "save test windows as snap layout". Altsnap will save the positions of all the test windows as the new zone layout.

enter image description here

To workaround the bug with Chrome tabs not being at the topmost edge, apply the autohotkey fix in Miro's answer above when repositioning the test windows, before saving it as a layout.

This looks like a lot of hoops to jump, but once you get used to it, it doesn't really take much time. You can also use keyboard to speed things up. Example, Right click Altsnap tray icon, and press "w" to create test window. "w" is underlined, meaning you can activate it using the keyboard letter instead of using the mouse.

If anyone has a better workflow do share.

enter image description here

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  • @Miro do try this and see if it helps. Altsnap is very well maintained, the developer is actively adding new features, and is highly responsive on github. This solution works well enough, and is completely free.
    – tinker
    Aug 16, 2022 at 8:08

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