It sounds like Windows isn't reading your monitor correctly, all of mine show up as their specific model numbers with correct scaling...which type of connector are you using? All of my work monitors are DP and at home HDMI...
Maybe Surface Book will give Microsoft a reason to fix scaling?
- Thread starter BerryAl
- Start date
Good thinking J. Mini DP to DVI...
Both monitors show up as Generic in Device Manager.
Don't have a DP or HDMI monitor around...hmm..
I do, however, have a hard time believing it's a driver issue since when I log off, it fixes itself.
I don't have to reboot for it to work, just log off...
Both monitors show up as Generic in Device Manager.
Don't have a DP or HDMI monitor around...hmm..
I do, however, have a hard time believing it's a driver issue since when I log off, it fixes itself.
I don't have to reboot for it to work, just log off...
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daniielrp
Active Member
Is there a specific reason for this?
I wonder if a display reset or switching the resolution would take care of it. I'm envisioning a PowerShell script to toggle resolution change then revert back to original.
DPI is a per user state and logging off resets the user state....
daniielrp
Active Member
So I wonder if in newer versions of Windows they could change this on the fly? It would make transitioning from device to big screen easier. On my retina Macbook the screen just goes black for a second or two when I plug in a external display and it keeps the DPI separate for the (high DPI) Macbook screen and external one so everything looks crisp and clean.
As users start using newer technology leaving legacy connectors such DVI and VGA the scaling issues should go away....
CrippsCorner
Well-Known Member
The only thing I get when putting the keyboard back on after removal is a few of the icons on the Taskbar look enlarged and pixelated. Really annoying actually!
Sorry to dig up an old thread but has anyone figured out how a fix for this? I am on the latest 1/27 update and when I use my surface dock with two dell U2412M monitors and displayport on both ends, I still get this issue. The only way to make it go away is log out then log back in.
To correct some information in previous comments - Windows 8.1 added new APIs to deal with dynamic changes in scaling and it also introduced virtualization of scaling for many cases. Basically, DPI was introduced in 3 stages over time:
- Originally there was no DPI to query and all applications just assumed 96 DPI.
- Then (in XP?) they added a query for DPI, but it only returned a single answer for all screens and it only changed when you logged off and back on. Applications could declare that they would honor the DPI and if they didn't then the system would pixel-stretch their windows for them and lie about various system metrics.
- Finally in Windows 8.1 they introduced some newer procedure calls and events to query DPI independently for different monitors and to dynamically change the DPI as windows move between monitors and/or the user updates their preferences in the control panels. If an application declares that they are going to use those APIs then they will get dynamic notifications and up to date answers and per-monitor answers. But, if applications fall into either of the previous 2 categories then they will only get a single system wide DPI answer for all monitors and it will not change as the control panel settings change. Windows 8.1 will also virtualize such windows (basically use pixel scaling to display them on the screen at the correct new size according to the latest preference settings, but while continuing to tell the application that the old DPI values are in effect).
Windows 8.1 added the APIs that lets applications do the right thing, but there are likely a lot of older applications that experience various forms of virtualization. Also, when you declare that you are using the latest procedure calls to query the DPI values, they leave all of the implementation up to you and so the applications might then make mistakes on their own that have nothing to do with the system. Basically, declaring themselves as aware of per-monitor DPI means that the system gives them accurate information and that is all - any mistakes in sizing are then a mistake in that application. (And, many parts of what we consider the operating system like the desktop and the task bar are essentially applications from the perspective of who is responsible for the work.) Thus, the icon sizing isn't necessarily an indication that something is wrong with the base OS, it could just be that the engineer who is responsible for maintaining the drawing of the task bar has some bugs in the way they field the notifications. Similarly, some of the legacy control panels are simply blessed applications that were written back in the days of "What's DPI?" and so they have always been virtualized (pixel scaled) and will continue to do so until MS rewrites those applications towards newer APIs.
- Originally there was no DPI to query and all applications just assumed 96 DPI.
- Then (in XP?) they added a query for DPI, but it only returned a single answer for all screens and it only changed when you logged off and back on. Applications could declare that they would honor the DPI and if they didn't then the system would pixel-stretch their windows for them and lie about various system metrics.
- Finally in Windows 8.1 they introduced some newer procedure calls and events to query DPI independently for different monitors and to dynamically change the DPI as windows move between monitors and/or the user updates their preferences in the control panels. If an application declares that they are going to use those APIs then they will get dynamic notifications and up to date answers and per-monitor answers. But, if applications fall into either of the previous 2 categories then they will only get a single system wide DPI answer for all monitors and it will not change as the control panel settings change. Windows 8.1 will also virtualize such windows (basically use pixel scaling to display them on the screen at the correct new size according to the latest preference settings, but while continuing to tell the application that the old DPI values are in effect).
Windows 8.1 added the APIs that lets applications do the right thing, but there are likely a lot of older applications that experience various forms of virtualization. Also, when you declare that you are using the latest procedure calls to query the DPI values, they leave all of the implementation up to you and so the applications might then make mistakes on their own that have nothing to do with the system. Basically, declaring themselves as aware of per-monitor DPI means that the system gives them accurate information and that is all - any mistakes in sizing are then a mistake in that application. (And, many parts of what we consider the operating system like the desktop and the task bar are essentially applications from the perspective of who is responsible for the work.) Thus, the icon sizing isn't necessarily an indication that something is wrong with the base OS, it could just be that the engineer who is responsible for maintaining the drawing of the task bar has some bugs in the way they field the notifications. Similarly, some of the legacy control panels are simply blessed applications that were written back in the days of "What's DPI?" and so they have always been virtualized (pixel scaled) and will continue to do so until MS rewrites those applications towards newer APIs.
Cimmerian
Member
I have searched countless hours for a fix with multi-monitor scaling, there is no solution. It is extremely annoying for me as I get to work and immediately plug into an additional 1920x1080 monitor, I then have to choose between up scaling my Surface Book and dealing with an annoying blurry secondary screen in all aspects of windows or leave the scaling at 0% and using a microscope to do anything on the surface book display. I've personally opted for the later but I hope they will fix it... I know for a fact Mac Books do not have this problem. Still love my Surface Book though, regardless of all the little problems, great device.
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