Connect another monitor to your computer

Set up an additional monitor

To set up an additional monitor, connect the monitor to your computer. If your system does not recognize it immediately, or you would like to adjust the settings:

  1. Open the Activities overview and start typing Displays.

  2. Click Displays to open the panel.

  3. In the display arrangement diagram, drag your displays to the relative positions you want.

    The numbers on the diagram are shown at the top-left of each display when the Displays panel is active.

  4. Click Primary Display to choose your primary display.

    The primary display is the one with the top bar, and where the Activities overview is shown.

  5. Click on each monitor in the list and select the orientation, resolution or scale, and refresh rate.

  6. Click Apply. The new settings will be applied for 20 seconds before reverting back. That way, if you cannot see anything with the new settings, your old settings will be automatically restored. If you are happy with the new settings, click Keep Changes.

Display modes

With two screens, these display modes are available:

  • Join Displays: screen edges are joined so things can pass from one display to another.

  • Mirror: the same content is shown on two displays, with the same resolution and orientation for both.

When only one display is needed, for example, an external monitor connected to a docked laptop with the lid closed, the other monitor can be switched off. In the list, click on the monitor you want to disable, and turn the switch to off.

Adding more than one monitor

With more than two screens, Join Displays is the only mode available.

  • Press the button for the display that you would like to configure.

  • Drag the screens to the desired relative positions.