Solved Unable to set 2 different wallpapers on dual screen setup

ejf

New Member
Messages
8
Hello,

In the last few weeks I've had this annoying problem (see screenshot). It seems like I no longer can set different wallpapers for my two monitors. You can see in the screenshot that both options are saying "Set for monitor 2". No matter what option I choose, the selected wallpaper appears on both monitors.

I thought maybe this would be fixed with a windows update, but it's been a while now since the problem occured and nothing has changed.

Have anyone experienced this issue? Any suggestions how to fix this?

Thanks

expl.png
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
I had this same problem with Win7 and my guess is the same thing is true for Win8 - the system just doesn't do that. THere are 2 ways to get around it:

1. Use Photoshop or something like that to make a wallpaper image that is actually both images in one BMP file. Size the individual images to be the same size (pixel-wise) as each screen on which it is to appear. Then set Windows to use this image as wallpaper and it should appear ok on both screens.

2. There are several add-on utility programs that support separate backgrounds for multi-monitor systems. DisplayFUsion is one of them - but there are others.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win8-64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS Zenbook
    CPU
    Intel i5
    Memory
    8GB
Hello ejf, and welcome to Eight Forums.

It sounds like it may be an issue with how you have display settings set. Please post a screenshot showing all of your Screen Resolution settings.

I'm thinking the issue may be that you do not have "Multiple displays" set to "Extend desktop to this display" for each monitor like below. If not, then that may be why you have two "monitor 2" instead.

Afterwards, see if you are able to set a desktop background per monitor.


Screen_Resolution.jpg


Hope this helps, :)
Shawn
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Thanks guys,

bbinnard: Creating a custom wallpaper that includes both images won't work for me, since my monitor setup is landscape + portrait (and also with different resolutions). Third-party software will be my last option, but I prefer avoiding it.

Brink: Here is a screenshot of the "Screen resolution" settings. As you can see, I have selected "Extend desktop to this display".

image001.png
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
ejf,

Just as a test, set both monitors to landscape, then see if you may be able to set a wallpaper per monitor.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
ejf:

My dual monitor is similar to yours - landscape/portrait with 2 different resolutions. But I was still able to make a dual-image wallpaper BMP that worked. The trick was to up-res the lower resolution image to be the same resolution as the higher resolution monitor. Then resize it to make it fit properly on the low-res monitor. You can then combine to two images and have WIndows treat it as a single wallpaper file.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win8-64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS Zenbook
    CPU
    Intel i5
    Memory
    8GB
Hi ejf,

There are several software programs that will allow you to do this with relative ease:

1. UltraMon - This one gives you a sixty day free trail version (full) then at the end of the sixty you can elect to pay to continue or uninstall. (This is the one I use after have tested others).

2. DisplayFusion - This one comes in a Free and Pay versions. The free is quite good and find for most users. The pay version is called Pro and offers some nice add on similar to UltraMon.

Hope these ideas help, and good luck.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 8, (VM win7, XP, Vista)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion p1423w
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 3330 Ivy Bridge
    Motherboard
    Foxconn - 2ADA Ivy Brige
    Memory
    16 GB 1066MHz DDR3
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD 5450
    Sound Card
    HD Realteck (Onboard)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Mitsubishi LED TV/Montior HD, Dell 23 HD, Hanspree 25" HD
    Screen Resolution
    Mit. 1980-1080, Dell 2048-115, Hanspree 1920-10802
    Hard Drives
    1 SanDisk 240Gig SSD, 2 Samsung 512Gig SSDs
    Case
    Tower
    Cooling
    Original (Fans)
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Keyboard 2000
    Mouse
    Microsoft Optical Mouse 5000
    Internet Speed
    1.3 (350 to 1024 if lucky)
    Browser
    Firefox 19.1
    Antivirus
    MSE-Defender
Brink: Nothing changed when I set both monitors to landscape. Unfortunately, I still have the same issue

Lee: Yes, third party software might be an option.

bbinnard: Thanks!

To sum up: I know a couple of alternatives now.
But I do not understand why the native windows functionality of separate wallpapers suddenly stopped working. It worked perfectly the first two months I used Windows 8. Can it be a bug in Windows?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
ejf,

Other than using those great choices of programs, you could do a system restore using a restore point (if available) dated when it did work natively to hopefully fix it.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
I have same issue. Any one have a solution? My other computer with windows 8 handles multiple monitors with different wallpapers just fine.Im using nvidia gtx 680. Possible bug related to driver? My other machine had same GPS and driver and never had this issue. Very strange.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
Mrsco: Thanks, now I know this problem isn't specific to just me. Btw, I have a Nvidia Quadro 2000 graphical unit.

Still no solution found..
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
Ejf: do you happen to use teamviewer? I haven't tested this theory yet, but maybe it's the teamviewer monitor driver screwing it up? I'm gonna try later...
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
Mrsco: Yes, I am using teamviewer! Thanks for the tip, I will try this theory as well.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
Confirmed. Teamviewer was the problem. After uninstalling the program, I can now set different wallpapers again! The issue has been reported to the Teamviewer team.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
Wow. I just tried to uninstall the "monitor driver" in teamviewer advanced settings but that didn't help. Haven't tried removing teamviewer all the way yet though. I can't believed I guessed that. I will try to uninstall completely now and see if it works after. Splashtop streamer may serve as my alternative for the time being if teamviewer is truly the issue. Glad my theory was valid!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
Yep. Sure enough teamviewer was the culprit. Removed completely and rebooted. Problem solved. I wasted so much time on that! Argh!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
I am glad it worked out for you as well. As I said, this issue is reported to Teamviewer with a link to this thread. Hopefully it will be fixed sooner or later :)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
My challenge is slightly different. I've had this working great for a long time. I did a system restore to correct an odd Outlook issue, and when I came back, my system won't give me the option of selecting either monitor. All I see is a statement that says, "Set as Slideshow" I can't find anything anywhere that suggests I can pick a monitor.
monitorsetup.JPG

My Dual Monitor system continues to work great, and Windows knows I have two. I just can't get different wallpaper any more. Does anyone have an idea why that might be? Something in the registry maybe?
monitorsetup2.JPG

I'm just out of ideas. I'd love to hear if you've got any!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Precision M6600
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-2720QM @ 2.20 GHz
    Memory
    8 GB
    Hard Drives
    Two internal hard drive, one is Windows 7 one is Windows 8. They see each other but the both think the other is unformatted.
    Antivirus
    McAfee
Tried it both ways. Selected all, just the slide show option. When I Cleared All, and just picked a single image, I got "Set as desktop background". Then I picked two images - one for each monitor, and got slide show. I bet this is something easy once it makes itself known. But isn't that always how it is? A complete puzzle until you figure it out, and then its just an intuitive solution!

Thanks for your help! Regards, Randy
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Precision M6600
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-2720QM @ 2.20 GHz
    Memory
    8 GB
    Hard Drives
    Two internal hard drive, one is Windows 7 one is Windows 8. They see each other but the both think the other is unformatted.
    Antivirus
    McAfee
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