How to reset BetterDisplay and/or the display configuration?

[thughe30]

Sorry if this is incorrect. Not super familiar in reporting an error. I seem to have selected an incompatible resolution for my 1440 monitor. BetterDummy will not run on startup, and now when I run BetterDummy, my display immediately goes black, and no longer displays anything. Seems to go into standby mode almost. Must restart Mac Mini M1 in order to get display back, native res, no BetterDummy. Again, as soon as I run BetterDummy, straight to black, standby mode. Tried deleting app and reinstalling, no luck. Thanks for your time.

[waydabber]

Here is how to reset app settings: https://github.com/waydabber/BetterDisplay/wiki/Safe-mode,-app-reset,-app-removal

[PaulPatena]

My trial expired and I purchased and activated a license but my external monitor still doesn't work. I uninstalled the app and followed the steps above but my external monitor still doesn't work. My mac can detect my monitor but my monitor is not receiving any signal. please help.

[waydabber]

Hi @PaulPatena,

the app or the trial expiration is probably unrelated to the issue, as the app does not disable a display in any way (not even at trial expiration - quite the contrary, most things set up during the trial continue to work after the trial even if they are pro features). There is no functionality implemented that could make a display unable to detect an input. The problem with the monitor is probably unrelated to the app, especially if the display does not work with any other computer connected.

If the display generally works (powers on, has some image) but complains about missing input, you should make sure that you did set the display to the proper input (for example you might be using the HDMI port to connect while the display is set to receive input from DisplayPort). If you could give some more details - monitor maker/model, what do you see on the display, a photo of the problem and the connections, I might understand the situation better.

[DennisSchiefer]

Does the "Reset App Settings" button already do all of the above steps 1-6?
If not, could it make sense to provide a cleanup script that would execute them?

[devnoname120]

For future travelers the location of the .plist preferences file is now:

~/Library/Preferences/pro.betterdisplay.BetterDisplay.plist

[waydabber]

Right. But always use defaults to manipulate or export/import if possible, since these might be cached and modifying them with an editor will have unexpected results.

[daslicht]

Library/Preferences/ByHost I don't have that folder here ?

[waydabber]

Hi @daslicht - that should be under your user's folder. You can get there by holding down the OPTION key and selecting Finder's Go -> Library menu.

[daslicht]

Hi @daslicht - that should be under your user's folder. You can get there by holding down the OPTION key and selecting Finder's Go -> Library menu.

ahh ok that should be named : ~/Library/Preferences/ByHost fo ;)

But you alrready wrote: "Navigate to your user's" I overlooked that , apologiseseseses

[waydabber]

you are right, fixed it. :)

[sahildhawan22]

HI, I'm new to Mac and I think I have messed up my in-built display. Still can't find Library/Preferences/ByHost location. In Finder > Go, not able to find Library.

[buzem]

/Library/Displays/ I don't have this folder ?

[markwilk]

Ah, just did a little searching and found it under /System/Library/Displays.

[waydabber]

Hmmm. It should be in the root folder /Library/Displays. The /System/Library/Displays is a different folder. You are not able to change that.

[markwilk]

OK, I'll skip that step. Thanks.

[EzAccount]

Did it work without that step? I don't have that folder too, MBP 2019

[waydabber]

Yes, that step is optional, only relevant if you did change the system level display configuration.

[simonkang7]

Hi, I followed all the steps, but after installing and uninstalling Better Display, I'm always getting a screen flicker in the login screen. It looks like screen changing resolution pretty quickly. Is there any other files I should delete to stop this? thank you.

[waydabber]

There are no more steps. The resolution change during the boot process on external displays for M1 is normal after the pre-boot login.

The mentioned files won't return until a new display layout is created or the resolution or display orientation is changed. These are not necessary for the system to work, they are only created if the configuration is altered compared to a the default state.

[waydabber]

Yes, but it should be just a mode-change flicker at worst (when the preboot resolution is changed to the user specific resolution as you log in), not a constant flicker or something.

[simonkang7]

Thank you! Yeah, perhaps, it was always there, and I did not even notice.

[satsornavi]

Hello. I have tried this uninstall method under Ventura 13.0.1 and after a reboot and delete of the app (the optional steps 7 and 8) I still have a dummy duplicate of my Dell 38 display. I've tried a couple of times. I don't want to have to erase my hard drive and reinstall the OS. Pls assist

[waydabber]

Hi @satsornavi - something is amiss or there must be some confusion here I am afraid.

If the app is not running, you should not have any dummy duplicates (the reason for this is that without the app there is no dummy...). If you are running the app and see a dummy you don't need, you can simply discard it here:

You can also disconnect the dummy any time.

If you make a screenshot of what you see, I might give some more insight.

[satsornavi]

Thanks IstvanI have two Dell 38 monitors according to my MacBookPro M1Pro, but only one physical one.  When BetterDisplay is not running.  So i assume that BetterDisplay has ‘created’ this second ‘virtual’ or dummy display.  Perhaps I am wrong?RegardsIvanOn 17 Nov 2022, at 7:09 pm, Istvan Toth ***@***.***> wrote: Hi @satsornavi - something is amiss or there must be some confusion here I am afraid. If the app is not running, you should not have any dummy duplicates (the reason for this is that without the app there is no dummy...). If you are running the app and see a dummy you don't need, you can simply discard it here: You can also disconnect the dummy any time. If you make a screenshot of what you see, I might give some more insight. —Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub, or unsubscribe.You are receiving this because you were mentioned.Message ID: ***@***.***>

[waydabber]

Hi there - yes, probably something else is wrong. BetterDisplay does not create a virtual display with a name of a physical display (that would create confusion - these displays by default - unless you intentionally renamed it - always has Dummy in it). If you start up BetterDisplay, you can go to the Settings/Displays section and check the details of these displays and see if they are indeed seen as third party physical displays or not.

It might be that the display supports MST (multistream transport) and for some reason (for example due to an enabled PIP or PBP function or for some other reasons, like a daisy chained displayport connection if the display has a DP out port) it exposes itself to the OS as two displays instead of one. This issue is unrelated to BetterDisplay and could be fixed via changing some settings via the display's OSD probably.

[satsornavi]

That is interesting Istvan, and thanks for taking the time to give it some thought.I am at home and the Mac is at work - i’m in Australia so it will be in about 12 hours.Interestingly i have just changed my output cable from:USB-C/Thunderbolt port on the MBP to USB-C on the Dell 38 to:USB-C to DisplayPort on the Dell 38I would be surprised if Ventura has made a duplicate Virtual display……but who knows! I will send you a framegrab tomorrow.Have a great day!RegardsIvanOn 17 Nov 2022, at 8:15 pm, Istvan Toth ***@***.***> wrote: Hi there - yes, probably something else is wrong. BetterDisplay does not create a virtual display with a name of a physical display (that would create confusion - these displays by default - unless you intentionally renamed it - always has Dummy in it). If you start up BetterDisplay, you can go to the Settings/Displays section and check the details of these displays and see if they are indeed seen as third party physical displays or not. It might be that the display supports MST (multistream transport) and for some reason (for example due to an enabled PIP or PBP function or for some other reasons, like a daisy chained displayport connection if the display has a DP out port) it exposes itself to the OS as two displays instead of one. This issue is unrelated to BetterDisplay and could be fixed via changing some settings via the display's OSD probably. —Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub, or unsubscribe.You are receiving this because you were mentioned.Message ID: ***@***.***>

[satsornavi]

Hi Istvan I only have one Dell 38 as you can see. Any help is appreciated. Cheers Ivan  

…

On 17 Nov 2022, at 8:15 pm, Istvan Toth ***@***.***> wrote: Hi there - yes, probably something else is wrong. BetterDisplay does not create a virtual display with a name of a physical display (that would create confusion - these displays by default - unless you intentionally renamed it - always has Dummy in it). If you start up BetterDisplay, you can go to the Settings/Displays section and check the details of these displays and see if they are indeed seen as third party physical displays or not. It might be that the display supports MST (multistream transport) and for some reason (for example due to an enabled PIP or PBP function or for some other reasons, like a daisy chained displayport connection if the display has a DP out port) it exposes itself to the OS as two displays instead of one. This issue is unrelated to BetterDisplay and could be fixed via changing some settings via the display's OSD probably. — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#191 (reply in thread)>, or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AB6G6DCPK74NPEIREP5GKBTWIYAVLANCNFSM5JRGEMFA>. You are receiving this because you were mentioned.

[waydabber]

I understand. I did not mean you have two but for whatever reason there is a monitor issue it seems, that's why your MacBook detects two displays and there is probably a hardware level cause for it (?).

[Bellavene]

Those steps didn't help. Macos has loosed initial display's 144hz and defaults on 1920×1080. Deleted everything that you have mentioned, nothing came back.

[waydabber]

Hi @Bellavene - what changes did you make with the app that might have caused this problem?

[Bellavene]

Hello @waydabber! Added hidpi, don't believe that i've added anything more than that. After some twinkeling I've managed atleast to get back full hdpi list. But still only 60Hz. Is there a way to update the settings without those annoying reboots? Or at least would be great to have a total reset button. Rebooted today 10 times without luck.

[waydabber]

Are you talking about configuration editing? If so then most of the times if you disconnect the affected display for about 5 seconds once or twice, the updated configuration takes effect without a reboot. But this is somewhat platform dependent as well. I am not sure what mac model we are talking about.

[bhanujggandhi]

Hi @waydabber. Thank you for providing the information. I'm experiencing an unusual behavior with my external monitor and its resolution settings. Whenever I restart my MacBook, the external monitor reverts to its original resolution. However, at the end of the day, when I turn off the display and reconnect it the next day, it falls back to the resolution I had set using BetterDisplay. I'm wondering if there might be a cache or some other stored configuration causing this behavior. I would greatly appreciate your assistance in resolving this matter.

Device: Macbook Air M2
I have remove BetterDisplay the way you recommended.
Upon restarting the Macbook, monitor resets to original resolution.

[kulagin-av-corp]

Hi! I performed the removal of the application according to the instructions, but still did not get a rollback to factory settings,

The screen resolution setting looks different, and the screen resolution looks like it's not standard

[waydabber]

The screenshot seems to be missing... :)

[kulagin-av-corp]

[waydabber]

You might have missed step 6 and/or 9.

[Skinner927]

Mac would boot to a black screen. No apple logo, no login page. You should be able to hit enter and type your password and get in. Once you do, delete /Library/Preferences/com.apple.loginwindow.plist and reboot.