Gnome HowTo 11 🐧 Guide Display Configuration

11. Guide Display Configuration

1. How-To Adjusting Resolution and Orientation

1. Open Settings application (press Super key or click the Activities button)
2. Navigate to Display section
3. Select your monitor from the display configuration panel
4. In the Resolution dropdown, choose your desired resolution:
   • For standard displays: 1920×1080, 1366×768
   • For ultra-wide: 2560×1440, 3840×2160 (4K)
5. To change orientation:
   • Click the Orientation dropdown
   • Choose between: Normal, Left, Right, or Upside Down
6. Apply changes by clicking Apply

2. How-To Adjusting Resolution and Orientation CLI

# Check available resolutions for your monitor
cat ~/.config/monitors.xml

# Syntax: gnome-monitor-config set -L -m [Connector] -r [Res] -o [Orientation]
# Orientation values: normal, left, right, upside-down

# Example: Set eDP-1 to 1920x1080 and rotate left
gnome-monitor-config set -L -m eDP-1 -r 1920x1080 -o left

# Set orientation (0=normal, 1=left, 2=right, 3=upside-down)
gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.interface orientation 1

3. How-To Adjusting Resolution and Orientation Multiple Monitors

1. Open Settings > Display
2. Drag and drop displays to arrange them in your physical setup
3. Set individual resolutions for each monitor
4. Choose which display is primary (main screen)

4. How-To Configure Scaling

1. Open Settings > Display
2. Look for the Scale slider or dropdown menu
3. Adjust the scale percentage:
   • 100% = Standard size
   • 125% = Slightly larger text/icons
   • 150% = Large display scaling
4. For high-DPI displays, use 150% or higher to maintain readability
5. Apply changes and restart applications for proper scaling

5. How-To Configure Scaling CLI

# Check current scale factor
gsettings get org.gnome.desktop.interface scaling-factor

# Set to 125% scale
gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.interface text-scaling-factor 1.25

# Set to 150% scale
gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.interface text-scaling-factor 1.5

# Reset to default (1.0)
gsettings reset org.gnome.desktop.interface text-scaling-factor

6. How-To Enable HDR Output

1. Open Settings > Display
2. Ensure your monitor is detected properly
3. Look for HDR option in the display settings
4. If available, enable the HDR output toggle
5. For best results:
   • Make sure your graphics driver supports HDR (Intel, NVIDIA, AMD)
   • Enable HDR in your monitor’s menu if needed
6. Test HDR content with supported applications

7. How-To HDR Verification

# This outputs the current monitor configuration and capabilities
dbus-send --session --print-reply --dest=org.gnome.Mutter.DisplayConfig \
/org/gnome/Mutter/DisplayConfig org.gnome.Mutter.DisplayConfig.GetCurrentState

# Check the DRM properties for your video connectors
# You may need to install 'libdrm-tests' or 'drm-utils' for modetest
modetest -p | grep -E "HDR_OUTPUT_METADATA|Colorspace"

gsettings get org.gnome.mutter experimental-features

8. How-To Manage Profiles with colormgr

1. Find your Display ID

colormgr get-devices-by-kind display

2. Check available profiles for that display
   colormgr device-get-profiles [Device_ID]
3. Apply a specific profile (e.g., sRGB):

    # First, find the Profile ID, then:
colormgr device-make-profile-default [Device_ID] [Profile_ID]

9. How-To Manual Color Profile Installation

1. Download ICC color profiles from manufacturer or online sources
2. Copy the file to the local color directory
   cp ~/Downloads/my_calibration.icc ~/.local/share/icc/
3. Import it into the system color daemon
   colormgr import-profile ~/.local/share/icc/my_calibration.icc
4. Associate it with your monitor (use IDs from step 1)
   colormgr device-add-profile [Device_ID] [Profile_ID]

10. How-To Setup Custom Resolution

1. Scale the UI to effectively look like a different resolution
   gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.interface text-scaling-factor 1.25
2. Scale the UI to effectively look like a different resolution
   gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.interface text-scaling-factor 1.25
3. Edit your GRUB configuration
   sudo nano /etc/default/grub
4. Find GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT and add your specific video target: video=eDP-1:1920x1080@60
5. Update GRUB and Reboot
   sudo update-grub

11. How-To Display Orientation for Specific Applications

Example Script (rotate-app.sh)

#!/bin/bash
APP_NAME="evince" # Example: Document Viewer

while true; do
    # Check if the specific app is the focused window
    ACTIVE_WINDOW=$(busctl --user get-property org.gnome.Shell 
    /org/gnome/Shell/Introspect org.gnome.Shell.Introspect Windows)

    if [[ "$ACTIVE_WINDOW" == *"$APP_NAME"* ]]; then
        gnome-monitor-config set -L -m eDP-1 -o left
    else
        gnome-monitor-config set -L -m eDP-1 -o normal
    fi
    sleep 2
done

12. Display Issues Common Problems and Solutions

1. Display not detected:
   • Check cable connections
   • Restart display manager: sudo systemctl restart gdm
2. Resolution issues:
   • Use xrandr to verify available modes
   • Try different refresh rates
3. HDR problems:
   • Ensure graphics drivers support HDR
   • Check monitor settings for HDR enablement
4. Scaling artifacts:
   • Reset scaling with: gsettings reset org.gnome.desktop.interface scaling-factor

13. Display Issues Verification Commands

1. Check current display configuration
   cat ~/.config/monitors.xml
2. Verify Wayland session
   echo $WAYLAND_DISPLAY
3. Check color profile status
   colormgr get-devices-by-kind display

14. How-To Display Issues Optimizing for Different Use Cases

Gaming Setup:

1. Ensure proper refresh rate (60Hz, 120Hz, etc.)
2. Disable HDR if experiencing performance issues
3. Set appropriate resolution based on hardware capabilities

Professional Work Setup:

1. Use accurate color profiles (sRGB, Adobe RGB)
2. Enable Wayland Color Management Protocol for color accuracy
3. Set proper scaling for detailed work

Accessibility Setup:

1. Increase text size and scaling factor
2. Ensure high contrast display options
3. Adjust refresh rates for visual comfort

15. How-To Save Display Configuration

1. Create a script with your preferred settings:

#!/bin/bash
# Enable fractional scaling support first
gsettings set org.gnome.mutter experimental-features "['scale-monitor-framebuffer']"

# Set Laptop screen (eDP-1) and External (HDMI-1)
# -L (Logical monitor), -m (monitor name), -r (resolution), -s (scale)
gnome-monitor-config set \
  -L -m eDP-1 -r 1920x1080 -s 1.0 \
  -L -m HDMI-1 -r 2560x1440 -s 1.25 --pos 1920,0

2. Make executable and run when needed:

chmod +x ~/bin/display-setup.sh
~/bin/display-setup.sh

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