David Kent

Q: Half of desktop disappears when unplugging external monitor

I have a MacBook (early 2011) with a single desktop split between two monitors -- with one side on the internal display and the other half on a Dell 23 inch. The Dell is my primary when I'm using both at once. Up until a few months ago, when I unplugged the external monitor, all windows automatically appeared in the laptop monitor, including the dock and menu bar.

 

After an OS upgrade a few systems back (I'm on El Capitan .6 version), when I unplug the display it doesn't seem to register -- that is, the left side of my desktop, including the dock and menu bar, and all apps that were showing there just disappear. So my laptop seems to think the other display is still connected and live, unless I restart with the monitor detached. (I have unchecked "Displays have separate spaces" in Mission Control.)

 

Is there anything I can do to force the desktop to redraw on the internal display? (Note that the display is a Dell S2330MX, which seems to not support any Mac OS - so that might answer the question right there.) Thanks

MacBook Pro (13-inch Early 2011), OS X El Capitan (10.11.6), null

Posted on Sep 11, 2016 9:00 AM

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