I have the modules on my second screen. From time to time I have to deactivate the second screen. When I then reactivate the second screen, the modules are on the right-hand edge of the first screen. Locking the position does not work. How can I prevent this?

Winstep applications support "transparent" multi-monitor profiles (e.g. different dock, shelf, etc, positioning/enabling for different multi-monitor configurations/screen resolutions) but currently this mechanism does not yet support modules, which use an older - single screen, screen resolution and theme based - mechanism.

Eventually desktop modules will also be integrated into the current multi monitor profiles mechanism, but until that happens (possibly on the next release) placing the modules on a secondary monitor is a bit of a challenge if you frequently turn that second monitor off.

Here is a trick though:

1. Place the modules on the secondary monitor and arrange them as you like them.
2. Right click one of the open modules -> Desktop Modules -> Save Module Positions.
3. Go to the C:\Users\Public\Documents\WinStep\Themes\ folder
4. Locate a file with the .pos extension, the name of the current theme you are using and the screen resolution of your PRIMARY monitor (for instance, if you are using the DarkTech theme at 4K the file will be called 'DarkTech-3840x2160.pos')
5. Right click the file, select Properties and make it Read-only in the Properties dialog.

This will prevent the position of the modules from being overwritten with their new positions when you switch to a single monitor and they are automatically re-arranged so they remain visible on the primary monitor. When you switch the second monitor on the file will still hold the proper module positions for a two monitor configuration and they should be properly re-arranged then.

Let me know if this worked for you!

Thanks for the answer but unfortunately this does not work. The pos file is not changed if you change a position and then close Winstep. Even if you change the pos file before starting and then start Winstep, the module does not appear at the new position.

Addendum: The data is saved in the registry. For example, the CPU module is saved under CPUDesktopX and CPUDesktopY.

Did you skip step 2 above (you can *right* click on ANY open desktop module for this)?



That's what *manually* saves the current coordinates of ALL open modules into the .pos file. Positions are saved *automatically* only when the screen resolution changes OR the theme changes - this mechanism was primarily intended for the Winstep application to remember where the user positioned the desktop modules in each different theme.

Remember to clear the Read-Only attribute of the pos file before manually saving.

Thank you, I have used lock position but with save position it is the same result.
After reactiving the second monitor all modules are on the right side from monitor 1.
I use the extended mode not the same screen on both monitors.

What happens if you then right click any of the desktop modules and select 'Desktop Modules -> Restore Modules Position' from the context menu?

Nothing happens here either.

Then you must be possibly missing something, like setting the *wrong* .pos file to Read-Only (note that there may be more than one .pos file per-theme, one for each different screen resolution of the primary monitor).

If you had saved the position of the modules when they were correctly positioned and then *immediately* set the file attributes of the associated .pos file to Read-Only, then the Winstep application would be unable to overwrite the values in that file from then on and clicking the 'Restore Modules Position' option would reset the modules to the position they were when you saved it.

Send the relevant .pos file to the Winstep support address, please, so I can have a look at it.

Also, what is the screen resolution of your monitors? Do the modules all share the same theme?

Annnnnd I already added this for/in the next release.

In practice having the modules integrated with the multi-monitor profiles means desktop modules can be positioned differently for each multi-monitor configuration (which should solve your problem).

Another consideration (and the reason the .pos mechanism was introduced in the first place) is for desktop modules to remember their positions on a theme-by-theme base (the rationale being that since they are free-form, their size will be different in each theme and therefore so needs to be their placement).

In other words, desktop modules will now remember their previous positions not only on different multi-monitor and screen resolution configurations, but also on different theme configurations (e.g. number of monitors, screen resolution and theme are all a factor in terms of module "memory" - previously only the screen resolution of the primary monitor and the current theme were being taken into account).

As an added bonus, the new mechanism is compatible with the previous .pos mechanism, i.e.; if the application cannot find module position data on a multi-monitor profile, it will attempt to retrieve it from an existing .pos file as before.