ThinkorSwim on Multiple Monitors and Windows

ssaeed73

Member
I'm having a weird issue with ThinkorSwim. I have three monitors and have charts and watchlists scattered on the three monitors. When I start ToS, all the charts and most of the watch lists open up in the correct location on the monitor they are supposed to open on...a couple of watchlists however always open on a different monitor and I have to manually move them to the correct location but on program restart they move again. Anyone know how to solve this issue?
 
I run one of my systems with two monitors and everything stays where I put it... My third monitor is actually an All-In-One with only a couple TOS windows open... And then there is my laptop that always has about eight TOS windows open, and one of those has nine charts open, and everything stays in place... Your situation sounds odd...

Have your cleaned up garbage by going to Help > System > Collect Garbage and then close TOS and delete your usergui directory before restarting TOS...???
 
are you running 3rd party software for your video card/monitor settings or custom settings for your video card under a certain environment? you can also try updating to the latest video card drivers. if you have a monitor that "cuts in and out" that would cause it to as the system would go from 2 monitors to 3 causing screen layout re-arrangement. similar to if you manually turn off a monitor the windows change to the default monitor.

worst case scenario, you can always save the workspace and then just load the workspace manually, its quicker than re-arranging.
 
@ssaeed73 I also have just recently begun to have this problem. Been using TOS on multiple monitors for years and just within the last couple of weeks/month, the windows no longer retain their location. Clearing garbage does nothing. Maybe deleting workspace may help. Might try when I have some more time later.
 
Yeah I think it's some issue with a recent update they pushed out. I'll have to try the usergui folder delete and see if it helps. Will report back.
 
Same issue here. Used to work, now it doesn't.
Any resolution yet?
I have noticed the same thing. I have 4 monitors. I can't spend all my time, rearranging. So I use @XeoNoX's workaround. I save my workspace as a shared link. Then load the shared link, each morning after I boot up. It takes no work or additional time as I start each day.
 
I have noticed the same thing. I have 4 monitors. I can't spend all my time, rearranging. So I use @XeoNoX's workaround. I save my workspace as a shared link. Then load the shared link, each morning after I boot up. It takes no work or additional time as I start each day.
Thanks for the quick response and solution. I also noticed that saving the workspace without sharing it seems to work too, at least for now.
 
This is so freaking frustrating....... I have 5 monitors with the 5th being a large screen that use for watching videos or when processing music and looking at security camera screeens. I've never used it for TOS in my near 15+ years using the platform. Now that Main Screen starts on that screen and I've tried everything..... shared items..... resetting, saving the workspace.. nothing works. Does anyone have a clue how to fix this!!!! FWIW: I've had the same workspace for the last 7/8 years.

Of course windows allows you to set the primary screen. I have 5 monitors that I use in this rig. My current setup has been in use since 2011 with monitor replacements as needed along the way. Never has this been an issue in TOS.

This was set up in 2011 - screen 1 - 3 on the desktop screen 4 center above screen 2 (2 is my main primary screen) since forever. Upper right is the 5th screen. The 5th which is a screen I typically only use for chat rooms, video, security camera monitoring, and while creating and/or working with music files has NEVER been used for the trading desktop.

So the question is why after 12 years ..... did TOS decide to arbitrarily modify the desktop layout and place the main startup quote 'home screen' onto the 5th display that is only used temporarily on any given day?

In the past as I've developed strategies and coded various setup type options i've detached screens, and moved them to one of the screens 1 - 4 and they would stay in place. Now ........ since Saturday arbitrary.

My frustration is with an application 'TOS' that is changing the end users display arrangement on a willy nilly basis. No rhyme or reason.

You would think somewhere in the annals of TOS code, xml setup "possibly vmoptions" a means to control this would exist!

Or, at the minimum when you save your workspace it would keep everything located on the same screens when you reopen/restart the application.

I even tried resorting to old workspaces that I kept just in case over the years going back to 2016 and it did the same thing.. there is no logic to this issue. Something changed over the weekend as I used this same workspace on Friday with no issues at all.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Ok., here's the update.

FWIW:
Window programs on initial startup will always open on the primary #1 screen which is considered normal. However, if you move any Windows program to another screen it will start on that screen the next time you open it whether it's #1 ...... #5 or whatever is your configuration.

TOS is not like this..... I tried the shared linked - I changed the start up screen for windows and various other suggestions none of them worked.

In the end this is what worked for me to resolve the BUG.

  1. Right Click on TOS choose Run As Administrator
    1. Note you can also select properties and set the TOS app to always run as an administrator.
  2. Let it finish it's "normal update Procedure"
  3. When the Logon screen activates - drag it to the screen you want the main screen to be placed
  4. Log In and Voila it is back to where it's been for the last decade......
So it's a bug..... has been and will be until it's fixed by TOS. No one should have to jump through hoops and waste time...... finding a workaround.

This worked for me. Maybe this will help some of the other end users in the community till TOS fixes the BUG!
 
When you move your windows, ensure the "un-maximized" window is placed on the monitor first (i.e. don't snap it to the top right away).

This is actually a Windows issue, not ToS. It will remember where the window was placed, but it WILL NOT remember if you just snap the window. Those positions are considered temporary.
 
I have a similar problem using linux with main screen defaulting to screen #2. It only started after building my new computer. Can't figure this one out
 

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