[FancyZones] Reset to default layout due to different monitor IDs

[littlebigmedia]

Microsoft PowerToys version

0.55.2

Running as admin

• Yes

Area(s) with issue?

FancyZones

Steps to reproduce

1. Select any fancy zone layout that is different than "Priority Grid" zone.
2. Restart Windows
3. Windows starts with "Priority Grid" selected instead of the one you chose.

✔️ Expected Behavior

I expect PowerToys to save the last Fancy Zone I have selected even after windows restart.

❌ Actual Behavior

Fancy Zones starts with "Power Grid" zone instead of the one I selected before the windows restart.

Other Software

No response

[danielwuensche]

I sort of have the issue, but the root cause is not Powertoys in my case. In my case after some reboots the displays are registered as new devices, resetting all settings including audio devices in the process. I'm using a Thunderbolt dock. Do you have a similar setup?
I'm experiencing this behavior on two devices, with different graphics cards (and manufacturer) and different Powertoys versions (0.55.2 and 0.53.3), that's why I think Powertoys might not be the cause.

[littlebigmedia]

I sort of have the issue, but the root cause is not Powertoys in my case. In my case after some reboots the displays are registered as new devices, resetting all settings including audio devices in the process. I'm using a Thunderbolt dock. Do you have a similar setup? I'm experiencing this behavior on two devices, with different graphics cards (and manufacturer) and different Powertoys versions (0.55.2 and 0.53.3), that's why I think Powertoys might not be the cause.

I have one monitor, a superultrawide. I haven't noticed whether it gets registered as a new device on start. I don't get a notification though, so I suppose it does not.

I didn't know that Powertoys saves the last zone used even after restart. So you're saying what I am asking is the expected behavior in Powertoys? It should save the last zone used on windows restart?

[danielwuensche]

I have one monitor, a superultrawide. I haven't noticed whether it gets registered as a new device on start. I don't get a notification though, so I suppose it does not.

Normally you don't get a notification whatsoever if the display is registered as a new device, usually you will only notice it via apps like FancyZones falling back to the default settings.

I didn't know that Powertoys saves the last zone used even after restart. So you're saying what I am asking is the expected behavior in Powertoys? It should save the last zone used on windows restart?

Yes, PowerToys remembers whatever was set.

Unfortunately I don't really know how to troubleshoot this further with one display.
I have three displays, two external and the laptop display. All three of them are using custom grid zones. After some reboots (not every reboot and not at regular intervals) one of them defaults to priority grid. And it's always the same display, on two different laptops. That's just some Thunderbolt wonkiness, interestingly I'm not experiencing that on linux.
What also differs between our setups: you're running PowerToys with elevated (Admin) permissions. On my private laptop, my account is an admin account, but PowerToys runs as User. On my work laptop, the user accounts doesn't have admin rights - I have a separate account for admin stuff (and PowerToys needs admin rights to install/update).

Long story short, my guess still is that PowerToys is not causing the issue, it's just a symptom. Sadly I can't come up with further troubleshooting steps to back it up, apart from the standard steps like checking event logs etc. . The behavior you're expecting is in fact the correct behavior of PowerToys though. I'd see having to reassign zones at every boot as unpractical, depending on how often you reboot.

[SeraphimaZykova]

A bug report could help us investigate the problem, please attach it in the comment.

/bugreport

[ghost]

Hi there!

We need a bit more information to really debug this issue. Can you add a "Report Bug" zip file here? You right click on our system tray icon and just go to report bug. Then drag the zipfile from your desktop onto the GitHub comment box in this issue. Thanks!

[rmcauley]

PowerToysReport_2022-02-23-14-35-12.zip

I have just experienced this problem after a reboot and this is my bug report zip. Opening PowerToys and then the layout editor does not solve the problem, nor does changing layouts. I need to turn FancyZones off and then on again.

[rmcauley]

Still happening in 0.56.1. Two debug zips attached, one after boot and the other after turning FancyZones on and off to fix the problem:

PowerToysReport_2022-03-04-10-18-49.zip
PowerToysReport_2022-03-04-10-19-01.zip

[ghost]

This issue has been automatically marked as stale because it has been marked as requiring author feedback but has not had any activity for 5 days. It will be closed if no further activity occurs within 5 days of this comment.

[ChristopherWalz]

I have the same problem with 2 monitors after rebooting. Attatched is my log.
PowerToysReport_2024-05-16-08-37-08.zip

[mo-rocks]

I have a dual monitor setup and use FZ heavily for swapping between active windows. I also need to leave my desk several times a day - it's not uncommon for me to find that FZ has switched the layouts between my monitors, which absolutely drives me nuts. Can this please get fixed? I'm having to reset my layouts several times per week.

[ethanfangg]

Duping to most recent mention of this problem. /dup #32978

[microsoft-github-policy-service]

Hi! We've identified this issue as a duplicate of another one that already exists on this Issue Tracker. This specific instance is being closed in favor of tracking the concern over on the referenced thread. Thanks for your report!