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Two screen set up

image too big on 2nd screen to move to main screen and when I used system preferences to highlight 2nd screen now mouse won't move to that screen...


iMac 27″, macOS 10.13

Posted on Aug 6, 2021 8:15 AM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Aug 6, 2021 8:41 AM

I’m not sure what you mean by an image that is too big. The displayed window size exceeds what can be shown?


If the display resolutions cannot be determined, that can mean the iMac doesn’t generate the expected proper resolution for the external display, which might be a cable problem, or might be a problem with the display. Some displays can report only a subset of their actual display resolution capabilities, and macOS follows the display reports and Windows can ignore them and allow “unsupported” resolutions. Check with the display vendor’s technical documentation for the monitor.


Here? Reboot the iMac, and see if that clears whatever happened here.


If your iMac permits a newer macOS version (such as Mojave), also consider an upgrade. If you’re not sure about upgrades, post the iMac model year here, and somebody can post the available upgrade options.

3 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Aug 6, 2021 8:41 AM in response to heidi169

I’m not sure what you mean by an image that is too big. The displayed window size exceeds what can be shown?


If the display resolutions cannot be determined, that can mean the iMac doesn’t generate the expected proper resolution for the external display, which might be a cable problem, or might be a problem with the display. Some displays can report only a subset of their actual display resolution capabilities, and macOS follows the display reports and Windows can ignore them and allow “unsupported” resolutions. Check with the display vendor’s technical documentation for the monitor.


Here? Reboot the iMac, and see if that clears whatever happened here.


If your iMac permits a newer macOS version (such as Mojave), also consider an upgrade. If you’re not sure about upgrades, post the iMac model year here, and somebody can post the available upgrade options.

Aug 6, 2021 11:45 AM in response to MrHoffman

The problem was that the mouse wouldn't travel to the 2nd monitor so any apps I had open on it were irretrievable - especially problematic was that I couldn't access System Preferences open on that screen.

I rebooted my iMac and all seems fine now. I will also upgrade to Mojave. This is the highest I can go with my CADD software.

I still don't know how to adjust the image size on the 2nd monitor so that I can drag it over to my main screen - it's a mystery why it overwhelms the smaller screen...

Thanks so much for your help with the other issue!

Aug 6, 2021 12:30 PM in response to heidi169

What’s the monitor vendor and model of the display, what’s the current and the offered resolutions within System Preferences > Displays, if there’s any embedded firmware for the display from the display vendor then check for and apply any updates for that, and what’s the connection path (HDMI, DisplayPort, etc, and whatever dongles?) to the display?


A semi-ugly option continuing to use 32-bit apps pending replacement is running Mojave as a guest in a hypervisor.

Two screen set up

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