Display Startup Options and Resetting the Display Configuration
Display Startup Options and Resetting the Display Configuration
The Options tab decides what survives a reboot and what happens when the monitor layout changes underneath the server. It also carries the recovery actions, including the full display reset — the last resort when a display configuration has become stuck and nothing else clears it.
The startup toggles require the Administrator role. The action buttons at the bottom of the page are available to Operators as well as Administrators.
[USER-ACTION-REQUIRED: Attach a screenshot of the Options tab showing the three startup checkboxes and the action buttons here]
Where to find it
In the System Management sidebar, under Configure > GPU, select Options. The page has two panels: Startup & display behaviour at the top, and a Help panel of action buttons below it. Toggles take effect the moment you set them; there is no separate save.
Startup and display behaviour
|
Setting |
Description |
Values / Range |
|---|---|---|
|
Restore Settings on Startup |
On the next reboot, replay the last-applied custom resolutions, output colour settings, and genlock state. Without this, the graphics driver's own defaults come back after a restart. |
Checkbox |
|
Restore Settings on Display Change |
Whenever the monitor layout changes — a display is hot-plugged, a Mosaic grid is applied, an EDID is reloaded — re-apply the saved primary-monitor, colour, and genlock state instead of letting the change stand. |
Checkbox |
|
Disable Console Monitor in Windows |
Detach the BMC console from the Windows desktop, immediately and again at every startup. The BMC console is the server's IPMI management video output — Windows sees it as an attached display even though it is not a GPU output. Disabling it keeps this low-resolution management output out of the desktop layout. |
Checkbox |
Turn the two restore options on once the display configuration is finished and verified, then reboot to prove it comes back. Enabling them mid-commissioning means the server keeps re-applying an older state over the changes you are still making.
Virtual-monitor-only installations: when the server runs without any physical displays and Backstage captures exclusively from a virtual monitor, tick Disable Console Monitor in Windows here and use Remove from desktop on the Desktop tab for every GPU output. Removed outputs disappear from Windows entirely — including the NVIDIA Control Panel — but Backstage still sees them. The virtual monitor then becomes the only display Windows sees. See How to Add a Virtual Monitor for the full procedure.
Action buttons
|
Action |
Description |
Confirmation |
|---|---|---|
|
(Re)Start Core Software |
Starts or restarts Backstage. The quickest way to make the playback software pick up a changed display configuration. |
None |
|
Stop Core Software |
Stops Backstage. Playback output ceases; the server keeps running. |
Yes |
|
BMC Monitor Only |
Switches to a layout where only the BMC console monitor is active, freeing the GPU outputs. Useful for remote diagnostics. |
None |
|
All Monitor Layout |
Restores the full multi-monitor layout, re-enabling the configured display outputs. The counterpart to BMC Monitor Only. |
None |
|
Reset Monitor Config |
A full factory reset of the display configuration. See below before using it. |
None |
|
Restart System (OS) |
Reboots Windows gracefully. Your web session drops and reconnects once the server is back. |
Yes |
The same actions are available on the Power page under Operate, alongside the chassis power controls.
Resetting the display configuration
Reset Monitor Config discards the entire display configuration. It is a genuine factory reset of everything under the GPU tabs, not a refresh. Every Mosaic grid, every forced EDID assignment, every virtual monitor, and the saved display topology are removed. Treat it as a recovery tool of last resort.
In one sequence, the reset:
-
returns every removed output to the Windows desktop;
-
removes every virtual monitor;
-
clears every Mosaic grid;
-
clears every forced EDID override;
-
resets the console monitor to its configured state;
-
wipes the saved Windows and graphics-driver display topology, and the persisted display configuration files.
Saved EDID slots themselves are not deleted — the assignments are cleared, but the slots remain available to reassign afterwards.
Before you reset
- Record the current configuration: Mosaic grid sizes and their display order, EDID slot assignments per output, virtual monitors, and which outputs were removed from the desktop
- Try the narrower fix first — Return all to desktop on the Desktop tab, or a plain restart, clears most stuck states
- Confirm you have time to rebuild the configuration afterwards; this is not a quick operation
- Take a configuration backup first if the server holds other settings worth keeping
After the reset completes, restart the server before rebuilding. Then work back through the GPU tabs in the usual order: EDID, Mosaic, Outputs, Genlock, Desktop, Options.
Common Mistakes
-
Reaching for Reset Monitor Config too early. Most stuck display states clear with Return all to desktop or a reboot. The reset costs you the whole configuration — try the cheap fixes first.
-
Resetting without recording the configuration. Mosaic display order in particular is not recoverable by inspection afterwards. Write it down before, not after.
-
Leaving the restore toggles off after commissioning. The configuration then quietly reverts to driver defaults on the next reboot, typically discovered on show day.
-
Enabling Restore Settings on Display Change while still configuring. It re-applies the saved state every time the layout changes, which fights the changes you are making. Enable it at the end.
-
Using BMC Monitor Only and forgetting to switch back. The show outputs stay disabled. Use All Monitor Layout to restore them when diagnostics are done.
Tips
-
Make enabling the restore options and rebooting once the final step of every display commissioning. It is the only real proof the configuration is persistent.
-
Disable Console Monitor in Windows is worth setting on any server where the BMC console keeps appearing as an unwanted extra desktop screen — and is essential for virtual-monitor-only installations.
-
(Re)Start Core Software is usually enough to make Backstage pick up a display change — you rarely need a full OS restart for that alone.
-
Keep the display configuration in the project documentation alongside the show files. It turns a reset, or a server replacement, from an investigation into a checklist.
Related
How to Add a Virtual Monitor — add a virtual monitor; includes the full procedure for making it the server's only display.
How to Remove Outputs from the Windows Desktop — remove outputs from the Windows desktop so Backstage uses them exclusively.
Display and GPU Configuration — the order to rebuild the configuration in after a reset.
How to Control Server Power — the same actions from the Power page, with the chassis power controls.
How to Back Up and Restore Server Configuration — take a configuration backup before a destructive change.
[USER-ACTION-REQUIRED: Add page labels: how-to, server-management, display-config]