We have a HP mini pc for my wife to use for home and she also has a laptop from work. I bought the UD-3900C so she can use the same monitors for either computer.
The problem I have is that when I connect up the HP the 2 monitors connected to the UD-3900C work fine but there is a 3rd monitor (main monitor) that we cannot see. I’m assuming this is due to the HDMI output on the HP mini pc.
How can I set this up so the HDMI on HP isn’t used at monitor 1 (main monitor)
Hi Warren,
Thank you for posting, and for the detail that you have provided!
Based on your description of the behavior, the HP Mini PC you are using always expects one external monitor to be physically connected to its built-in HDMI video output.
Because you do not have a display physically connected to the HP Mini PC’s built-in HDMI video output while the PC is connected to the UD-3900C docking station, the HP Mini PC is detecting a ‘phantom’ display (the ‘3rd monitor’ you mention).
This ‘phantom’ display can be disabled by marking it as ‘Disconnected’ within the Windows ‘Display Settings’ application in order to help prevent application Windows from becoming ‘lost’ within the ‘phantom’ display.
The steps to do this will vary slightly depending upon which version of Windows you are using (version 10 or 11), but in general the process for doing so is as follows:
Connect one monitor directly to the HP Mini PC’s built-in HDMi video output port.
Connect one monitor to one of the HDMI video output ports within the UD-3900C docking station.
The net result is that the first monitor will be directly connected to the HP Mini PC, and the second monitor will be connected to the UD-3900C. Note, this physical configuration is temporary, and will change towards the end of this process.
Right-click on an empty space within your Windows desktop and select ‘Display Settings’ from the context menu that appears. This will open the ‘Display Settings’ application.
Within the Display Settings application, you should see two numbers within boxes at the top of the application window. These numbers within boxes represent each monitor detected by your computer.
Click the ‘Identify’ button that should be visible near the boxes. When during so, identification numbers will appear briefly within each monitor, for example ‘1’ and ‘2’.
Make a note of which number represents which monitor. For this example, I will assume monitor ‘1’ represents the monitor connected directly to the HP Mini PCs built-in HDMI video output, and monitor ‘2’ will represent the monitor connected to the UD-3900C docking station.
Click on the box at the top of the Display Settings application window labeled ‘2’ (the monitor connected to the UD-3900) in order to select it. Once it is selected, the box should turn blue in color.
Configure monitor ‘2’ as the ‘Main’ display. We made a video that demonstrates how to do this within Windows 10 here → https://youtu.be/7nnKztRZXsw and the process for Windows 11 is similar.
Click on the box at the top of the Display Settings application window labeled ‘1’ (the monitor connected directly to the HP Mini PC’s HDMI video output) in order to select it. Once it is selected, the box should turn blue in color.
Change this monitor’s configuration from being in ‘Extend’ mode to ‘Disconnected’. In Windows 11, this option will be located below and to the right of the boxes with numbers that represent the monitors. In Windows 10, you will have to scroll down within the Display Settings application window until you see a section entitled, ‘Multiple displays’ under which you will see options to choose from.
You most likely be prompted to confirm this change, and if so, please confirm it. The net result is that the monitor connected directly to the HP Mini PC will stop displaying an image. This is expected behavior.
The end result is that one of the monitors connected to the UD-3900C is configured as the ‘Main’ display, and both monitors are connected to the dock. No monitors will be directly connected to the HP Mini PC. The ‘phantom’ display that represents the HP Mini PC’s built-in HDMI output will be disabled or ‘Disconnected’.
*** Please note - even though you will have in effect ‘Disconnected’ the ‘phantom’ display, the number representing this display will still be visible within the Display Settings application (although it will appear physically smaller in size to represent the fact that it is Disconnected). This is expected behavior, and unfortunately the ‘Disconnected’ display cannot be ‘hidden’ completely from view within the Display Settings application ***
Apologies for the long post, and please let us know if that information helps!
Thank you,
Bob
Plugable Technologies
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