How to remove Display from Desktop in Windows 11/10

If you have a multiple monitor setup on your Windows 11/10 Enterprise and/or Pro for Workstations edition, you can remove and restore a connected external display on demand without having to physically disconnect and reconnect the display OR turn on or off the display power for the Specialized Display. In this post, we will show you how to remove the Display from the Desktop in Windows 11/10.

According to Microsoft; the Specialized Display feature enables a Display to be dedicated to a specific purpose, such as:

Fixed-function arcade/gaming rigs like cockpit/driving/flight/military simulators
Medical imaging devices that have custom panels (e.g. grayscale X-ray displays)
Dedicated video monitoring scenarios
Monitor panel testing and validation (e.g. in the factory)
Video walls

How to remove Display from Desktop in Windows 11/10

The Remove display from desktop feature will prevent your Windows computer from using an externally connected display without having to disconnect the display – this allows you to easily have your computer reconnect and use the display again when needed.

You can remove the display from Desktop in Windows 11/10 in either of two ways which we will cover in this section; PC users can use option two if their Windows edition is not as mentioned earlier but have NVIDIA graphics and drivers installed on their system.

1] Via Settings app

To remove Display from Desktop in Windows 11/10 via Settings app, do the following:

Press Windows key + I to open Settings app.
Click/tap on the System icon.
Click/tap on Display on the left pane.
On the right pane, click/tap on the Advanced display settings link towards the bottom of the page.
On the next page that opens, select a display you want to remove or restore in the Choose display section drop-down menu.
Now, under the Remove display from desktop section, toggle the button to On (remove) or Off (restore) per your requirement.
Exit Settings app when done.

Read: How to change from Dual monitor to Single in Windows

2] Via NVIDIA Control Panel

To remove Display from Desktop in Windows 11/10 via NVIDIA Control Panel, do the following:

Open NVIDIA Control Panel.
On the left navigation pane, under Display. click on the Set up multiple displays link.
On the right pane, under Select the displays you want to use, uncheck (remove) or check (restore) the displays per your requirement.
Click/tap on Apply.
Finally, click on Yes on the prompt that appears to confirm and save changes.
Exit NVIDIA Control Panel when done.

That’s it!

Read: How to add Project Display option to Desktop Context Menu in Windows

How to undo Remove display from desktop?

If you want to undo Remove display from desktop, you can follow these instructions:

Plug into another display.
Right-click on the desktop and select Display settings.
Next, select Advanced display settings.
Select the display you turned off in the Select a display to view or change the settings for it drop-down menu.
Now turn off the Remove display from desktop toggle switch.

Read: How to change Primary and Secondary monitor on Windows