NAME
xrandr - primitive command line interface to RandR extension
SYNOPSIS
xrandr [--help] [--display
display] [-q] [-v] [--verbose]
[--dryrun] [--screen
snum] [--q1] [--q12] [--current] [--noprimary]
[--panning
widthx
height[+
x+
y[/
track_widthx
track_height+
track_x+
track_y[/
border_left/
border_top/
border_right/
border_bottom]]]]
[--scale
xx
y] [--scale-from
wx
h] [--transform
a,
b,
c,
d,
e,
f,
g,
h,
i]
[--primary] [--prop] [--fb
widthx
height] [--fbmm
widthx
height] [--dpi
dpi] [--newmode
name
mode] [--rmmode
name] [--addmode
output name]
[--delmode
output name] [--output
output] [--auto]
[--mode
mode] [--preferred] [--pos
xx
y] [--rate
rate] [--reflect
reflection] [--rotate
orientation]
[--left-of
output] [--right-of
output] [--above
output]
[--below
output] [--same-as
output] [--set
property
value] [--off] [--crtc
crtc] [--gamma
red:
green:
blue] [--brightness
brightness] [-o
orientation] [-s
size] [-r
rate] [-x] [-y]
[--listproviders] [--setprovideroutputsource
provider source]
[--setprovideroffloadsink
provider sink]
DESCRIPTION
Xrandr is used to set the size, orientation and/or reflection of the
outputs for a screen. It can also set the screen size.
If invoked without any option, it will dump the state of the outputs, showing
the existing modes for each of them, with a '+' after the preferred modes and
a '*' after the current mode.
There are a few global options. Other options modify the last output that is
specified in earlier parameters in the command line. Multiple outputs may be
modified at the same time by passing multiple --output options followed
immediately by their corresponding modifying options.
- --help
- Print out a summary of the usage and exit.
- -v, --version
- Print out the RandR version reported by the X server and
exit.
- --verbose
- Causes xrandr to be more verbose. When used with -q (or
without other options), xrandr will display more information about the
server state. Please note that the gamma and brightness informations are
only approximations of the complete color profile stored in the server.
When used along with options that reconfigure the system, progress will be
reported while executing the configuration changes.
- -q, --query
- When this option is present, or when no configuration
changes are requested, xrandr will display the current state of the
system.
- --dryrun
- Performs all the actions specified except that no changes
are made.
- --nograb
- Apply the modifications without grabbing the screen. It
avoids to block other applications during the update but it might also
cause some applications that detect screen resize to receive old
values.
- -d, --display name
- This option selects the X display to use. Note this refers
to the X screen abstraction, not the monitor (or output).
- --screen snum
- This option selects which screen to manipulate. Note this
refers to the X screen abstraction, not the monitor (or output).
- --q1
- Forces the usage of the RandR version 1.1 protocol, even if
a higher version is available.
- --q12
- Forces the usage of the RandR version 1.2 protocol, even if
the display does not report it as supported or a higher version is
available.
RandR version 1.4 options
Options for RandR 1.4 are used as a superset of the options for RandR 1.3.
- --listproviders
- Report information about the providers available.
- --setprovideroutputsource provider
source
- Set source as the source of display output images
for provider. This is only possible if source and
provider have the Source Output and Sink
Output capabilities, respectively. If source is 0x0,
then provider is disconnected from its current output source.
- --setprovideroffloadsink provider sink
- Set provider as a render offload device for
sink. This is only possible if provider and sink have
the Source Offload and Sink Offload capabilities,
respectively. If sink is 0x0, then provider is
disconnected from its current render offload sink.
RandR version 1.3 options
Options for RandR 1.3 are used as a superset of the options for RandR 1.2.
- --current
- Return the current screen configuration, without polling
for hardware changes.
- --noprimary
- Don't define a primary output.
Per-output options
- --panning
widthxheight[+x+y[/track_widthxtrack_height+track_x+track_y[/border_left/border_top/border_right/border_bottom]]]
- This option sets the panning parameters. As soon as panning
is enabled, the CRTC position can change with every pointer move. The
first four parameters specify the total panning area, the next four the
pointer tracking area (which defaults to the same area). The last four
parameters specify the border and default to 0. A width or height set to
zero disables panning on the according axis. You typically have to set the
screen size with --fb simultaneously.
- --transform
a,b,c,d,e,f,g,h,i
- Specifies a transformation matrix to apply on the output.
Automatically a bilinear filter is selected. The mathematical form
corresponds to:
The transformation is based on homogeneous coordinates. The matrix multiplied by
the coordinate vector of a pixel of the output gives the transformed
coordinate vector of a pixel in the graphic buffer. More precisely, the vector
(x y) of the output pixel is extended to 3 values (x y w), with 1 as the w
coordinate and multiplied against the matrix. The final device coordinates of
the pixel are then calculated with the so-called homogenic division by the
transformed w coordinate. In other words, the device coordinates (x' y') of
the transformed pixel are:
x' = (ax + by + c) / w' and
y' = (dx + ey + f) / w' ,
with w' = (gx + hy + i) .
Typically,
a and
e corresponds to the scaling on the X and Y axes,
c and
f corresponds to the translation on those axes, and
g,
h, and
i are respectively 0, 0 and 1. The matrix can
also be used to express more complex transformations such as keystone
correction, or rotation. For a rotation of an angle T, this formula can be
used:
cos T -sin T 0
sin T cos T 0
0 0 1
As a special argument, instead of passing a matrix, one can pass the string
none, in which case the default values are used (a unit matrix without
filter).
- --scale xxy
- Changes the dimensions of the output picture. Values
superior to 1 will lead to a compressed screen (screen dimension bigger
than the dimension of the output mode), and values below 1 leads to a zoom
in on the output. This option is actually a shortcut version of the
--transform option.
- --scale-from wxh
- Specifies the size in pixels of the area of the framebuffer
to be displayed on this output. This option is actually a shortcut version
of the --transform option.
- --primary
- Set the output as primary. It will be sorted first in
Xinerama and RANDR geometry requests.
RandR version 1.2 options
These options are only available for X server supporting RandR version 1.2 or
newer.
- --prop, --properties
- This option causes xrandr to display the contents of
properties for each output. --verbose also enables --prop.
- --fb widthxheight
- Reconfigures the screen to the specified size. All
configured monitors must fit within this size. When this option is not
provided, xrandr computes the smallest screen size that will hold the set
of configured outputs; this option provides a way to override that
behaviour.
- --fbmm widthxheight
- Sets the reported values for the physical size of the
screen. Normally, xrandr resets the reported physical size values to keep
the DPI constant. This overrides that computation.
- --dpi dpi
- This also sets the reported physical size values of the
screen, it uses the specified DPI value to compute an appropriate physical
size using whatever pixel size will be set.
- --newmode name mode
- New modelines can be added to the server and then
associated with outputs. This option does the former. The mode is
specified using the ModeLine syntax for xorg.conf: clock hdisp hsyncstart
hsyncend htotal vdisp vsyncstart vsyncend vtotal flags.
flags can be zero or more of +HSync, -HSync, +VSync, -VSync,
Interlace, DoubleScan, CSync, +CSync, -CSync. Several tools permit to
compute the usual modeline from a height, width, and refresh rate, for
instance you can use cvt.
- --rmmode name
- This removes a mode from the server if it is otherwise
unused.
- --addmode output name
- Add a mode to the set of valid modes for an output.
- --delmode output name
- Remove a mode from the set of valid modes for an
output.
Per-output options
- --output output
- Selects an output to reconfigure. Use either the name of
the output or the XID.
- --auto
- For connected but disabled outputs, this will enable them
using their first preferred mode (or, something close to 96dpi if they
have no preferred mode). For disconnected but enabled outputs, this will
disable them.
- --mode mode
- This selects a mode. Use either the name or the XID for
mode
- --preferred
- This selects the same mode as --auto, but it doesn't
automatically enable or disable the output.
- --pos xxy
- Position the output within the screen using pixel
coordinates. In case reflection or rotation is applied, the translation is
applied after the effects.
- --rate rate
- This marks a preference for refresh rates close to the
specified value, when multiple modes have the same name, this will select
the one with the nearest refresh rate.
- --reflect reflection
- Reflection can be one of 'normal' 'x', 'y' or 'xy'. This
causes the output contents to be reflected across the specified axes.
- --rotate rotation
- Rotation can be one of 'normal', 'left', 'right' or
'inverted'. This causes the output contents to be rotated in the specified
direction. 'right' specifies a clockwise rotation of the picture and
'left' specifies a counter-clockwise rotation.
- --left-of, --right-of, --above, --below, --same-as
another-output
- Use one of these options to position the output relative to
the position of another output. This allows convenient tiling of outputs
within the screen. The position is always computed relative to the new
position of the other output, so it is not valid to say --output a
--left-of b --output b --left-of a.
- --set property value
- Sets an output property. Integer properties may be
specified as a valid (see --prop) comma-separated list of decimal or
hexadecimal (with a leading 0x) values. Atom properties may be set to any
of the valid atoms (see --prop). String properties may be set to any
value.
- --off
- Disables the output.
- --crtc crtc
- Uses the specified crtc (either as an index in the list of
CRTCs or XID). In normal usage, this option is not required as xrandr
tries to make sensible choices about which crtc to use with each output.
When that fails for some reason, this option can override the normal
selection.
- --gamma red:green:blue
- Set the specified floating point values as gamma correction
on the crtc currently attached to this output. Note that you cannot get
two different values for cloned outputs (i.e.: which share the same crtc)
and that switching an output to another crtc doesn't change the crtc gamma
corrections at all.
- --brightness brightness
- Multiply the gamma values on the crtc currently attached to
the output to specified floating value. Useful for overly bright or overly
dim outputs. However, this is a software only modification, if your
hardware has support to actually change the brightness, you will probably
prefer to use xbacklight.
RandR version 1.1 options
These options are available for X servers supporting RandR version 1.1 or older.
They are still valid for newer X servers, but they don't interact sensibly
with version 1.2 options on the same command line.
- -s, --size size-index or --size
widthxheight
- This sets the screen size, either matching by size or using
the index into the list of available sizes.
- -r, --rate, --refresh rate
- This sets the refresh rate closest to the specified
value.
- -o, --orientation rotation
- This specifies the orientation of the screen, and can be
one of normal, inverted, left or right.
- -x
- Reflect across the X axis.
- -y
- Reflect across the Y axis.
EXAMPLES
Sets an output called LVDS to its preferred mode, and on its right put an output
called VGA to preferred mode of a screen which has been physically rotated
clockwise:
xrandr --output LVDS --auto --rotate normal
--pos 0x0 --output VGA --auto --rotate left --right-of LVDS
Forces to use a 1024x768 mode on an output called VGA:
xrandr --newmode "1024x768" 63.50
1024 1072 1176 1328 768 771 775 798 -hsync +vsync
xrandr --addmode VGA 1024x768
xrandr --output VGA --mode 1024x768
Enables panning on a 1600x768 desktop while displaying 1024x768 mode on an
output called VGA:
xrandr --fb 1600x768 --output VGA --mode
1024x768 --panning 1600x0
Have one small 1280x800 LVDS screen showing a small version of a huge 3200x2000
desktop, and have a big VGA screen display the surrounding of the mouse at
normal size.
xrandr --fb 3200x2000 --output LVDS --scale
2.5x2.5 --output VGA --pos 0x0 --panning
3200x2000+0+0/3200x2000+0+0/64/64/64/64
Displays the VGA output in trapezoid shape so that it is keystone corrected when
the projector is slightly above the screen:
xrandr --fb 1024x768 --output VGA --transform
1.24,0.16,-124,0,1.24,0,0,0.000316,1
SEE ALSO
Xrandr(3), cvt(1), xkeystone(1), xbacklight(1)
AUTHORS
Keith Packard, Open Source Technology Center, Intel Corporation. and Jim Gettys,
Cambridge Research Laboratory, HP Labs, HP.