Start11 & Taskbar Issues on Nvidia Surround Triple Monitor Setup

from Stardock Forums

I have been using triple 27" monitors (and Start10/11) for years and use Nvidia Surround to group them into one widescreen monitor for gaming.  I used Start11 Taskbar enhance OFF.

I prefer my Taskbar at the bottom of my left-most monitor, NOT across the bottom of all screens.  Some games I play fullscreen on the triples, some just on the center screen so I can multitask with the left/right monitors.  So I don't like the Taskbar on the Middle/Right screens so the apps/games I use have the whole screen area to cleanly use.

Funny enough, Start10 and Start 11 have always forced the taskbar onto the left-most screen (which I liked!).  To do that, I had to restart Windows Explorer after re-installing/updating Nvidia drivers.  But it would send the taskbar to the top of the left-most monitor.  I'd have to either re-log or reboot to park it back down below.  (re-starting Explorer doesn't help, it stays stuck/parked/ and sometimes glitched up top/left)

However, on random start-ups or reboots, the Taskbar would stretch back across all 3 monitors.  If I re-log it jumps back to bottom-left monitor like usual/preferred.  Frustrating, but doable.  In a perfect world, it would stay put on the bottom left monitor, every time, without fail and without re-logging... but we're not there yet, at least while using Surround.

However, my use-case just got more complicated... I just upgraded to 32" monitors with a much higher resolution.  It made the taskbar icons and text toooo tiny.  I have tried combinations of Windows scaling and Start11 Taskbar Enhance ON settings, but neither work properly now.  If I use windows scaling to, say, 150%, it stretches the Taskbar the extra 50% too!...lol so it stretches out into the middle of the middle monitor!  If I use Start11 Enhance options only, it kinda works, but the Tray Icons & Text are still tiny.

The Start11 Taskbar Align Left Experimental feature is glitched bad, and does not work on my machine.  Can't even see/use the taskbar, and it bounces around my screen!?

I just want my Taskbar down low, and left monitor only, with the ability to scale the icons, text, and tray icons, date/time text larger.

WinVer: Win 11 Pro, v25H2 (OS Build 26200.7309)

Nvidia Driver Version (ASUS RTX 5090 Astral OC):  591.44 DCH

Start11 Ver: 2.56

Thank you!

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1,119 views 12 replies
Reply #1 from Stardock Forums Top

Hello,
I have forwarded your problem/question to Stardock Support Team for their assistance. Please keep an eye on this thread for any updates. We appreciate your feedback and patience. Thank you.

Basj,
Stardock Community Assistant

Reply #2 from Stardock Forums Top


I just want my Taskbar down low, and left monitor only, with the ability to scale the icons, text, and tray icons, date/time text larger.

But you are using a 3rd party app (NVidia surround) that fundamentally changes how your monitors and taskbar render. 

If surround it not being used, does Start11 function as expected?  I am not saying we wont look into it with it running, I just need to establish a basline. 

Sean Drohan
Stardock Product Lifecycle Manager

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Reply #3 from Stardock Forums Top

Quoting sdRohan, reply 2

But you are using a 3rd party app (NVidia surround) that fundamentally changes how your monitors and taskbar render. 

As an inherent function of the Nvidia Drivers, yes.

Quoting sdRohan, reply 2

If surround is not being used, does Start11 function as expected? 

With Surround off, yes, Start11 functions as expected.  However, used in concert with Windows scaling, as Start11 options do not seem to affect the tray icons or date/time text size.

Cheers

Reply #4 from Stardock Forums Top

Quoting Deafmetal1, reply 3

As an inherent function of the Nvidia Drivers, yes.

Your drivers would function perfectly well without Surround. 

Sean Drohan
Stardock Product Lifecycle Manager

 

 

Reply #5 from Stardock Forums Top

I'm not here to pick a fight, I love your products and have been using them for many years.  However, I disagree with assessment of the utility of official driver-level Surround and how games utilize it with best function of fullscreen resources.  I believe there is a use-case there/here that would merit the effort if the driver or Windows API supports it.  If Stardock officially doesn't think so, then so be it.  Us triple-screeners are seeking an easier method to fully utilize them.  Thank you

Reply #6 from Stardock Forums Top

Quoting Deafmetal1, reply 5

I'm not here to pick a fight, I love your products and have been using them for many years.  However, I disagree with assessment of the utility of official driver-level Surround and how games utilize it with best function of fullscreen resources.  I believe there is a use-case there/here that would merit the effort if the driver or Windows API supports it.  If Stardock officially doesn't think so, then so be it.  Us triple-screeners are seeking an easier method to fully utilize them.  Thank you

There was no offence given or perceived - I was just pointing out that if surround was not enabled, your drivers would work perfectly well. 

When NVIDIA Surround is enabled on a triple-monitor setup, the GPU driver creates a single large “combined” display internally. Windows now sees one wide display instead of three separate ones. That changes how Windows and the driver determine:

  • Where the taskbar should be placed

  • Where the primary screen is

  • How display IDs are enumerated

In normal multi-monitor, Windows uses its own display ordering to decide where the taskbar appears. With Surround that breaks because NVIDIA overrides that and treats all three as one spanned display, and Windows no longer has the usual “monitor 1 / monitor 2 / monitor 3” context.

This results in the common symptoms people report:

-Taskbar appears on the left monitor instead of center
-Taskbar spans the entire joined display
-Start menu opens on a different physical monitor than expected
-Behavior changes after driver updates or reboots

That all said, the lead developer has been made aware of your concerns and we will look into it.

Thanks for the feedback.

Sean Drohan
Stardock Product Lifecycle Manager

Reply #7 from Stardock Forums Top

I just saw this.  I too have the issue.  I noted that for me, staying in the 575 series worked as expected.  With Surround the taskbar stayed in the middle screen correctly.  Any version past that it stretches across the three screens with everything way far left.  It's a giant mouse movement over there.  :o

I have tried updating the Nvidia driver and each time the stretching happens so I went back to 575 and the taskbar went back to the middle screen.  But now I must upgrade and I'm stuck with the taskbar stretched out.

You are correct that it creates one big monitor as presented to Windows, which is the design intent of Surround.  My supposition is some change in Nvidia's code now requires some update in Start 11 to stay on the middle screen

Reply #8 from Stardock Forums Top

Quoting jonnyabu1, reply 7

I just saw this.  I too have the issue.  I noted that for me, staying in the 575 series worked as expected.  With Surround the taskbar stayed in the middle screen correctly.  Any version past that it stretches across the three screens with everything way far left.  It's a giant mouse movement over there.  :O

I have tried updating the Nvidia driver and each time the stretching happens so I went back to 575 and the taskbar went back to the middle screen.  But now I must upgrade and I'm stuck with the taskbar stretched out.

You are correct that it creates one big monitor as presented to Windows, which is the design intent of Surround.  My supposition is some change in Nvidia's code now requires some update in Start 11 to stay on the middle screen

 

Hello,
Sorry to hear you are having issues. I have forwarded your problem/question to Stardock Support Team for their assistance. Please keep an eye on this thread for any updates. We appreciate your feedback and patience. Thank you.

Basj,
Stardock Community Assistant

Reply #9 from Stardock Forums Top

There is just no way we could reproduce your setup to test with but I will pass it along. 

Sean Drohan
Product Lifecycle Manager

Reply #10 from Stardock Forums Top

Is there any type of log or setting file or something that would be helpful if you had it to look at? 

My setup is basically just three monitors, with an NVidia GPU driving those.  I set up Surround, which makes all three monitors appear to Windows as one monitor instead of three separate ones.  I've had that for many years going back to Windows 7 and in that type of setup the taskbar always went on the middle screen, though obviously the whole time I wasn't using Start11, not until going to Windows 11.  But up until recent NVidia drivers Start11 also did that.  So it seems logical NVidia did something in their drivers that changed that logic in some way, which would require some update.

If there's something I can provide for anyone to see let me know

Reply #11 from Stardock Forums Top

Well, let me say this is probably a false alarm and I'm sorry.  I was thrown off by things working upon reverting NVidia drivers it seems. 

I was having an issue opening the NVidia control panel as I wanted to test turning off and back on Surround.  That would not open.  So then I removed NVidia drivers and installed them again as a clean install, and upon doing so the taskbar was back on the middle screen.  Apparently there was corruption after an upgrade or something, and starting fresh returned it to the proper state.  :/

Reply #12 from Stardock Forums Top

Great, glad to hear that. Thank you for reporting back. It most probably very helpful for other user which at the same situation as you did. Appreciate your input.

Thank you,

Basj,
Stardock Community Assistant