How to use the command kscreen-doctor (with examples)

The command kscreen-doctor is a utility command in KDE Plasma that can be used to change and manipulate the screen setup. It provides information about display outputs and their configurations. This article will provide examples of using the command in different use cases.

Use case 1: Show display output information

Code:

kscreen-doctor --outputs

Motivation: When setting up multiple monitors or configuring the display outputs, it is often helpful to know the information about the connected displays. Using this command with the --outputs option provides a detailed overview of the display outputs and their configurations.

Explanation: The --outputs option is used to retrieve information about the available display outputs and their configurations.

Example output:

Output: HDMI-1
  EDID: 00ffffffffffff0010acb7ff00000000
        1b1b0103e80a0f3e4749a3544a9c2520
        0f5054210800d1c0818081c0a9c0d1cce
        010101010101b300a940518e3100001e
        662156aa51001e30468f3300631e2419
        2636123058aa51001e30468f3300631e
        24262636123058aa51001e30468f3300
        631e24262636123058aa51001e30468f
        3300631e24262636123058aa51001e30
        468f3300631e24262636123058aa5100
        1e30468f3300631e24262636123058aa
        51001e30468f3300631e242626361230
        58aa51001e30468f3300631e24262636
        123058aa51001e30468f3300631e2426
        2636123058aa51001e30468f3300631e
        24262636123058aa51001e30468f3300
        631e24262636123058aaffffffffff02
        102c7673223ea202a940518e3100001e
        000000fd00174b1e510f000a20202020
        202020000000fe004d344b3330323434
        320a202020202001f001305d762457370
        287d99207a0f07031760000000000000
        0000661e56aa51001e30468f3300311e
        241996bd0c00000000001e011d007251
        d01e206e285500aa51001e30468f3300
        631e24262636123058aa51001e30468f
        3300631e24262636123058aa51001e30
        468f3300c81e023a801871382d40582c
        450096a51000001e000000ff00303932
        355354342d4c4d320a20200000fc0047
        4e5320456c656374726f6e696301db02
        0f80011d8018711c1620582c250096a5
        10000100000000000000000000000000
        00000000000000000000000000000000

Use case 2: Set the rotation of a display output

Code:

kscreen-doctor output.1.rotation.right

Motivation: Sometimes, it is necessary to change the rotation of a specific display output to align the screen in the desired orientation. This command allows you to set the rotation of a display to either left, right, normal, or inverted.

Explanation: In this example, the output.1.rotation.right command is used to set the rotation of a display output with an ID of 1 to the right. The output.1 refers to the display output with ID 1, and rotation.right sets the rotation to the right.

Example output:

Rotation of output 1 set to right.

Use case 3: Set the scale of a display output

Code:

kscreen-doctor output.HDMI-2.scale.2

Motivation: Adjusting the scale of a display output is useful when you want to increase or decrease the size of the content displayed on a particular monitor. This command allows you to set the scale of a display output to a specific value.

Explanation: In this example, the output.HDMI-2.scale.2 command is used to set the scale of a display output with an ID of HDMI-2 to 2 (200%). The output.HDMI-2 refers to the display output identified by HDMI-2, and scale.2 sets the scale value to 2.

Example output:

Scale of output HDMI-2 set to 2.

Conclusion:

The kscreen-doctor command is a versatile tool for managing screen setups in KDE Plasma. It provides information about display outputs and allows you to adjust their rotation and scale. By utilizing the different options and arguments, you can easily configure and customize your multi-monitor or display setup to suit your needs.