The Situation

I dock my laptop at a desk with two external monitors connected through a USB-C hub. The laptop screen becomes redundant — it sits at a weird angle, its resolution doesn’t match the externals, and it wastes GPU cycles rendering a desktop I never look at. What I want is simple:

  1. Turn off the laptop screen.
  2. Use only the two external monitors.
  3. Close the laptop lid without the system suspending.
  4. Have all of this survive a reboot.

On macOS or Windows, this is a settings panel. On Linux, it’s a set of tools you chain together — and the answer depends on whether you’re running X11 or Wayland. This post covers both, with a focus on X11 (still the more common setup for docked workstations in 2026).

Step 0: Figure Out Your Display Server

Before touching anything, find out what display protocol your session is using:

echo $XDG_SESSION_TYPE

You’ll get one of:

OutputMeaning
x11X Window System (Xorg)
waylandWayland compositor (GNOME, KDE, Sway, etc.)
ttyConsole session (no GUI)

This matters because the tools are different. X11 uses xrandr. Wayland uses compositor-specific tools — gnome-display-settings, wlr-randr, swaymsg, or kscreen-doctor depending on your desktop environment.

If you’re unsure: most Ubuntu/Debian installs with NVIDIA GPUs default to X11. Fedora and recent Ubuntu with Intel/AMD default to Wayland.

Step 1: Install the Tools

For X11

# xrandr is usually pre-installed, but just in case
sudo apt install x11-xserver-utils

# arandr — a visual GUI for xrandr (optional but useful)
sudo apt install arandr

xrandr is the command-line tool. arandr is a drag-and-drop GUI that generates xrandr scripts — handy for positioning monitors visually.

For Wayland (GNOME)

GNOME’s built-in Settings > Displays panel handles most configuration. For scripting:

# gnome-randr is a community tool that mimics xrandr syntax on Wayland
pip install gnome-randr

# or for wlroots-based compositors (Sway, Hyprland, etc.)
sudo apt install wlr-randr

For Lid Close Behavior

Lid behavior is managed by systemd-logind, which is installed on every modern Linux distribution. No extra packages needed.

Step 2: Identify Your Monitors

X11

xrandr --listmonitors

Example output from my setup:

Monitors: 3
 0: +*eDP-1 1920/344x1080/193+0+0  eDP-1
 1: +DVI-I-3-2 1920/521x1080/293+3840+0  DVI-I-3-2
 2: +DVI-I-2-1 1920/521x1080/293+1920+0  DVI-I-2-1

Here’s what each field means:

FieldExampleMeaning
Index0:Monitor number
Flags+*+ = active, * = primary
NameeDP-1Output connector name
Resolution1920/344x1080/193Pixels / physical mm
Position+0+0X,Y offset in the virtual screen

The naming convention tells you the connector type:

PrefixConnector
eDPEmbedded DisplayPort (laptop screen)
HDMIHDMI
DPDisplayPort
DVI-IDVI (often through a hub/dock)
VGAVGA (legacy)

Your laptop screen is almost always eDP-1. This is the one you want to turn off.

For more detail, run xrandr without flags — it dumps every output, its supported resolutions, and current state:

xrandr

eDP-1 connected primary 1920x1080+0+0 (normal left inverted right x axis y axis) 344mm x 193mm
   1920x1080     60.01*+  60.01    59.97    59.96    48.00
   1680x1050     59.95    59.88
   ...
DVI-I-2-1 connected 1920x1080+1920+0 (normal left inverted right x axis y axis) 521mm x 293mm
   1920x1080     60.00*+
   ...
DVI-I-3-2 connected 1920x1080+3840+0 (normal left inverted right x axis y axis) 521mm x 293mm
   1920x1080     60.00*+
   ...

Wayland (GNOME)

gnome-randr
# or
wlr-randr

The output is similar — connector names, resolutions, positions.

Step 3: Turn Off the Laptop Screen

X11

xrandr --output eDP-1 --off

That’s it. The laptop screen goes dark immediately. Your mouse cursor and windows shift to the remaining monitors.

To bring it back:

xrandr --output eDP-1 --auto

--auto re-enables the output at its preferred resolution and places it at a default position.

Wayland (GNOME)

gnome-randr modify eDP-1 --off
# or via the Settings GUI: Settings > Displays > toggle off the laptop display

Wayland (Sway / wlroots)

swaymsg output eDP-1 disable
# or
wlr-randr --output eDP-1 --off

Step 4: Arrange Your External Monitors

With the laptop screen off, you’ll want to position the external monitors relative to each other.

Understanding the Coordinate System

Linux uses a virtual screen — a large canvas where each monitor occupies a rectangle. The --pos flag sets the top-left corner of each monitor in pixels:

(0,0)──────────(1920,0)──────────(3840,0)
  │                │                 │
  │   Monitor 1    │   Monitor 2     │
  │  1920x1080     │   1920x1080     │
  │                │                 │
(0,1080)──────(1920,1080)──────(3840,1080)

Side-by-Side Configuration

# Left monitor at position (0,0), right monitor starts where the left one ends
xrandr \
  --output DVI-I-2-1 --mode 1920x1080 --pos 0x0 --primary \
  --output DVI-I-3-2 --mode 1920x1080 --pos 1920x0 \
  --output eDP-1 --off

The --primary flag tells your desktop environment which monitor gets the panel/taskbar and where notifications appear.

Stacked (Top-Bottom) Configuration

xrandr \
  --output DVI-I-2-1 --mode 1920x1080 --pos 0x0 --primary \
  --output DVI-I-3-2 --mode 1920x1080 --pos 0x1080 \
  --output eDP-1 --off

Mirror Mode

xrandr \
  --output DVI-I-2-1 --mode 1920x1080 --pos 0x0 --primary \
  --output DVI-I-3-2 --mode 1920x1080 --same-as DVI-I-2-1 \
  --output eDP-1 --off

Using arandr (the Visual Way)

If coordinate math isn’t your thing:

arandr

This opens a GUI where you drag monitor rectangles around. When you’re happy with the layout, click Layout > Save As — it generates a shell script with the exact xrandr commands. You can then use that script for automation (see Step 7).

Step 5: Set Resolution and Refresh Rate

Sometimes your monitor supports multiple resolutions or refresh rates:

# List available modes for a specific output
xrandr --output DVI-I-2-1 --verbose

To set a specific mode:

# Set resolution
xrandr --output DVI-I-2-1 --mode 2560x1440

# Set resolution AND refresh rate
xrandr --output DVI-I-2-1 --mode 2560x1440 --rate 144

Adding a Custom Resolution

If your monitor supports a resolution that xrandr doesn’t list (common with unusual displays or KVM switches), you can add it manually:

# Generate the modeline
cvt 2560 1440 60
# Output: Modeline "2560x1440_60.00"  312.25  2560 2752 3024 3488  1440 1443 1448 1493 -hsync +vsync

# Create a new mode
xrandr --newmode "2560x1440_60" 312.25 2560 2752 3024 3488 1440 1443 1448 1493 -hsync +vsync

# Add it to the output
xrandr --addmode DVI-I-2-1 "2560x1440_60"

# Use it
xrandr --output DVI-I-2-1 --mode "2560x1440_60"

Step 6: Ignore Lid Close

By default, Linux suspends the system when you close the laptop lid. For a docked setup with external monitors, this is exactly what you don’t want.

The lid close behavior is controlled by systemd-logind. Edit its configuration:

sudo nano /etc/systemd/logind.conf

Find these lines (they may be commented out with #):

#HandleLidSwitch=suspend
#HandleLidSwitchExternalPower=suspend
#HandleLidSwitchDocked=ignore

Uncomment and set all three to ignore:

HandleLidSwitch=ignore
HandleLidSwitchExternalPower=ignore
HandleLidSwitchDocked=ignore

What each setting controls:

SettingWhen it applies
HandleLidSwitchDefault behavior (on battery)
HandleLidSwitchExternalPowerWhen plugged in to AC power
HandleLidSwitchDockedWhen an external monitor or dock is detected

Setting all three to ignore means the lid close event is completely disregarded regardless of power state or docking status.

Apply the change:

sudo systemctl restart systemd-logind

Warning: Restarting systemd-logind will kill your current graphical session on some distributions. If you’re worried about that, a reboot is the safer option.

Verify It Worked

grep -i "HandleLid" /etc/systemd/logind.conf

Expected output:

HandleLidSwitch=ignore
HandleLidSwitchExternalPower=ignore
HandleLidSwitchDocked=ignore

You can also check the runtime state:

loginctl show-session $(loginctl | grep $(whoami) | awk '{print $1}') -p HandleLidSwitch

GNOME Override

GNOME has its own lid-close handler that can override logind. If closing the lid still suspends after the logind.conf change, disable the GNOME override:

# Check current setting
gsettings get org.gnome.settings-daemon.plugins.power lid-close-suspend-with-external-monitor

# Disable it
gsettings set org.gnome.settings-daemon.plugins.power lid-close-suspend-with-external-monitor false

# On older GNOME versions, the key might be different:
gsettings set org.gnome.settings-daemon.plugins.power lid-close-ac-action 'nothing'
gsettings set org.gnome.settings-daemon.plugins.power lid-close-battery-action 'nothing'

Step 7: Make It Persistent Across Reboots

xrandr changes are session-only — they reset on reboot or logout. There are several ways to make them stick.

Option A: Autostart Script (Simplest)

Create a script with your xrandr commands:

mkdir -p ~/.config/autostart

Create the script:

cat > ~/bin/monitor-setup.sh << 'SCRIPT'
#!/bin/bash
# Wait for displays to be available (USB-C hubs can be slow)
sleep 2

# Turn off laptop screen, configure externals side by side
xrandr \
  --output DVI-I-2-1 --mode 1920x1080 --pos 0x0 --primary \
  --output DVI-I-3-2 --mode 1920x1080 --pos 1920x0 \
  --output eDP-1 --off
SCRIPT
chmod +x ~/bin/monitor-setup.sh

Create a .desktop file to run it at login:

cat > ~/.config/autostart/monitor-setup.desktop << 'EOF'
[Desktop Entry]
Type=Application
Name=Monitor Setup
Exec=/home/YOUR_USERNAME/bin/monitor-setup.sh
X-GNOME-Autostart-enabled=true
EOF

Replace YOUR_USERNAME with your actual username.

Option B: Xorg Configuration File (System-Wide)

For a more permanent, system-level configuration:

sudo nano /etc/X11/xorg.conf.d/10-monitors.conf

Section "Monitor"
    Identifier  "eDP-1"
    Option      "Ignore" "true"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
    Identifier  "DVI-I-2-1"
    Option      "Primary" "true"
    Option      "Position" "0 0"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
    Identifier  "DVI-I-3-2"
    Option      "Position" "1920 0"
EndSection

Note: The Identifier values must match the output names from xrandr. This method is more reliable than autostart scripts because it applies before the desktop environment loads, but it’s less flexible — you can’t easily toggle configurations.

Option C: udev Rule (Automatic on Dock/Undock)

If you frequently dock and undock, a udev rule can automatically apply your configuration when the external monitors connect:

sudo nano /etc/udev/rules.d/95-monitor-hotplug.rules

ACTION=="change", SUBSYSTEM=="drm", RUN+="/home/YOUR_USERNAME/bin/monitor-setup.sh"

Then reload:

sudo udevadm control --reload-rules

Caveat: udev rules run as root without a display session, so you need to set the DISPLAY and XAUTHORITY environment variables in the script:

#!/bin/bash
export DISPLAY=:0
export XAUTHORITY=/home/YOUR_USERNAME/.Xauthority

sleep 2

xrandr \
  --output DVI-I-2-1 --mode 1920x1080 --pos 0x0 --primary \
  --output DVI-I-3-2 --mode 1920x1080 --pos 1920x0 \
  --output eDP-1 --off

Option D: Wayland Persistent Configuration

On GNOME Wayland, ~/.config/monitors.xml stores your display layout. GNOME’s Settings > Displays GUI writes to this file automatically — no manual editing needed. Just arrange your monitors in the GUI and it persists.

On Sway, add to ~/.config/sway/config:

output eDP-1 disable
output DVI-I-2-1 resolution 1920x1080 position 0,0
output DVI-I-3-2 resolution 1920x1080 position 1920,0

On Hyprland, add to ~/.config/hypr/hyprland.conf:

monitor=eDP-1,disable
monitor=DVI-I-2-1,1920x1080@60,0x0,1
monitor=DVI-I-3-2,1920x1080@60,1920x0,1

Step 8: Troubleshooting

“xrandr: cannot find output eDP-1”

Your laptop panel might have a different name. Check all available outputs:

xrandr | grep " connected"

On some NVIDIA setups, the laptop screen appears as LVDS-1 or DP-0 instead of eDP-1.

External Monitors Not Detected

# Check if the kernel sees the displays
ls /sys/class/drm/

# Force a re-probe
xrandr --auto

# Check dmesg for hotplug events
dmesg | tail -20

If using a USB-C hub, try:

  • A different cable
  • Connecting directly without the hub
  • Checking if the hub requires DisplayPort Alt Mode (not all USB-C ports support it)

Screen Goes Black After xrandr Command

You accidentally turned off all outputs. The fix depends on whether you can still type:

# Blind-type this to re-enable all outputs
xrandr --auto

If the terminal is on the screen that went dark, switch to a TTY with Ctrl+Alt+F2, log in, and run:

DISPLAY=:0 xrandr --auto

NVIDIA-Specific Issues

NVIDIA’s proprietary driver uses nvidia-settings instead of (or alongside) xrandr:

# Open NVIDIA's display configuration GUI
nvidia-settings

# Or from the command line — save current config to xorg.conf
sudo nvidia-settings --save-to-x-configuration-file

On NVIDIA systems, the output names may differ (DP-0, DP-2, HDMI-0 instead of the usual eDP-1 naming). Always verify with xrandr --listmonitors.

Quick Reference

Here’s the condensed cheat sheet for the entire setup:

# 1. Check your display server
echo $XDG_SESSION_TYPE

# 2. List monitors
xrandr --listmonitors

# 3. Turn off laptop screen
xrandr --output eDP-1 --off

# 4. Arrange externals side by side
xrandr \
  --output DVI-I-2-1 --mode 1920x1080 --pos 0x0 --primary \
  --output DVI-I-3-2 --mode 1920x1080 --pos 1920x0

# 5. Ignore lid close
sudo sed -i \
  -e 's/^#*HandleLidSwitch=.*/HandleLidSwitch=ignore/' \
  -e 's/^#*HandleLidSwitchExternalPower=.*/HandleLidSwitchExternalPower=ignore/' \
  -e 's/^#*HandleLidSwitchDocked=.*/HandleLidSwitchDocked=ignore/' \
  /etc/systemd/logind.conf
sudo systemctl restart systemd-logind

# 6. Bring laptop screen back (when undocking)
xrandr --output eDP-1 --auto