Technical support with Microsoft PowerToys

The context covers two PowerToys utilities that are directly useful for multi‑PC setups: Mouse Without Borders (control multiple PCs with one keyboard/mouse and share clipboard/files) and Power Display (manage multiple monitors). Below are step‑by‑step instructions based only on that information.

1. Control laptop and desktop with Mouse Without Borders

Mouse Without Borders lets a single keyboard and mouse control up to four computers and share clipboard/files.

1.1 Prerequisites

On both the laptop and the desktop (with 2 monitors):

1. Install PowerToys (if not already installed). See Installing PowerToys.
2. Ensure both machines are powered on and connected to the same network.

1.2 Initial configuration on the first computer

Choose one machine as the “first computer” (for example, the desktop):

1. Open PowerToys.
2. In the left navigation, select Mouse Without Borders.
3. In Mouse Without Borders settings, select New Key to generate a security key.
   • A security key is displayed in the UI.
4. Note the security key and the computer name of this first computer (shown in the same settings page).

1.3 Connect the second computer

On the second machine (for example, the laptop):

1. Open PowerToys.
2. Select Mouse Without Borders in the left navigation.
3. In the connection section:
   • Enter the security key generated on the first computer.
   • Enter the name of the first computer.
4. Select Connect.

After a successful connection:

• The Mouse Without Borders settings page on the second computer shows the connected machines.
• The mouse cursor can move from one machine to the other by going beyond the edge of the screen.

1.4 Arrange the computers’ layout

To match the physical layout (desktop with two monitors and laptop on one side):

1. On either computer, open PowerToys → Mouse Without Borders.
2. In the device layout section, drag each device icon to match how the machines are arranged physically.
   • For example, place the laptop icon to the left or right of the desktop, depending on where it sits.

Now, moving the mouse off the edge of the desktop’s monitors in the direction of the laptop will switch control to the laptop, and vice versa.

1.5 Optional: Run Mouse Without Borders as a service

If control of elevated apps or the lock screen from another computer is required:

1. On each machine where this is needed, run PowerToys in administrator mode.
2. Go to Mouse Without Borders settings.
3. Turn on the Use Service toggle.

Warning:

• Running Mouse Without Borders as a service under the System account increases control over the machine but also increases security risk if someone misuses it. Use only in trusted environments.

1.6 Known limitations when sharing files/clipboard

Mouse Without Borders supports clipboard and file transfer, but with these constraints:

1. Copy/Paste between machines:
   • Works with a single file only.
   • Maximum file size is 100 MB.
2. Drag/Drop between machines:
   • Works with single file only.
   • Does not work with network files.
3. Copy/Paste and Drag/Drop do not work with folders or multiple files directly.
   • Workaround: zip the folder or multiple files into a single archive, then transfer that single file.
4. Some settings may not sync correctly between machines and may need to be manually aligned on each computer.

If the keyboard does not follow the mouse when switching machines and a full‑screen Remote Desktop or virtual machine window is active on the host:

• Enable Hide mouse at screen edge in Mouse Without Borders settings, or
• Switch focus to another window first.

If the mouse pointer is invisible on a machine with no physical mouse attached:

• Plug in an unused mouse, or
• Turn on Mouse Keys in Control Panel.

2. Manage the two desktop monitors with Power Display

Power Display is a PowerToys utility that centralizes monitor controls (brightness, contrast, volume, input source, rotation, color temperature, power state) into a single flyout using DDC/CI.

2.1 Enable Power Display

On the desktop (with 2 monitors):

1. Open PowerToys.
2. In the left navigation, select Power Display.
3. Turn on Enable Power Display.
   • The first time this is enabled, PowerToys asks for confirmation because it uses DDC/CI to talk to monitors.

Warning summary (from the module):

• Power Display reads each monitor’s DDC/CI capabilities at startup.
• On a small number of monitors with malformed capability strings, this can trigger a Windows kernel bug and cause a system crash (BSOD).
• If a crash is detected, Power Display disables itself on next launch and shows a warning bar in Settings.
• The offending monitor is added to an exclusion list so the same probe is not retried.

2.2 Open the Power Display flyout

After enabling:

1. Use the Activation shortcut (shown in Power Display settings) to open the flyout.
   • Alternatively, select Open Power Display in the Power Display settings page.
2. The flyout lists each connected monitor with the controls enabled for that monitor.

2.3 Configure Power Display settings for the two monitors

In PowerToys → Power Display settings on the desktop:

1. Activation shortcut
   • Set a convenient keyboard shortcut to open the flyout (for example, the default or any preferred combination).
2. Monitor refresh delay
   • If a monitor is not detected after hot‑plugging, increase this value (seconds to wait after display changes before refreshing monitors).
3. Max compatibility mode
   • Turn this on if one of the monitors is not detected via the standard path.
   • Toggling this triggers an immediate rescan.
4. Restore monitor brightness and color temperature when Power Display launches
   • Turn this on to reapply saved settings when Power Display starts.
5. Show system tray icon
   • Turn on to have a Power Display icon in the system tray for quick access.
6. Show profile switcher button
   • Turn on to show a profile switcher in the flyout.
7. Show identify monitors button
   • Turn on to show a button that briefly displays a number on each monitor, helping to distinguish them.
8. Profiles
   • Create named profiles that store combinations of brightness, contrast, volume, and color temperature across selected monitors.
   • Example: one profile for “Work” (lower brightness on one monitor, specific color temperature) and another for “Gaming” or “Movie”.
9. Custom VCP name mappings
   • Define custom display names for color temperature presets and input sources.
   • Can be scoped to a specific monitor or applied to all monitors.
10. Per‑monitor toggles
    • For each connected monitor, choose which controls appear in the flyout:
      • Contrast
      • Volume
      • Input source
      • Rotation
      • Color temperature
      • Power state
    • Optionally enable Hide monitor to remove a monitor from the flyout entirely.

Once configured, use the activation shortcut to quickly adjust brightness and other settings for each of the two desktop monitors.

3. Automate PowerToys configuration (optional, advanced)

For consistent configuration across both laptop and desktop, PowerToys supports configuration via Desired State Configuration (DSC).

3.1 PowerShell DSC option

PowerToys includes a Microsoft.PowerToys.Configure PowerShell DSC module that integrates with WinGet configuration files. This allows:

1. Installing and configuring PowerToys in a single WinGet configuration file.
2. Declaring desired settings for PowerToys utilities.
3. Version‑controlling PowerToys configuration.
4. Deploying consistent settings across multiple machines.
5. Integrating with existing PowerShell DSC workflows.

Prerequisites (for PowerShell DSC with PowerToys):

1. PowerShell 7.2 or higher.
2. PSDesiredStateConfiguration 2.0.7 or later.
3. WinGet v1.6.2631 or later.
4. PowerToys installed.

The Microsoft.PowerToys.Configure module is installed automatically with PowerToys:

• Per‑user installation: %USERPROFILE%\Documents\PowerShell\Modules\Microsoft.PowerToys.Configure
• Machine‑wide installation: %ProgramFiles%\WindowsPowerShell\Modules\Microsoft.PowerToys.Configure

3.2 Microsoft DSC option

An alternative is Microsoft DSC (v3), which uses resource types under Microsoft.PowerToys/ and supports YAML, JSON, or Bicep JSON configuration formats.

Key differences (high level):

• PowerShell DSC uses a single PowerToysConfigure resource; Microsoft DSC uses individual resources per module (for example, AwakeSettings).
• Microsoft DSC is cross‑platform ready, but PowerToys itself remains Windows‑only; configuration can only be applied on Windows systems where PowerToys is installed.

Both approaches can configure all PowerToys utilities, including:

• General app settings (startup, theme, updates)
• Mouse Without Borders
• Power Display
• And other utilities like Awake, FancyZones, PowerToys Run, etc.

Using DSC, the same PowerToys configuration (including Mouse Without Borders and Power Display settings) can be applied to both the laptop and desktop for a consistent experience.

References:

• Mouse Without Borders
• Power Display utility
• Configure PowerToys with PowerShell DSC
• Configure PowerToys with Desired State Configuration
• PowerToys: Utilities to customize Windows
• General settings for PowerToys