How to run xrandr commands at startup in Ubuntu

Question

How can I run the following xrandrcommand on startup?

xrandr

cvt 1368 768 
xrandr --newmode "1368x768_60.00"   85.25  1368 1440 1576 1784  768 771 781 798 -hsync +vsync
xrandr --addmode VGA1 1368x768_60.00
xrandr --output VGA1 --mode 1368x768_60.00 

Answer 1

Adding complicated commands to Startup Applications

In General, you can add commands to run on start up (log in) by choosing: Dash > Startup Applications > Add. In this case, you have a complicated command to run.

There are two options to do that:

1. write a separate script:

   #!/bin/bash
   
   cvt 1368 768 
   # xrandr only works in X11 sessions, not Wayland
   [ "$XDG_SESSION_TYPE" = x11 ] || exit 0
   xrandr --newmode "1368x768_60.00"   85.25  1368 1440 1576 1784  768 771 781 798 -hsync +vsync
   xrandr --addmode VGA1 1368x768_60.00
   xrandr --output VGA1 --mode 1368x768_60.00
   

   Copy the script into an empty file, save it as set_monitor.sh and add the following command to startup applications as described above.

   /bin/bash /path/to/set_monitor.sh
   

2. Chain the commands to one (very long) command:

    /bin/bash -c "cvt 1368 768&&xrandr --newmode "1368x768_60.00"   85.25  1368 1440 1576 1784  768 771 781 798 -hsync +vsync&&xrandr --addmode VGA1 1368x768_60.00&&xrandr --output VGA1 --mode 1368x768_60.00"
   

   In this case, using && between the commands will make each command run as soon (and if) the previous one is run succesfully, just like they are on separate lines.

   Then add the command to Startup Applications, as described above.

Important note: adding xrandr commands to Startup Applications

Adding xrandr commands to startup can be tricky; sometimes they break if they are run too early, before the desktop is fully loaded. Therefore you might (probably) need to add a little break into the command to (either) run the script or the command, like (in the last case):

/bin/bash -c "sleep 15&&cvt 1368 768&&xrandr --newmode "1368x768_60.00"   85.25  1368 1440 1576 1784  768 771 781 798 -hsync +vsync&&xrandr --addmode VGA1 1368x768_60.00&&xrandr --output VGA1 --mode 1368x768_60.00"

You might need to play a little with the sleep 15to find the optimal time.

Note

I left out the first line:

xrandr

since it does nothin but display some information on your screen setup :)

Answer 2

According to this at the Now automate it on login section, I have made my own script 45custom_xrandr-settings and placed it into /etc/X11/Xsession.d/. It works fine for me under Ubuntu 14.04 LTS. You could place the code below after the case command described in that section.

PRI_OUTPUT="DVI-0";
# Make and force resolution
myNewMode=$(cvt 1366 768 60 | grep -oP 'Modeline\K.*') &&                           #grep evrything after 'Modline'
myNewModeName=\"$(echo $myNewMode | grep -oP '"\K[^"\047]+(?=["\047])' )\" &&       #grep everything inside quotes
xrandr --newmode $myNewMode;
sleep 15;       
xrandr --addmode $PRI_OUTPUT $myNewModeName;

I believe that the above is what you are looking for. You can see the available outputs simply by running the xrandr command. The outputs may be VGA, VGA-0, DVI-0, TMDS-1 or DisplayPort-0.

Here is the complete script that I made.

# To configure xrandr automatically during the first login, 
# save this script to your computer as /etc/X11/Xsession.d/45custom_xrandr-settings: 

# If an external monitor is connected, place it with xrandr
# External output may be "VGA" or "VGA-0" or "DVI-0" or "TMDS-1"

# More info at http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Xorg_RandR_1.2


PRI_OUTPUT="DVI-0";
SEC_OUTPUT="DisplayPort-0";
SEC_LOCATION="left";    # SEC_LOCATION may be one of: left, right, above, or below

case "$SEC_LOCATION" in
       left|LEFT)
               SEC_LOCATION="--left-of $PRI_OUTPUT"
               ;;
       right|RIGHT)
               SEC_LOCATION="--right-of $PRI_OUTPUT"
               ;;
       top|TOP|above|ABOVE)
               SEC_LOCATION="--above $PRI_OUTPUT"
               ;;
       bottom|BOTTOM|below|BELOW)
               SEC_LOCATION="--below $PRI_OUTPUT"
               ;;
       *)
               SEC_LOCATION="--left-of $PRI_OUTPUT"
               ;;
esac

# Make and force resolution
myNewMode=$(cvt 1366 768 60 | grep -oP 'Modeline\K.*') &&                           #grep evrything after 'Modline'
myNewModeName=\"$(echo $myNewMode | grep -oP '"\K[^"\047]+(?=["\047])' )\" &&       #grep everything inside quotes
xrandr --newmode $myNewMode;
sleep 15;       
xrandr --addmode $PRI_OUTPUT $myNewModeName;


# Activate secondary out (display port)
xrandr | grep $SEC_OUTPUT | grep " connected "
if [ $? -eq 0 ]; then
#   xrandr --output $SEC_OUTPUT --auto $SEC_LOCATION
    xrandr --output $PRI_OUTPUT --mode $myNewModeName --output $SEC_OUTPUT --auto $SEC_LOCATION
else
    xrandr --output $PRI_OUTPUT --mode $myNewModeName --output $SEC_OUTPUT --off
fi

Answer 3

Create the file ~/.xprofile and put your lines in it. It is ran at the beginning of the X user session.

Answer 4

I was not able to get the script in /etc/x11/xsession.d to execute, however I used the method described to add the script to startup applications. I also added a sleep 15 line to the script just in case.

I used an xrandr command inside a text file in a hidden directory.