How do I correct display scaling issues on Surface Pro 4

Anonymous
2016-02-19T16:31:28+00:00

I'm noticing display scaling issues and docking issues on the Surface Pro 4.  I'm using the docking connector and have two Dell 24" Ultrasharp U2415 monitors.  When I undock the Surface, the text is aliased very poorly on the Surface display, not crisp as it should be.  Certain elements appear fine, but my browser, Outlook 2016, and other apps have poor quality text.  A restart is required to get the text back to its normal hi-DPI quality. 

Secondly, if I start a program while undocked and dock the surface, some apps are scaled up (both text and UI elements of the window) and others are fine.

Lastly, a few times when the SP4 is docked and I return from being away for a few minutes, my external displays don't kick on.  Clicking the mouse or pressing keys on the keyboard do nothing.  Occasionally, the SP4 display will activate and my mouse/keyboard will control work.  I've tried disconnecting the dock connector, power cycling the dock, but only restarting the SP4 will correct this issue.

In general a restart is required to resolve any of these issues.  Is this the result of buggy display drivers or something else?

I've installed the latest SP4 firmware update and have the latest OS updates through Windows Update, as of this morning, February 19, 2016.

Surface | Surface Pro | Display and screen

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Anonymous
2016-04-28T16:48:01+00:00

Hello SP4_user11,

A lot of work was done in Windows 10 to support high resolution screens, such as the Surface Pro 3, Surface Pro 4, Surface Book, and third-party laptops and tablets with screen resolutions above 1080p. However, there are issues that occur when using Office apps on these devices when connecting to an external monitor with a lower resolution.

To find out more about what has been improved and what is still being worked on, please check out these articles:

The current and future improvements are dependent on having Windows 10 Creators Update installed. So if you have not yet updated, please start with that.

Best Regards

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  1. Anonymous
    2016-09-02T19:28:16+00:00

    I am still having the problem as of today.

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  2. Anonymous
    2016-07-26T02:31:17+00:00

    I don't understand the rationale to go back in time.  It never worked right from tablet mode back to Dock.

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  3. Anonymous
    2016-07-23T13:41:01+00:00

    Hi SP4_user11,

    In order to address this issue, try this other solution besides installing updates to correct the screen resolution of your device - is to restore from a system restore point. Here are the steps:

    Step 1: Press and hold (or right-click) Start , and select Control Panel.
    Step 2: In the search box in the upper-right corner, enter recovery.
    Step 3: Select Recovery > Open System Restore > Next.
    Step 4: Choose the restore point related to the problematic app, driver, or update and select Next > Finish.

    Note: This option takes your Surface back to an earlier point in time, called a system restore point. Restore points are generated when you install a new app, driver, or Windows update and when you create a restore point manually. Restoring won’t affect your personal files, but it will remove apps, drivers, and updates installed after the restore point was made.

    In case that you’re not seeing any restore points, try a reset to solve your problem. See Reset your Surface below.

    Then make sure system protection is turned on. Here’s how:

    Step 1: Press and hold (or right-click) Start , and select Control Panel.
    Step 2: In the search box in the upper-right corner, enter recovery.
    Step 3: Select Recovery > Configure System Restore > Configure.
    Step 4: Make sure Turn on system protection is selected.

    Regards, 

    Joseph_A

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  4. Anonymous
    2016-07-23T00:11:02+00:00

    I unplugged my Dock for a couple minutes, re-plugged, and then ran the Dock Updater to update my firmware.  I see no improvement in scaling when I go from Tablet back to keyboard/docked to larger display.  My icons are very large and I have to log out or restart.  So Dock firmware update did not fix that scaling issue.

    On thought is I did not try to power cycle (which I gather means unplug) my dock AGAIN after the firmware update.  I may try that, not hopeful.  I don't think I saw that it is supposed to be necessary.

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