Remote Sessions: View Modes, Panning and Multiple Monitors

Where the controls are

The view controls sit in the toolbar at the top of every remote session, in both the standard remote viewer and the VNC viewer. From left to right:

• Fit | Fill | Stretch | 1:1: the view mode
• Numbered monitor boxes and All: shown only when the device has more than one monitor
• Full screen: hides the browser and gives the session your whole display

The same options are also listed under the View menu.

View modes

Mode	What you see	Use it when
Fit	The whole remote screen, shrunk to fit your window. Bars appear at the sides if the shapes differ.	You want everything visible at once
Fill	The remote screen at the full height of your window. The top and the taskbar are always in view and the shape is kept.	You want the largest undistorted picture
Stretch	The remote screen made exactly the size of your window. No bars, nothing off screen. The picture is widened or narrowed if the shapes differ.	You want the window covered edge to edge
1:1	One remote pixel for each pixel on your display. Nothing is scaled.	You need pixel-exact detail

A remote screen and your window are often different shapes. Fit and Fill keep the remote shape, so you see bars beside the picture when the remote screen is narrower than your window. Stretch removes the bars by changing the shape.

In Fill, a remote screen that is wider than your window (an ultrawide monitor, for example) extends past the left and right edges. In 1:1 it can extend past any edge. Nothing is cut off: you reach it by panning.

Panning

When the remote screen is larger than your window, move the pointer close to an edge of the session. The view glides in that direction and stops when it reaches the end of the remote screen. Move the pointer away from the edge to stop sooner.

• Move to the left or right edge to see the rest of a wide screen.
• In All view, move to an edge to cross to the monitor on that side, including one above or below.
• There are no scrollbars, and you never have to drag the picture.

Zooming in (View → Zoom) works the same way: the zoomed picture pans at the edges.

Match My Screen

A large remote monitor (a 34-inch ultrawide, or a 4K screen) has to be shrunk a long way to fit on a laptop, and the text becomes too small to read. View → Match My Screen fixes this: for the length of the session, the remote monitor is switched to the resolution that best fits your viewer window, so you see the whole screen at a readable size with nothing to pan.

• The remote monitor goes back to its own resolution when you turn the option off, switch it to another monitor, or end the session. If the session ends unexpectedly, it goes back the next time a session starts on that device, or when the user signs out.
• Going full screen or resizing your window fits the remote screen again.
• The option is remembered in your browser and used again for your next session.
• The remote user sees their screen at the lower resolution while the option is on.
• It works on one monitor at a time, not in All view.
• It cannot change a screen that belongs to a Remote Desktop (RDP) session. The size of that screen is set by the Remote Desktop client; change it there, or use Fit with View → Zoom.
• This needs Windows agent 3.79.5 or later on the device; agents update automatically.

When the computer is also open in Remote Desktop

Some computers are used through Windows Remote Desktop and watched through Plenix at the same time. When someone minimises the Remote Desktop window connected to that computer, Windows stops drawing its desktop.

• Plenix notices within about a second and shows the computer's physical screen instead, which is usually the Windows sign-in screen because nobody is signed in there. A notice in the toolbar says PHYSICAL SCREEN and explains why.
• When the Remote Desktop window is restored, the picture switches back to the desktop by itself and the notice goes away.
• If the computer has no separate physical screen to show, the notice says PAUSED and the picture returns when Remote Desktop is restored.

To keep working on the desktop itself, choose View → Move desktop to physical screen. The signed-in desktop moves onto the computer's own monitor, Remote Desktop on that computer is disconnected, and Plenix keeps showing the desktop. The viewer asks before it does this; it never happens on its own. The desktop is left unlocked on that monitor, so lock it (Remote → Lock Workstation) when you are done if people can see the screen. This needs Windows agent 3.79.6 or later.

Switching monitors

On a device with two or more monitors, the toolbar shows a small map of them, drawn in the same arrangement as on the desk and numbered.

1. Click a numbered box to show only that monitor.
2. Click All to show the whole desktop.

All opens in Fill, sized so the tallest monitor fills your window, and starts on the device's main monitor with its taskbar in view. Pan with the pointer to reach the others, in whichever direction they are arranged: side by side, stacked, or a mix of portrait and landscape. When you go back to a single monitor, the view mode you had before is restored.

Choose Fit while in All to see every monitor at once, at a smaller size.

Full screen

Click the full-screen button in the toolbar, or choose View → Full Screen. The toolbar hides itself; move the pointer to the top of the screen to bring it back. Press Esc or click the button again to leave full screen.

For the largest possible picture, use full screen together with Fill or Stretch.

Watching without controlling

When a session is view-only or input is locked, the remote user's pointer is shown on top of the picture so you can follow what they are doing. This needs Windows agent 3.74.0 or later on the device; agents update automatically.

If a session does not connect

The viewer tries a second time by itself when the first attempt produces no picture, which takes up to 40 seconds in total. If you then see Connection timed out after two attempts, check that the device is online in RMM → Devices and click Retry. This recovery needs Windows agent 3.75.0 or later on the device.

Common issues

Problem	Fix
Bars at the sides of the picture	Switch to Stretch, or use full screen
The picture looks too wide or too narrow	You are in Stretch; switch to Fill
The taskbar is out of view	Switch to Fit or Fill. In 1:1 or when zoomed in, move the pointer to the bottom edge
No monitor boxes in the toolbar	The device reports a single monitor
Text looks soft	Use 1:1, or raise the quality under View → Quality
Text is too small on a big remote monitor	Turn on View → Match My Screen
Match My Screen says the screen belongs to a Remote Desktop session	Change the size in the Remote Desktop client, or use Fit and View → Zoom
The picture shows the Windows sign-in screen and says PHYSICAL SCREEN	Remote Desktop on that computer is minimised. Restore it, or use View → Move desktop to physical screen

Where to go next

• How to Remote Control a Managed Device