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enter image description here

I have two monitors and I use Ubuntu 18.04.

As you can see in the picture the alt-tab window does show in the primary monitor only.

Is it possible to show the alt-tab "Switch Windows" in both monitors?

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  • Try: (1) Open dconf-editor > org > gnome > shell > overrides and uncheck "workspace-only-on-primary" (2) If using Gnome, try Multiple Monitor Panels or Alt Tab Workspace.
    – harrymc
    Commented Feb 18, 2020 at 16:01
  • 1
    @harrymc I installed "dconf editor" and found the option, it didn't work :( | Screenshot: prnt.sc/r4px57 - I can't see the alt tab window on the other monitor yet
    – lito
    Commented Feb 19, 2020 at 16:58
  • A pity. Are these extensions useful?
    – harrymc
    Commented Feb 19, 2020 at 17:07
  • extensions were not useful. I'm using "Dash to Panel", I deactivated even after that it didn't work. I'm using the detail Ubuntu Gnome desktop.
    – lito
    Commented Feb 19, 2020 at 17:14
  • Try if the extension Coverflow Alt-Tab has a more acceptable behavior.
    – harrymc
    Commented Feb 19, 2020 at 17:28

4 Answers 4

Reset to default
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Gnome Extension: Current screen only on window switcher

Work fine in GNOME Shell 3.38.3
After using this, individual display tab are displayed in Alt + Tab

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  • 1
    This is working on Ubuntu 23.04. Extension show apps, available on screen, where mouse cursor is. Thank you!
    – Sergio Belevskij
    Commented Jun 7, 2023 at 4:37
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+100

What you are seeing is the intended behavior.

The history behind this feature:

  • First requested on 2010 in Bug 619854 - Always show Alt-tab display on the primary display ,
  • Committed then in (appSwitcher) Display on primary monitor

  • A request was done to reverse it on 2019 in Window switcher only appearing on primary display, which was refused with this message:

    No. We did those things in the past, and you will always find someone complaining that it's the wrong display and it really should be on pick-one-of-the-three-choices.

    The monitor that is really the best choice is the one the user is currently looking at. But of course that's information we don't have.

    What we agreed on as second-best choice was to show the popups on all monitors - see the discussion in this old bug report. But that behavior only got implemented for OSDs, not for the switchers (which is a much more complex task given that the popups are interactive)

    Displaying it on the focused monitor seems to confuse users so revert back to using the primary monitor as per designer's request.

The only proposed solution was to use the extension Current screen only on window switcher, described as:

Limits the windows shown on the switcher to those of the current monitor.

If this extension does not help in your work, then I'm afraid that there is no other solution.

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2

As @harrymc already said, there's no way to do that.

However, if you are using Ubuntu 18.04 for instance, there is a way to select the Primary Display from the Displays settings:

Settings → Displays → Display Arrangement → Primary Display

Select your preferred monitor out of the drop down list.

The Alt+Tab "Switch Windows" will be shown on the primary display.

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Please use AATWS (Advanced Alt-Tab Window Switcher) on Ubuntu 24.04 as this extension is supported on Gnome 45 and above.

https://extensions.gnome.org/extension/4412/advanced-alttab-window-switcher/

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