Windows 10: HP Elitebook 840 G5 Can Only Use One Monitor at a Time via Docking Station

I know this topic comes up often but I've read through them all and this specific issue does not appear on this forum anywhere, it pertains to the computer model in the title. For the record, this issue is for an employer-issued PC and I would never spend my money on any HP products. I was reading an email on my laptop, which is connected to a docking station, which is connected to two monitors. Without me touching anything, the second monitor suddenly shut off. I checked the display settings:






*** So it says it cannot detect the display anymore. Then I tried to re-add it as a device, here's the Devices screen:





And there are my two monitors, already there... So my issue is that I can't add the monitor as a device because the Devices screen says it is already connected, but I can't get the monitor to work because the Display Settings screen says the monitor is not there.


Another strange detail: when I unplug the monitor that is working, the second monitor turns back on and becomes my main screen. This leads me to believe that it is not a problem with the cable or the monitor or any of the hardware for that matter? Has anyone ever seen this odd behavior before?


Any ideas would be much appreciated.

:)

 

HP Elitebook 840 G5 Can Only Use One Monitor at a Time via Docking Station

Hi,

Thank you for writing to Microsoft Community Forums.

The issue might be due to the display driver or due to improper connection.

Windows can automatically detect one additional display. If you connect two or more monitors, you must manually designate the primary display, and apply display settings. So, when you connect it the next time, Windows will identify the primary display and
applies the settings specified for each additional display.

You can try the below steps and check:

Update the display driver and check:

Refer this article on
Update drivers in Windows 10.

You can also update the graphics driver from the
HP website for the product that you are using.

I would also suggest you to download and run the
HP Support Assistant. This will provide support for updating and managing the device firmware on the system.

Unplug the external monitors and try the below steps

1. Power off the laptop, and connect the first monitor.

2. Power on the external monitor first, and then the laptop.

3. Press Windows key + P together, and select Extend.

4. Power off the laptop, and connect the second monitor.

5. Power on the external monitors, and then the laptop.

6. Press Windows key + P together, and select Extend.

Take your time to try the suggestions and let us know the results at your earlier convenience.

Regards,

Naveen M

Microsoft Community - Moderator

 

How to disable trackpad for HP Elitebook 840 G5

As the question states, I am simply trying to disable my touchpad on my HP laptop. So I think this is very specific for the HP Elitebook 840 G5 as I have tried the following generic methods to disable the trackpad:

1. Under mouse settings, using the Synaptics tab. This tab does not exist for me. (Reference HP Notebooks with Synaptics TouchPad - How to Disable the "Double Tap to Enable or Disable TouchPad" Feature | HP® Customer Support)
   
2. Disabling the Synaptics driver. I thought this would work for sure too but I tried to disable all of the mouse drivers available under Mice and other pointing devices (Device Manager) and the trackpad still works.
   
3. Using third party software. I tried "touchpad-blocker" and even when enabled, the touchpad still works.
   
4. Double tapping the top left corner (how do i disable a touchpad on an hp elitebook 850 laptop? - HP Support Community - 5480918) This does nothing for mine.
   

I am open for other suggestions. I am really surprised that disabling the driver didn't work.

 

External monitors through both docking station and laptop ports

I recently got a new laptop through work - an HP EliteBook 840 G3. My current setup that I had been using at my desk was 3 external monitors plus my laptop screen. I had two monitors plugged in through the docking station via VGA and DisplayPort and the
third monitor I plugged into the VGA port on the laptop itself. This worked with my old laptop but with this new one it doesn't detect a monitor plugged into the laptop port when it's docked. I have tried looking through video settings with no luck. Windows
says my drivers are up to date and I've downloaded and installed the latest drivers for the docking station itself (it's the same docking station).

Would anyone have any advice for getting this setup working?