Virtual displays#
Virtual displays are software displays that Jump Desktop Connect creates on the host for a session, used in place of the monitors plugged into the host. You can match them to the device you connect from, so text is sharp and nothing is scaled or letterboxed, or assign them an exact size.
- Match your screens exactly. Each local screen gets one remote display with the same size, sharpness, and refresh rate. A desktop tower used from a MacBook behaves as if it were built for the MacBook's screen.
- Set exact resolutions and refresh rates. Choose the size, scale, and refresh rate of each display, up to 16384 pixels per side and 500 Hz, regardless of the monitors attached to the host. Examples include an ultra-wide, 5K, or 6K layout above 60 Hz.
- Skip the monitor. The host does not require a monitor or an HDMI emulator (dummy plug). A rack-mounted workstation with no monitors attached still provides a full desktop, and its virtual displays can persist after you disconnect.
- Stream only what you see. A virtual display sized to your window is streamed at your window's size, so the host does not send a full 4K monitor image to a laptop screen.
Why use virtual displays#
Without virtual displays, a session shows the host's own monitors (Host Displays), and your screen must adapt to them. With virtual displays, the host adapts to your screen instead.
| Host Displays | Virtual displays | |
|---|---|---|
| Resolution | The closest size the host's monitors support. | Exactly the size you ask for, up to 16384 pixels per side. |
| Refresh rate | Each display uses its monitor's refresh rate. The session's frame rate is not limited to that rate. | Your screen's refresh rate, or any rate you set up to 500 Hz. |
| Fit in your window | Scaled down or letterboxed when the sizes differ. | Matched virtual displays fit your window and follow it when you resize. Fixed virtual displays keep the size you set. |
| Pixels streamed | The monitor's full resolution, even when your window is smaller. | With matched virtual displays, only your window's size, which reduces the pixels the host encodes and sends. Fixed virtual displays send the size you set. |
| Number of displays | The monitors attached to the host. | Up to 4, regardless of attached monitors. See Plans. |
| Monitor needed | The host's monitors. A Mac with no monitor attached needs an HDMI emulator (dummy plug). | No monitor or HDMI emulator. |
Use Host Displays when virtual displays are not available, for example over a screen sharing connection or at a Mac's login window. See Requirements.
For settings that produce the smoothest, sharpest sessions, see Get the best performance.
How it works#
When you connect with Fluid, Jump Desktop requests the displays you want from the host. Connect creates them on the host at the requested size, and they appear in the host's display settings like physical monitors. Apps and windows on the host use them as they would any monitor.
While virtual displays are on, the session uses only virtual displays. You cannot combine them with the host's own monitors, and the monitors connected to the host, if any, have no effect.
Choose a setup#
| Setup | What you get | Where to set it |
|---|---|---|
| Single Virtual Display | One virtual display that fits your screen or window. | Windows and Mac, iPhone, iPad, and Android |
| Matched Virtual Displays | One virtual display per local screen, each matching that screen. Windows and Mac only. | Windows and Mac |
| Fixed virtual displays | Displays with the exact resolution, scale, and refresh rate you choose, whatever screen you connect from. | Windows and Mac |
| Team fixed displays | Displays an administrator configures for team computers. They replace the displays users choose. | Set virtual displays for a team |
| Host Displays | The host's own monitors, with no virtual displays. | Switch and arrange remote displays |
Requirements#
| Requirement | |
|---|---|
| Connection | Fluid. Screen sharing connections, including Ask to Share Screen, do not use virtual displays. |
| Connect | Jump Desktop Connect 10 or later on the host. |
| Windows host | Windows 10 (version 1809 or later), Windows 11, or Windows Server, on x64. Windows on ARM is not supported. |
| Mac host | Apple silicon or Intel. Intel Macs support up to 3 virtual displays. Not available at the login window or in a session switched to the background with fast user switching. |
| Linux host Alpha | Only in the desktop session Connect starts when no one is signed in. See When no one is signed in. |
| Jump Desktop | Windows, macOS, iPhone, iPad, and Android Beta apps. iPhone, iPad, and Android use one virtual display. In a web browser, use Virtual Display in the settings drawer. |
A team administrator can turn off virtual displays for team computers. See Set virtual displays for a team.
Plans#
| Plan | Virtual displays |
|---|---|
| Free and Jump Desktop for Teams Pro | 1 virtual display |
| Jump Desktop for Teams Enterprise | Up to 4 virtual displays |
In Jump Desktop for Windows, showing each remote display in its own window requires the Jump Desktop for Teams Pro or Enterprise plan; on macOS, it is included. For current plans, see plans and pricing.
High refresh rates#
A virtual display matching your screen also matches its refresh rate. On a 120 Hz or 144 Hz screen, the remote display refreshes at the same rate, even if the host's own monitor is 60 Hz or the host has no monitor. With fixed virtual displays, you can set a rate from 24 Hz to 240 Hz, or a custom rate up to 500 Hz. Fluid in version 10 streams at up to 480 Hz; to cap the stream rate, set Frame Rate. See Get the best performance.
One connection at a time#
On a Windows or Mac host, only one connection at a time can create virtual displays:
- The first connection to configure virtual displays controls them.
- A user who connects while that session is open sees the displays already in use and cannot change them. Jump Desktop shows no message.
- When the first connection ends, the virtual display settings of the next connection apply.
On a Linux host Alpha, each desktop session Connect starts has its own virtual displays, so this limit does not apply.
Keep virtual displays after you disconnect#
By default, virtual displays are removed when you disconnect. With Keep After Disconnect on, they persist on the host until the next connection. You turn on this setting in Jump Desktop for Windows or Mac. See Keep virtual displays after you disconnect.
Kept virtual displays are removed when:
- Someone uses the keyboard or mouse at the host while no one is connected. The host then reverts to its own displays.
- The host or Connect restarts.
On the next connection by any user, the kept displays are reused and adjusted to the new connection's settings.
To require or block persistent virtual displays, a team administrator uses the Persistent setting. See Set virtual displays for a team.
Limitations#
- A session can have up to 4 virtual displays.
- Each virtual display can be up to 16384 pixels wide or tall.
- Jump Desktop shows no message when virtual displays cannot be created, for example at the Mac login window or while another connection controls them.