Just recently (on May 16, 2022) Apple released an update to the latest macOS version, macOS Monterey. Monterey 12.4 brings several changes: Apple Podcasts received a new feature, Safari’s performance was improved, and the OS itself received quite a few security updates, too. Unfortunately, no one is flawless, not even Apple. The update introduced a rather annoying bug bundled with all the enhancements. Specifically, the users reported that their second display is not working in Monterey 12.4. In this article, we will explain the circumstances under which the error occurs, and explain how to fix it.
Why is my second display not working in Monterey 12.4?
It is likely that the OS fails to initialize the display somehow. But really, no one actually knows. Well, there’s an exception to this – the software development team at Apple is undoubtedly looking at it right now, trying to understand the issue and fix it as quickly as possible.
When does the issue occur?
The issue of second monitor not working in Monterey 12.4 manifests in two scenarios. First, it is possible that the monitor will show nothing after you boot up your Mac. The monitor can also stop working after you put your Mac to sleep, and then wake it up. As you can see, the bug is quite serious – after all, both these situations are fairly common.
Is there a way to fix the issue?
Regrettably, there is no permanent solution to this problem. However, you can get your second monitor working fairly easily.
- Press the Apple icon in the upper-left corner of the menu bar.
- Click System Preferences, then click Displays.
- Two windows will appear (more if you have more than two displays). Find which window corresponds to the monitor that doesn’t work.
- In that window, change the Refresh Rate setting. Simply remember the original value, then change it to anything else. Once you’ve changed it, change it back.
This should make the monitor work again! Unfortunately, you will have to do it every time the display stops working, until Apple releases an actual fix.