#PSTip Working with the Windows.Forms.Screen Class

When working with Windows PowerShell it can be important to know the screen configuration and resolution of the current computer monitors. The System.Windows.Forms.Screen class provides this information for every monitor attached to this computer. In order to use this class the System.Windows.Forms.dll will be loaded first. After that we can view the AllScreens property of this class:

PS> Add-Type -AssemblyName System.Windows.Forms
PS> [System.Windows.Forms.Screen]::AllScreens

BitsPerPixel : 32
Bounds       : {X=0,Y=0,Width=1920,Height=1200}
DeviceName   : \\.\DISPLAY1
Primary      : True
WorkingArea  : {X=0,Y=0,Width=1920,Height=1160}

BitsPerPixel : 32
Bounds       : {X=1920,Y=0,Width=1920,Height=1200}
DeviceName   : \\.\DISPLAY2
Primary      : False
WorkingArea  : {X=1920,Y=0,Width=1858,Height=1200}

This information can be especially handy when working with Windows Forms as it gives insight into how a desktop is configured and base the location or size of a form based on this information. Another use can be to determine where the taskbar is located.

[System.Windows.Forms.Screen]::AllScreens | ForEach-Object {
    if ($_.Bounds.Width -ne $_.WorkingArea.Width) {
        "Taskbar is placed in vertical position on $($_.DeviceName)"
    } elseif ($_.Bounds.Height -ne $_.WorkingArea.Height) {
        "Taskbar is placed in horizontal position on $($_.DeviceName)"
    } else {
        "Taskbar is not visible on $($_.DeviceName)"
    }
}

Taskbar is placed in horizontal position on \\.\DISPLAY1
Taskbar is placed in vertical position on \\.\DISPLAY2