AutoCAD Tip – Dialogue Boxes Missing or Off-Screen?

by Dennis Collin

I recently had a problem with AutoCAD where my properties and layer manager dialogue were off screen and inaccessible. I could see a corner of the dialogue but not enough to pull them back to the main application and dock them to a convenient edge.

Fig 1. Inaccessible off-screen dialogues is quite a common issue!

This issue is quite common with the rise in users using multiple displays or regularly switching between different display formats, for example, when using a laptop with a projector or large screen display. Also, with limited amount of screen space, dialogue boxes can be easily moved off screen or misplaced whilst trying to get a clearer view of your model.

A good indicator of this problem is if you have entered a command or clicked an icon, expecting the usual dialogue box to appear and nothing happens, or the command is still active.

So, when this problem occurs try the following:

Hold ‘ALT’ and press ‘SPACE’

Then release

Now press the ‘M’ key

Now either hold left click on the mouse and move the cursor around OR use the keyboard arrow (cursor) keys, until the dialogue box comes back into view. This might require a degree of patience!

Fig 2. Temporarily changing the display resolution is one answer!

Alternatively, if working just on a single monitor change the resolution to a lower setting than is normal. (Make a note of your previous setting). The resolution change on a single screen should also re-centre all applications and floating dialogue boxes.

Choose keep changes and dock the properties or other offending palette back to the application’s window edge.

Reset the screen resolution back to its original settings.