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‎.gitignore‎

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dist/
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build/
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WindowLayout/current_layout.txt
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WindowLayout/window_layouts.txt

‎LICENSE‎

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MIT License
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Copyright (c) 2026 Stefano Menci
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Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
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of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
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in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights
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to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell
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copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is
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furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:
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The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all
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copies or substantial portions of the Software.
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THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR
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IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY,
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FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE
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AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER
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LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM,
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OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE
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SOFTWARE.

‎README.md‎

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# Window Layout
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Save and restore complex Windows desktop layouts from a simple folder, with no installation beyond Windows itself.
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This project uses PowerShell plus built-in Windows APIs to:
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- Capture the current monitor-aware window arrangement
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- Restore named layouts from a text file
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- Work across different monitor numbering by matching monitors by position
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- Support multiple monitor setups such as `3 monitors`, `ultrawide`, or `laptop`
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- Support both per-window rules and cascade rules for multi-instance apps
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## Why It Is Useful
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- Windows can renumber monitors after events such as screensaver/sleep/wake, but this tool identifies monitors by position rather than number
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- Similar home and office monitor layouts can still match even when positions and sizes are close but not identical
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- Different monitor resolutions still work because window placement uses percentages instead of fixed pixel coordinates
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- Configurations can be copied from computer to computer
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## What It Looks Like
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The launcher shows layouts in the form:
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- `3 monitors - developer`: IDE large, CAD smaller
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- `3 monitors - engineer`: CAD large, IDE smaller
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- `ultrawide - developer`: IDE on the left
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- `ultrawide - engineer`: CAD on the left
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- `laptop - laptop`: mostly full-screen windows on a single monitor
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You can also apply a layout directly from an interactive terminal or from a shortcut script:
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```cmd
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WindowLayout.cmd -ApplyLayout "3 monitors - developer"
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```
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## Features
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- `No dependencies`: runs with built-in Windows PowerShell and .NET only
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- `Portable`: works from a folder such as the desktop
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- `Monitor setups`: separate physical monitor arrangements from window layouts
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- `Relative monitor matching`: matches the current monitors to a saved setup by relative position, not Windows numbering
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- `Capture workflow`: captures the current layout into `current_layout.txt`, which you can trim and copy into `window_layouts.txt`
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- `Readable config`: uses a pipe-delimited text format instead of JSON
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- `Regex titles`: supports `regex` title matching, including `|` inside regex patterns
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- `Cascade support`: capture emits both a cascade row and individual rows for multi-instance apps
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## Folder Layout
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Release zip contents:
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```text
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WindowLayout.cmd
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WindowLayout/
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WindowLayout.ps1
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readme.txt
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```
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`window_layouts.txt` is created on first run.
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`current_layout.txt` is generated only when you capture a layout.
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## Quick Start
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1. Download the release zip and extract it.
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2. Keep `WindowLayout.cmd` next to the `WindowLayout` folder.
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3. Double-click `WindowLayout.cmd`.
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4. Choose a saved layout, or capture the current layout.
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5. After capture, copy the parts you want from `current_layout.txt` into `window_layouts.txt`.
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Capture usually sees more windows than you want to keep, including helper windows and some windows that are not obvious to the user. Trim the captured file before keeping it.
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## Configuration Model
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The config separates:
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- `MonitorSetup`: the physical monitor arrangement
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- `Layout`: the app/window arrangement for that monitor setup
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Example:
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```text
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[MonitorSetup 3 monitors]
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role | x | y
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primary | 0 | 0
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upper-left | -1600 | 1250
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lower-left | -1600 | 2160
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[MonitorSetup ultrawide]
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role | x | y
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primary | 0 | 0
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left | -1600 | 1250
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[MonitorSetup laptop]
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role | x | y
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primary | 0 | 0
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[Layout developer]
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monitorSetup | 3 monitors
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processName | title | match | x | y | w | h | monitorRole | cascade
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chrome.exe | Main | contains | 20 | 20 | 60 | 70 | primary | no
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chrome.exe | Personal | contains | 0 | 0 | 30 | 100 | lower-left | no
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ms-teams.exe| | contains | 45 | 0 | 55 | 100 | upper-left | no
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```
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That shows the main idea:
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- monitor setups describe the physical arrangement
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- Layouts describe where apps go inside that setup
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- A row with a title targets a specific window pattern
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- A row with an empty title can target any window from that process
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Excel example:
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```text
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[Layout engineer]
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monitorSetup | 3 monitors
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processName | title | match | x | y | w | h | monitorRole | cascade
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excel.exe | Visual Basic | contains | 2 | 0 | 60 | 100 | primary | no
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excel.exe | - Excel$ | regex | 60 | 10 | 35 | 40 | primary | yes
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```
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That shows a useful pattern:
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- The Excel VBA editor (`Visual Basic`) is pinned on the left
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- All normal workbook windows (`- Excel$`) are handled together with `cascade = yes`
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- In regex mode, `- Excel$` means the title ends with `- Excel`; `$` marks the end of the title
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## Commands
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```cmd
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WindowLayout.cmd
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WindowLayout.cmd -ListLayouts
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WindowLayout.cmd -CaptureCurrent
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WindowLayout.cmd -ApplyLayout "3 monitors - developer"
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```
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## Build A Release Zip
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This repo includes a packaging script:
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```powershell
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.\build-release.ps1
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```
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It creates `dist\WindowLayout.zip` with the deployable files only.
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## License
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MIT. See `LICENSE`.

‎WindowLayout.cmd‎

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@echo off
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setlocal
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set "SCRIPT_DIR=%~dp0WindowLayout"
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set "SCRIPT_PATH=%SCRIPT_DIR%\WindowLayout.ps1"
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if not exist "%SCRIPT_PATH%" (
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echo Could not find "%SCRIPT_PATH%".
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echo Keep WindowLayout.cmd next to the WindowLayout folder.
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pause
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exit /b 1
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)
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powershell.exe -NoLogo -NoProfile -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File "%SCRIPT_PATH%" %*
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set "EXIT_CODE=%ERRORLEVEL%"
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if not "%EXIT_CODE%"=="0" (
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echo.
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echo Script finished with exit code %EXIT_CODE%.
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pause
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)
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exit /b %EXIT_CODE%

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