After installing one or more additional monitors, go to Display Properties to enable them and configure settings such as the position. To do this, right-click the desktop and select Screen resolution from the menu. On Windows Vista the option is called Personalize, on Windows XP and earlier Properties, and you will then need to select the Display Settings option.

To enable a monitor, extend the desktop to it.

The position of the monitors in Display Properties controls how the mouse moves between monitors. In the screenshot to the right, monitor 1 is to the left of monitor 2. This means that if the mouse is on monitor 1, and you move the mouse to the right, it will move onto monitor 2. For natural mouse movement, the position of the monitors in Display Properties should match the position of the actual monitors on your desk.

To change the position of a monitor, drag its icon with the mouse to the desired position. Monitors can be arranged horizontally or stacked vertically, the only requirement is that each monitor touch at least one other monitor in a single point. To see which monitor has been assigned which number, click on Identify.

You can also select your main or primary monitor, this is the monitor which will contain the taskbar and start menu, and which will display the login screen.

Click on Advanced to change settings such as the refresh rate, color depth or monitor profile.

For CRT monitors you may need to adjust the refresh rate to get a flicker-free picture. When using multiple CRT monitors, you may get interference which shows as a line or wave moving up or down the monitor. Using different refresh rates for each monitor will usually fix the problem, if it doesn't you'll need to move the monitors further apart or put a shielding material between them.

If the resolution you want to use for a monitor isn't available in the list of display resolutions, uncheck the 'Hide modes that this monitor cannot display' option.

Select the Color Management tab to assign a color profile to the monitor. Please note that if you're using Windows Vista or earlier, color profiles can only be assigned per video card, meaning that all monitors connected to the same video card will use the same profile.