16-inch MacBook Pro on macOS Catalina 10.15.5 - Closed Lid/Clamshell mode issue

[rogerwilco]

Hi everyone,

I have been consistently having this issue and I will describe it below:

• I have a MacBook Pro 16-inch, connected to a Dell D6000 dock through the USB-C cable.
• There is a Displayport cable that is going from the D6000 dock to my monitor, an LG 34-inch 34UMCC monitor.
• When the laptop is in clamshell mode and connected to the dock, I can see things on my monitor and the driver is working correctly.
• However, if I reopen the lid, extended display doesn't work. The laptop screen is black and the LG monitor is frozen. Moving the mouse does nothing, press keys on the keyboard does nothing. The computer just freezes and I have to do a hard reset. Every single time. It is very consistent in this regard.
• I have seen this happening consistently in macOS Catalina version 10.15.5 and the latest DisplayLink Driver, version 5.2.4 .
• The only workaround I have found to work is to disable "Automatic Graphics Switching" in the Energy Saver, System Preferences pane. In other words, if "Automatic Graphics Switching" is enabled, the issue persists. If it is turned off, the issue goes away. So, I think there is an issue within macOS Catalina or the DisplayLink driver that isn't allowing communication between the 2 GPUs leading to a frozen system. That is just my thoughts.

Here are the specifications of my machine and the DisplayLink Driver:

• 16-inch MacBook Pro (1 TB storage, 16 GB RAM, Core i9 CPU)
• macOS Catalina 10.15.5
• DisplayLink Driver version 5.2.4

Let me know how I can help!

[ab0mbs]

I'm having the same issue with a 15-inch 2019 MacBook Pro, also connected to a Dell D6000 dock. macOS is on 10.15.5, and the DisplayLink driver is 5.2.4. Disabling the Automatic Graphics switching also appeared to solve the problem for me.

[JakubDabrowski]

Hello,

Thank you for your feedback.

We are aware of some clamshell mode issues and we are still investigating and looking for solutions to deal with the problems.

Disabling the automatic GPU switching is one of the workarounds that allows to boost the clamshell mode performance.

Thank you for your informing us about it with such detailed description.

Best regards,
Jakub

[giulianoseguro]

Originally Posted by ab0mbs

I'm having the same issue with a 15-inch 2019 MacBook Pro, also connected to a Dell D6000 dock. macOS is on 10.15.5, and the DisplayLink driver is 5.2.4. Disabling the Automatic Graphics switching also appeared to solve the problem for me.

I'm facing the same issue and disabling the automatic graphics switching unfortunately did not work for me. @JakubDabrowski, is there another workaround or more importantly an ETA for the fix?

[OldLnyx3]

Clamshell mode does not work for me. The built-in display stays active no matter what. Additionally, this means that 144hz monitors using DisplayPort will render at 60hz.

When in clamshell mode the machine periodically tries to sleep, and then wakes up again. Very annoying.

None of the fixes mentioned work.

macOS 10.15.4
MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2018)
5.2.4 drivers

[tvs]

I am also having issues with clamshell mode on an 13 inch MBP 2019/4-Port with Dell D6000 attached (one at work, one at home).

Running Catalina 10.15.5 and DisplayLink Manager 1.0.0. The device only has one built in graphics adapter (Intel Iris Plus Graphics 655 1536 MB)

When entering clamshell mode, the system automatically asks for a login, then after login periodically tries to sleep and wakes up on mouse movement. So the screen gets dark sometimes (at least once per minute) and comes back after 3-10 seconds.

Also, the 27 inch display (ASUS PB287QV) which is connected via DisplayPort is an "Unknown Display" whereas in "About this Mac > Displays" it shows with correct name but 41 inch size. So maybe there are handshake issues as well?

[tvs]

I might have solved this issue for me:

1. Reinstalled the DisplayLink Manager 1.0.0 first.
2. Then reinstalled the DisplayLink USB graphics driver 5.2.4
3. Restarted

The screen works just fine without interruptions.
The ASUS is now recognized as 27 inch.

[KatarzynaCzaja]

Originally Posted by tvs

I might have solved this issue for me:

1. Reinstalled the DisplayLink Manager 1.0.0 first.
2. Then reinstalled the DisplayLink USB graphics driver 5.2.4
3. Restarted

The screen works just fine without interruptions.
The ASUS is now recognized as 27 inch.

Hello,

Please keep in mind that our DisplayLink Manager App does not support Clamshell Mode at this time. We are actively working on including this functionality to the App but currently it only works with classic drivers and not the application. We do not have any dates set for this functionality to be released yet.

Best regards,
Katarzyna

[dhawaljoh]

Originally Posted by KatarzynaKowalczyk

Hello,

Please keep in mind that our DisplayLink Manager App does not support Clamshell Mode at this time. We are actively working on including this functionality to the App but currently it only works with classic drivers and not the application. We do not have any dates set for this functionality to be released yet.

Best regards,
Katarzyna

Any way to circumvent the issue for now?
Or atleast a rough estimate on when this might be resolved?

[tvs]

Originally Posted by KatarzynaKowalczyk

Hello,

Please keep in mind that our DisplayLink Manager App does not support Clamshell Mode at this time. We are actively working on including this functionality to the App but currently it only works with classic drivers and not the application. We do not have any dates set for this functionality to be released yet.

Best regards,
Katarzyna

I don't know what I did, but it works like a charm with my configuration.* All screens are supported: two displays + one MBP screen. When I close the lid, the MBP screen goes dark and the two other displays work just fine (at home + at work), without the two active screens going dark. So for me, the D6000 supports clamshell mode with your drivers. Even rotation (pivot) works. I really hope it stays this way for a long time.

Thank you for the support on this forum and continuing DisplayLink support for macos!

*Edit: Does the Application replace the driver or are they supposed to be installed both?