microsoft / microsoft/PowerToys

[Workspaces] Add per-app delay/retry before repositioning windows after launch

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#48,918 0 comments 0 reactions 0 assignees View on GitHub
Needs-Triage Product-Workspaces
Dominant language
C
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Forks
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PR merge metrics
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Description

### Description of the new feature / enhancement

I would like PowerToys Workspaces to include an optional per-application setting to delay or retry window repositioning after launching an application.

Some applications do not create their final main window immediately. They may show a splash screen first, create a temporary startup window, or restore their previous window position after launch. In these cases, Workspaces appears to move/resize the window too early, and the final application window does not end up in the saved Workspace position.

Suggested options per application:

- Delay before repositioning: X seconds
- Retry repositioning for: X seconds
- Reposition again after the main window appears
- Optional "re-apply position after launch" button or checkbox

This would make Workspaces more reliable for applications that have a slower startup sequence or manage their own window position during launch.

### Scenario when this would be used?

I use Workspaces to launch multiple applications and restore them to specific positions across my screens. This works well for many applications, but some programs do not stay in the correct saved position.

The issue happens with applications that show a splash screen at startup or that remember and restore their previous window position. Workspaces launches the app and attempts to move it, but once the application finishes loading, the real main window either appears somewhere else or moves back to the application's last saved position.

This is important because Workspaces is meant to restore a complete desktop layout. When one or more applications ignore the saved position because of startup timing, the workspace still requires manual adjustment after launching.

### Supporting information

The current behavior seems consistent with the documented limitation that Workspaces launches an app first and then moves/resizes it afterward. The problem is that some applications are not ready to be moved at the moment Workspaces attempts the repositioning.

This feature would help with applications that:

- show splash screens before opening the main window;
- create temporary startup windows;
- restore their own previous position after launch;
- take several seconds before the final window is available;
- behave differently depending on whether an existing instance is already open.

A per-app delay/retry setting would allow users to tune Workspaces behavior without affecting every application in the workspace.

Contributor guide

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Research direction

The issue names no files, tests, or entry points. Start by locating the Workspaces launch and window-repositioning flow, then define how per-application delay, retry duration, and final-window handling should be configured and tested. Done means the behavior is specified, implemented, and verified for startup sequences described in the issue.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
c
Domain
desktop, operating-systems
Issue type
Feature
Difficulty
5/5
Estimated time
Over a week
Activity status
Quiet
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
38/100

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