Extend Display

Raycast extension to quickly connect to AirPlay/Sidecar displays while seamlessly preserving your audio output. No more audio switching to your iPad or Mac display!

✨ Features

• 🔍 Auto-discovery: Scan for available displays via System Settings dropdown
• ⚡ One-click toggle: Connect or disconnect instantly with proper state detection
• 🔊 Seamless audio preservation: Aggressive audio locking prevents any audible leak to the display
• ⌨️ Quick Connect: Configure a default display and connect with a single command
• 🎯 Fast & reliable: Uses proven Sidecar extension approach with AXPress actions

🎯 Use Cases

Perfect for:

• Extending your Mac to an iPad without losing audio on your AirPods/headphones
• Using another Mac as a display while keeping audio on your main Mac
• Quickly toggling between extended and single-display setups

📋 Requirements

1. SwitchAudioSource (Required)

Manages audio output to prevent switching.

brew install switchaudio-osx

The extension will prompt you to install it if missing.

2. Accessibility Permissions (Required)

Allows Raycast to control System Settings.

System Settings → Privacy & Security → Accessibility → Enable Raycast

🚀 Usage

Browse Mode (Recommended for first use)

1. Open Raycast: ⌘ Space
2. Search: "Connect to Display"
3. Press Enter to scan for available displays (opens System Settings briefly)
4. Select your display and press Enter to connect
5. Audio stays on your current output device seamlessly!

Keyboard shortcuts:

• Enter - Connect to selected display (or scan if empty)
• ⌘⇧Q - Set/clear as Quick Connect display
• ⌘R - Rescan for displays
• ⌘N - Add display manually
• ⌘O - Open System Settings to see display names
• Ctrl+X - Remove a display

Quick Connect Mode (For daily use)

1. Open Raycast: ⌘ Space
2. Search: "Connect to Display", select your display, and press ⌘⇧Q to set it as Quick Connect
3. Search: "Quick Connect"
4. Instant toggle with one command!

You can also set the display name manually in extension preferences as a fallback.

Pro tip: Assign a hotkey to Quick Connect for instant access.

🎛️ Commands

Command	Mode	Description
Connect to Display	View	Browse and connect to any available display
Quick Connect	No-view	Instantly toggle your configured display

🔧 How It Works

Display Connection

Uses the battle-tested approach from Raycast's official Sidecar extension:

1. Opens System Settings → Displays
2. Finds the dropdown menu button (works on macOS Tahoe 26+ and earlier)
3. Navigates through "Mirror or extend to" section
4. Uses AXPress accessibility action (more reliable than click)
5. Detects connection state via system_profiler

Audio Preservation (The Magic ✨)

Three-layer aggressive approach ensures no audio leaks to the display:

1. Force Lock: Sets audio to original device 10 times in 2 seconds (during connection)
2. Rapid Monitoring: Checks every 100ms (not 500ms) for changes
3. Quick Revert: Does 3 rapid re-sets if any switch detected

Result: Any audio switch happens so fast (< 100ms) it's imperceptible to human ears.

🐛 Troubleshooting

Issue	Solution
"Missing Dependencies"	Install SwitchAudioSource: brew install switchaudio-osx
"Could not find display menu button"	System UI may have changed. Please report an issue with your macOS version
"Display not found in menu"	Ensure target device is unlocked, nearby, and has AirPlay/Sidecar enabled
Script fails or hangs	Check Accessibility permissions: System Settings → Privacy & Security → Accessibility → Raycast
Audio still switches briefly	This is expected - the revert is < 100ms and should be imperceptible
No displays found	Make sure devices are on same WiFi and Bluetooth is enabled

🏗️ Technical Details

• Built with: @raycast/api
• Audio management: switchaudio-osx
• UI automation: AppleScript with System Events accessibility
• Inspired by: Sidecar extension

📝 License

MIT

🙏 Credits

• Apple Sidecar extension approach from Raycast Extensions
• Audio switching solution inspired by the need to preserve audio on AirPods while extending to iPad