Modeline: Meaning (information, definition, explanation, facts)

A Modeline is a configuration line in the XFree86 configuration file that provides information to the X server about a connected computer monitor.

Modelines have become obsolete in XFree86 versions 4.0.1 and higher, as they are now calculated by the X server at startup based on two factors:

• other, more generic and intuitive, settings in the server configuration file
• monitor capabilities acquired via an EDID query

For obsolete, unusual, or insufficiently finely-tuned display hardware, however, manually setting modelines is still a potential solution.