8 Keys To Troubleshooting Wireless Mouse Connection Issues In Windows

Many things could cause your wireless mouse to stop working. Some of these are having a physical problem with your mouse, its receiver, or the port you're connecting it to; not having the proper drivers loaded; or not changing them in a long time; or using the mouse on a surface that reflects a lot of light. Your mouse may also not work if the battery is dead, the settings are wrong, other USB devices are interfering, or there is a bug in a new Windows version.

Check The Basics First

If you recently bought a wireless mouse and can't connect it to your PC for the first time, you might be missing something. The mouse's power switch might not be on, or the mouse device might not be properly connected to the computer.

Also, not all portable mice have a battery; sometimes, you must buy one separately. Check the power box to see if your mouse has a battery. If it is already set up, ensure it is facing correctly and not wrapped in plastic. Sometimes, wireless mice come with a CD drive with the drivers on it.

So, check the mouse box carefully, and if you find a CD, put it in your device and install the drivers from it. You must get the mouse drivers separately if the box doesn't come with a CD drive. You can install the drivers for your mouse by going to the company's website that made it.

In addition to the checks listed above, ensure you're not using the mouse on a surface reflecting a lot of light. This can be bad for most optical mice. If you're using the mouse on glass, you should get a mouse pad. Read the mouse's instructions to ensure you get everything important.

Verify Your Wireless Mouse Or Receiver's Function

If you recently dropped or hit your mouse or device with something, ensure they are still working. To make sure, connect the receiver and mouse to something else. Your mouse or sensor is broken if it doesn't work on the other device.

So, you should have them checked out or, if needed, get new ones. If they work fine on another device but not your main one, it means there is a problem with your running system. But make sure the problem isn't with your USB port before you try any program fixes.

Check USB Port Issues

A broken USB port could be why your wireless mouse doesn't work on your primary device. So, it is essential to rule this option out. Connect the receiver of your mouse to a USB port different from the one it was previously plugged into.

If you connected the mouse receiver to a USB port on the back of your desktop, connect it to the ports on the front so that the PC case or anything else won't get in the way of the connection. Change the USB port if that doesn't help. Move on to the next step.

Check For Device And Software Interference

Your mouse might also stop working if you have other USB devices linked to your computer nearby. If you have many gadgets hooked up to your computer, try removing some of them and seeing if that helps. Also, remove any third-party software you used to control your old mouse. It might not work with your new mouse, especially if it's different from the same brand.

Remove All Recent Windows Updates

Microsoft usually puts out new patches for Windows. These changes are meant to make your device safer and give it more features, but they can have bugs that make things more complicated for Windows users. If you just recently updated Windows and think that's why your mouse stopped working, you need to remove this latest version.

Disable Fast Startup

Because Windows has Fast Startup, users can turn on their devices more quickly. However, one of the negative aspects of this function is that it might cause problems with the peripherals. Therefore, you should turn this function off if none of the above fixes work.

If turning this option off doesn't help, move on to the next fix.

Reinstall The Mouse Drivers After Removing Them

Out-of-date or broken drivers can also make communicating hard for your mouse and receiver. Remove and reload the mouse drivers to ensure that's not the case.

When you restart Windows after removing the drivers, they will be automatically restored the next time your device starts up. However, you can download the drivers from the mouse maker's website and update them manually if you'd rather.

Run A System Restore

You should perform a system reset if you think you recently messed up some system settings or can't figure out why your wireless mouse isn't working. When you perform a system restore, any changes you make to your system are undone. It also eliminates any problematic drivers and system updates that were added since the last restore point, which usually fixes the problem. However, you can only recover your system if you first set up a restore point.