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Reinstall built-in Windows drivers for HID-Compliant Mouse touch screen

John Utee 1 Reputation point
2021-02-11T11:47:52.187+00:00

We have an embedded device running Windows 8 x32 or x64 bit with a touch screen. Previously we used a touch screen driver from the touch screen controller manufacturer (in Device Manager it was seen as "USB Touchscreen Controller"), but for definite reasons, we decided to switch to built-in Windows drivers. I wrote a program that removes .inf files of the previous drivers, so now the Device Manager started to detect the touch screen as "HID-Compliant Mouse", it worked, and everyone is happy.

But, as it turned out, HID-Compliant Mouse sometimes now disappears from the Device Manager, and the touch screen just stops working with built-in Windows drivers. This never happened with previous drivers. It doesn't start working even after a reboot, only when I plug out and then plug in the USB connection. On another device, where HID-Compliant Mouse drivers were used from the beginning, and manufacturer's drivers not installed, there is no such problem observed.

So, there are many suggestions on the internet and my own, what to do when HID-Compliant Mouse disappears, I'll gather them together below:

  1. Update driver via the Device Manager (it reports that driver is already up-to-date)
  2. Use the hardware troubleshooter to fix the issue (not available on our custom-built Win image)
  3. Remove old drivers completely (removed, but the screen didn't start to work still, until unplugged, and plugged in the USB connection)
  4. Remove "ghost devices" from the Device Manager (as it turned out, there are many "ghost" HID-Compliant Mouse devices - devices that are present but not attached, they are colored in gray in the Device Manager (providing that "Show hidden devices" option is ON). But as far as this problem happens rarely, I'm not sure if it will actually fix it in the long term.
  5. Reinstall HID-Compliant Mouse drivers - actually, this is my question if it is possible?
  6. Create a new OS image (painful, much effort for that, better avoid)

So, this all basically comes up to 2 questions:

A) As far as on the other device, where HID-Compliant Mouse drivers were installed from the beginning (no other drivers), I suppose that on my own device, there can be some conflict between those devices - that's why HID-Compliant Mouse disappears. So, is it possible to completely uninstall and install again Microsoft's HID-Compliant Mouse drivers, without using Windows update, just some installer? (At least, we need a way to fix it manually, then I'll try to turn it into a script or program to automate the process.)

B) Any other solutions, hints, that can fix the HID-Compliant Mouse disappearing problem?

Windows for IoT
Windows for IoT
A family of Microsoft operating systems designed for use in Internet of Things (IoT) devices.
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  1. Sean Liming 4,511 Reputation points
    2021-02-11T17:33:56.473+00:00

    Put the touch screen manufacturers driver back into the image.

    The Microsoft driver is generic for touch screens that follow the Microsoft specification. Most Windows 10 touch screens follow these specs. For older Windows versions, if the manufacturer released a driver for the touch screen, it is best to use that driver. They may have fixes to address problems the Microsoft generic HID driver doesn't address. i.e. power management

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  2. John Utee 1 Reputation point
    2021-02-12T09:08:12.17+00:00

    Hi Sean,
    Actually, it was advised by the manufacturer to use the built-in driver instead of their ones (for USB connection). So, Windows' driver works on some devices without any problems, but on our device, where we previously had manufacturer's drivers and replaced them with Windows' ones, we have the problem with HID-Compliant Mouse disappearing.