Windows detects USB GPS as Serial Ballpoint - please suggest permanent modification to prevent any serial mouse detection

Anonymous
2010-02-23T15:33:38+00:00

Using Win7 ultimate on a variety of machines, when I plug in a 'USB' GPS the system does two things: it installs the support for the USB-Serial device, and then it (using 'serenum' apparently) begins mistaking the GPS for a serial mouse, and 'detects' and installs the microsoft serial ballpoint.  I have editted /windows/inf/msmouse.inf, adding a line after line 28 (guessing at the syntax, copying from the alpha excludes)

ExcludeFromSelect.NTx86 = *PNP0F0C,*PNP0F08,*PNP0F09*PNP0F01,*PNP0F0A,*PNP0F1E

This does *NOT* do the trick.  The GPS is consistently being enumerated by the system as a "serial ballpoint mouse".

This has been reported by numerous people in numerous forums on numerous configurations over multiple windows versions.

When is Microsoft going to fix this?  This is not a GPS issue.  This is not a serial device issue.  This is not a USB issue.  This is, pure and simple, a Microsoft issue.

Removing the 'upperdrivers' entry for serenum might do the trick, but the registry keys are not writeable now in Win7.  Sweet.  Thanks, Microsoft.

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Devices and drivers

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  1. Anonymous
    2011-08-16T15:49:54+00:00

    I dont understand why its not possible to remove the serial mouse drivers all together from windows.

    I have been messing with this issue in windows for over 12 yrs and since windows 7 came out no matter what fix you apply it comes back.

    Although most of us techs can solve it. But when you have a customer who you installed a plotting navigation program on their PC and they take the PC off the boat for security and reinstall it the next day it comes back.

    I'll tell you one thing the first tech to actually solve this can sell that fix for a lot of money.

    so far i have managed to get windows 7 to not reconize the gps data as a mouse but an unknown device and still have use of my com ports for the varied programs once i get it to an *.exe for all then I will share my findings.

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  2. Anonymous
    2011-08-17T19:07:18+00:00

    thanks, although of no much help. I do actually wonder abaout the helpfullness of Mr. Bill Gates Company. Once I do not need navigation any more I will switch to Linux for sure. Not because it is any better, but I am not treated as the last **** of a customer. Linux is free, there is nothing to complain, M$ I pay, but I am ignored. I buy from them since DOS 3.1 and only had 3 customer service requests over all those years, only one was helpfull. This one is the worst.

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  3. Anonymous
    2011-08-22T17:41:17+00:00

    If you ever get it into an .exe PLEASE send me a copy. I had to reboot several times while trying to navigate - dangerous and frustrating!

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  4. Anonymous
    2011-08-25T01:48:33+00:00

    I may have a solution. Like others, I've struggled with this problem for years. I really had a tough time with Vista, but I found a solution. When you disconnect the serial device, Windows appears to uninstall the driver, but it actually just hides it. In Device Manager, you can "view/show hidden devices" and then you will see the previously installed but currently inactive serial ballpoint mouse, then you can right click it and "disable" it like back in XP.

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  5. Anonymous
    2011-08-25T01:50:53+00:00

    That worked for me in Vista, but I have not yet tried in Win7, but I have verified that the "show hidden devices" is there in devmgr.

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