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

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

0 comments No comments

58 answers

Sort by: Oldest
  1. Anonymous
    2012-01-27T15:12:33+00:00

    Windows 7 sixty four bit does similar with the Sony Navu GPS type NV-U93TW.  It thinks that the GPS is a phone!  Presumably the Navu is running Windows CE that most mobile phones use.  Trying to synchronise My Portable Device with the laptop is only partially successful (failure actually).  The laptop can see the Navu and its expansion memory but it cannot read the memory contents or memory size.  Later the message "Synchronisation did not complete" appeared.  The object of the exercise was to try to load marine charts onto the Navu but it looks as if I'm stuffed for the lack of a few lines of code (I'm not a programmer just a dabbler) This is rather annoying especially as my well liked Advent (AKA Gericom Blockbuster)  that ran Xp was stolen by burglars. 

    I've bought a Toughbook which should be here in a day or two and its running ME.  Hopefully this will pair with the Navu.

    If anyone knows how to pair a Navu with Windows 7 I'd be very pleased to know.

    surf for my answer here dated 27-1-2012

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments No comments
  2. Anonymous
    2012-01-28T01:47:57+00:00

    GPSGate is good, used it for years, but does not solve the problem, while booting windows looks for the serial mouse, gpsgate is only loaded after windows, hence it comes to late.

    Another nice (free) program is NavMonPC. I switched to it as it lets you monitor the dataflow from and to each virtual and actual com-port you have, not only that, you can apply filters much more easily, select "collect", all available nmea sentences are displayed spreadsheet style and you just click on wich port you want it available.

    It does not solve the juming mouse though.. I bought a "shipmodul" miniplex multiplexer with bluetooth/usb, since then no more problem. BT because nowadays small PC come with less and less connections. using a http://www.buyqube.com/Q-Singles-QMiniPC-Specs-AMD.htm on board now, look at size and power consumption related to price!

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments No comments
  3. Anonymous
    2012-01-28T10:49:11+00:00

    Well this soultion works for me. I can now use the GPS usb and it works well. This ballpoint serial mouse is still in the device manager, but it is disabled. It remains disabled after a reboot, so it is no longer troublesome. Who cares as long this solution works. By the way I use WIN 7.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments No comments
  4. Anonymous
    2012-03-23T01:03:01+00:00

    The Serial Enumerator has caused this problem that I know of since Windows 98 thru the Windows 7, GPS Data

    should not be enumerated at all, much less should a serial port (Real or USB)  be enumerated at all. Unless Microsoft

    plans to include for free any real time mapping or charting or plotting software in their OS the serial ports (Real or USB)

    which may have active data all the time of boot up or any other time Should Always Be Ignored and THE DATA FROM THE EXTERNAL DEVICE DUMPED INTO THE OZONE ----- UNTIL A USER PROGRAM OPENS THE COM PORT ----

    Any further discussion on this problem please feel free to call me at 727-687-4679, Andy. Calls from Microsoft will be

    appreciated for I for ONE AM Extremely Tired of the Serial Enumerator MAJOR PROBLEM, WHICH HAS NOT BEEN CORRECTED FOR MANY YEARS AS OF NOW.

    P.S. I ALMOST FORGOT,  THIS DEFINITELY IS AND ALWAYS HAS BEEN A MICROSOFT PROBLEM !!!!!

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments No comments
  5. Anonymous
    2012-03-23T01:20:26+00:00

    It IS THE SERIAL ENUMERATOR PROBLEM AND IT DOES HAPPEN TO LAPTOPS WITH BUILT IN SERIAL PORTS.

    The Devcon utility can be used at boot time to disable and remove the Serial Ballpoint Mouse,

    which I have tested on Win 98 Thru Win 7, to temporarily get rid of the pest. But if the system is left idle for an unknown amount of time the Win OS's will reinitialize the Serial Ballpoint Mouse

    from the data present on the Com Port. So after disabling and removing the Serial Ballpoint Mouse the next thing to start on the system is the User Program that uses the Com Port.

    Sample Devcon Usage:

    Add String Keys to the Registry At - MyComputer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

    Key                                                 String

    DisableSerenum                        devcon disable @Serenum\\

    RemoveSerenum                       devcon remove @Serenum\\

    The above keys will kill the Serial Ballpoint Mouse, at the completion of system startup start your

    Software Which Uses the Com Port with the streaming data.

    Was this answer helpful?

    1 person found this answer helpful.
    0 comments No comments