Mouse/touchpad click doesn't work

learko · 27 Dec 2020

Hi all, a very specific problem that I would really appreciate some help on for Windows 10

I think what caused the problem is a new mouse I bought, which I set up by simply plugging in the USB receiver and it worked fine. However, I had to send it back, and have since gone back to using my old mouse + trackpad (and touchscreen).

But now the click doesn't work on either the mouse or the trackpad. Everything else works: I can scroll/zoom/etc with the trackpad, and ditto for the mouse. Additionally, I can use the other buttons on the mouse (I've reprogrammed these to things like 'Enter' and 'Ctrl+V'), but when I reprogramme them to left/right click, they do not work, so I don't think it's a hardware issue

So essentially, the left and right clicks on my pointing devices do not work, but everything else associated with them does work. I can still 'click' things by tapping on the touchscreen though.

I've tried reinstalling and updating the mouse drivers and, from the Dell driver support page, updating the BIOS driver. Have tried typing 'sfc /scannow' into Cmd Prompt, which said everything was 100% fine as well; amongst other possible solutions that I can't remember.

Lance1 · 28 Dec 2020

Welcome to TenForums learko. Go into your touchpad settings, Start / Settings / Devices. Click "Touchpad" on the left hand side, and then on the right under "Related Settings" click "Additional Settings" Click the DELL Touchpad tab in the box that comes up and then click "Click To Change Touchpad Settings" at the bottom. Click "Device Select" Under Touchpad Buttons make sure Enabled is checked and click Apply. I use "X-Mouse Button Control" For my external mouse which gives me more option to work with then what Windows offers. Hope this helps.

learko · 28 Dec 2020

Hi Lance, thanks for your help; this is a solution I've seen elsewhere, but unfortunately when I get to Mouse properties, the 'Dell Touchpad' tab isn't there. The only tabs there are the other 5 (Buttons, Pointers etc)
Any ideas why?

Mouse/touchpad click doesn't work-screenshot_1.jpg

Lance1 · 28 Dec 2020

You have the DELL Inspiron 7586 and the link here has the "Dell Touchpad Driver" When you click on that link, it'll be a direct download to make it painless. The driver supports the DELL Inspiron 7420 but should still be compatible. I didn't have the option for that either till I installed this Win 8 64bit driver on my DELL Inspiron N7110. I'm running Win 10 20H2. This is an option you can try, BUT create a restore point before installing any drivers so you have a go back option. After the install "If You Decide To" restarted the system and test.

Bastet · 29 Dec 2020

Do you have a touchpad option under Settings>Devices?

learko · 30 Dec 2020

@Lance1: I have tried the driver you suggested but unfortunately it does not seem to have had any effect (I still dont get a Dell Touchpad option) after I installed it and restarted my laptop. Is there anything else I should have done?

@Bastet: I do have a touchpad option, and when I go to Additional settings at the bottom I get the same Mouse properties window

Am thinking about backing up my files and simply resetting the laptop. What do you think?

Lance1 · 30 Dec 2020

learko said:

@Lance1: I have tried the driver you suggested but unfortunately it does not seem to have had any effect (I still dont get a Dell Touchpad option) after I installed it and restarted my laptop. Is there anything else I should have done?

I thought it would be worth a try. Have you run the DELL diagnostics? Restart the laptop and at bootup start tapping the F12 key. On the boot screen that comes up select "Diagnostics" A full scan should start so let it run. Once its complete, boot back into windows and test.

Bastet · 30 Dec 2020

I’d try installing the Microsoft precision touchpad drivers to add the full options to the touchpad settings.
Try installing the Microsoft precision touchpad driver:How to install Precision Touchpad Drivers on Windows 10 This will add extra touchpad options under Settings>Devices>Touchpad.

learko · 02 Jan 2021

I reinstalled Windows a couple of days ago and this has solved the problem (fwiw I still don't have a Dell Touchpad tab, although I didn't attempt to install the precision drivers) - thanks very much to you both for your help and suggestions

Lance1 · 02 Jan 2021

learko said:

I reinstalled Windows a couple of days ago and this has solved the problem (fwiw I still don't have a Dell Touchpad tab, although I didn't attempt to install the precision drivers) - thanks very much to you both for your help and suggestions

Glad you solved the problem. Did you do a Win10 clean install or a DELL Recovery?