E'er since Apple "borrowed" the concept of a graphical interface from Xerox and Microsoft also "borrowed" it in turn, the mouse pointer has been a key part of how we interact with our computers. So imagine the daze of booting upward your PC to discover that in that location'southward no mouse pointer at all!

While information technology's entirely possible to use a calculator without a mouse, you probably desire to get your pointer back. Then permit'south walk through the things you can practice when your mouse keeps disappearing.

Before you try anything, employ some shortcut keys to see if you lot can get the cursor back. Attempt Fn + F3, Fn + F5, Fn + F9, or Fn + F11 and encounter if whatever of those work. This basically re-enables your mouse if information technology got disabled for some reason. If this didn't help, go on reading.

1. Restart Your Reckoner

Yeah, we're starting off with the standard advice. Plow your computer off and so on again. Sometimes it's then obvious that people forget to do it at all. This eliminates whatsoever temporary glitches that may never happen again.

2. Bank check the Connection & Batteries

USB technology is very reliable these days, but it can still be choosy. And so unplug your mouse, wait a 2nd and so plug it in once more. Yous may also want to endeavor a unlike port, which sometimes also solves the upshot.

In addition, if your mouse is connected through a docking station or hub, try connecting it directly to the reckoner or unplug the hub and reconnect it.

Lastly, in terms of connections, try disconnecting all other devices except the mouse and see if that helps.

If you lot're using a wireless mouse, the issue could exist as simple as having to supersede the batteries. On Apple products, it'll usually give y'all a message stating that you need to replace the batteries, but this doesn't ever happen in Windows.

3. Test the Mouse on Something Else or Endeavor Another Mouse

If those two quick fixes don't do anything, information technology becomes important to determine whether the problem is with the mouse or the estimator itself. The easiest way to do this is past either trying a different mouse with the computer in question, or plugging the problematic mouse into some other mouse-supporting device.

If the mouse works elsewhere, you're probably looking at a software or calculator hardware issue. If the mouse doesn't piece of work anywhere else, well the mystery of the disappearing mouse has been solved.

4. On Laptops, Check for a Mouse Toggle Cardinal

Most laptops accept a big touchpad below the keyboard and many users who utilise an external mouse or type a lot find information technology distracting. It can happen that you accidentally touch it with your pollex while using the keyboard, causing the pointer to jump.

This is why most laptops have a toggle to disable the touchpad. If you have no external mouse connected and the touchpad has been disabled, you may not see your mouse pointer.

The good news is that this takes just a few seconds to fix. Refer to your manual for specific instructions, simply in the vast bulk of cases the toggle will be one of the function keys.

You'll see a small-scale pictographic of a touchpad or something similar on that cardinal. To activate the toggle, you usually have to agree down the Fn button first, which changes the functions of the keys on the function key row while depressed.

v. Disable "Hide Pointer While Typing"

Sometimes your mouse disappearing is the result of a setting somewhere that'due south been accidentally activated, or switched on by another user. If you encounter your mouse pointer merely going abroad while you type, there'due south a skillful gamble the "Hide Arrow While Typing" pick has been turned on.

To bank check if this has happened:

  1. Open up the Start Menu.
  2. Type Mouse Settings and select it when it appears.
  3. Select Additional Mouse Options.
  1. Select the Pointer Options tab.
  2. Uncheck Hide pointer while typing.

6. Scroll Dorsum Recent Changes

If your problem happens right after something on your computer changes, you should consider undoing those changes if at all possible. This includes recent Windows updates, mouse commuter updates or new software that you've installed.

Correlation does of class not equate causation, just having a system alter happen close to a problem does raise the odds of a connection somewhat. Here'south how to curlicue dorsum a driver in Windows x.

7. Update Mouse Firmware or Software

Even without installing proprietary software, all USB and Bluetooth mice suit to generic interface standards for both types of connectedness. Well, that's supposed to be the case, just sometimes your mouse will but start working after installing the manufacturer's configuration utility.

With some wireless mice, such as those from Logitech that apply their in-house receiver, you may have to pair the receiver and mouse first using the utility.

viii. Check if the Mouse Is Switchable

Some Bluetooth mice, such as the MX Master series, support multiple device profiles. And so y'all tin can switch between unlike devices at the touch of a button. If your mouse has this feature, brand sure it'southward set to the correct profile for the figurer you want to use it on.

9. Do Some Driver Maintenance

While Windows usually does a good chore of keeping things upwards to date, you lot may want to manually bank check that your mouse drivers are up to date. Alternatively, maybe you should coil back a new mouse driver which may be causing bug. It tin can also exist that your GPU commuter needs to be updated, so that it plays nicely with a newer mouse driver.

ten. If Your Pointer But Disappears in Sure Apps

Sometimes a mouse pointer disappears merely when it moves over certain applications. Mutual examples include video player applications and spider web browsers such equally Chrome. This might happen because that application is trying to use hardware acceleration to render things more than chop-chop and smoothly.

Unfortunately, this sometimes means that the pointer disappears because of compatibility problems. Updating the application and your GPU drivers should be your starting time action, but if that doesn't work cheque the software's documentation to see where you can toggle hardware acceleration off.

11. Utilise Alt+Tab or Task Manager to Release a Captured Pointer

Sometimes your mouse pointer keeps disappearing because an off-screen awarding has captured it. This can happen when certain applications don't close properly and don't give the mouse back.

There are two quick ways to rectify this. The offset is to press Alt and Tab together on your keyboard. This will switch app focus to a different app and hopefully release the mouse. If that doesn't piece of work, use Ctrl+Shift+Esc to open the Task Manager. Then select the suspected application and end its procedure by right-clicking on it and selecting End Process.

If your mouse didn't release when switching to the Job Manager, y'all tin can merely printing Alt + Eastward to terminate a highlighted application.

12. Check for Malware

The last potential cause of a missing pointer is a long shot, just if it does turn out to be the case then it'due south a serious consequence. Some malware tin can take command of your system, which includes input devices such as the mouse and keyboard.

A missing pointer could be a symptom of this, so merely exist certain, disconnect your computer from the net so run anti-malware software on it. You may have to do this from a bootable flash bulldoze, but in most cases y'all'll be fine with simply installing and running applications such every bit Malwarebytes.

Getting to the Point(er)

There are so many possible reasons why your mouse arrow may have gone AWOL, merely the solutions nosotros've listed here are the ones with the highest likelihood of success likewise as some of the fastest to attempt.

If after all of this you still don't accept a mouse pointer on screen, you may have to consider installing or repairing Windows itself. Yous can endeavour to boot up a live version of Linux from a flash drive or DVD to 100% confirm that Windows is the result, simply once you lot are certain Windows needs a fresh chance, head over to 3 Ways to Wipe & Reinstall Windows 10.