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April 17th, 2025 03:49
M15x, touchpad issues
I just restored an Alienware M15x with running Windows 10 on it and everytime something pops up, like user account control (when i want to run a program that makes that pop up) the pointer acts bananas and jumps to random areas of the screen or doesnt move at all sometimes. Itll do this for a few seconds and then go back to normal. I dont have the Synaptics driver installed because when i do install it, Synaptics gets rid of my scrolling feature, which it says it has as a feature, but enabling it doesnt actually enable it. Synaptics DOES however get rid of that jumpy pointer glitch, but id rather have my scrolling feature functioning. Any ideas on what i can do? I tried unchecking "Enhance Pointer Precision" to no avail. Maybe something in Synaptics i can try? Willing to download that again. The only thing im not willing to do is get an actual mouse because im not a fan of them as Im more of a touchpad guy. Thank you for your help in advance.
Xeper8x8
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June 15th, 2025 03:44
So apparently this solved my problem: Going here, https://www.catalog.update.microsoft.com/Search.aspx?q=Synaptics+touchpad&p=4, and then downloading the update "Synaptics - Other hardware - Synaptics PS/2 Port TouchPad" (On the date of 12/22/2014, as theres no driver version to go by). Should either take you to the page its on or if not then go to page 4 or just keep going until you see 12/22/2014. Theres only 2 for that date and one is 32-bit and the other 64-bit. Its an archive file so if you have WInRAR or w/e open it and select "Setup" and install. The driver version should be 18.1.29.7. Its defualted as two finger scroll, but theres also a one finger scroll option that isnt auto selected. Pick which ever one you want to use I guess. I hope this helps others who eventually have this problem. Thanks for everyones help though I appreciate it.
(edited)
Xeper8x8
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June 15th, 2025 05:34
@Xeper8x8 Also just discovered after installing that driver that restarting or shutting down/starting up, resets Synaptics settings back to default. To fix that do this: Open Regedit, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Synaptics\SynTP\Install,
Look for a key in that Install folder called "DeleteUserSettingsOnUpgrade" and double click to change the value to 0. Edit Synaptics settings (Or Command Center if you have Alienware) to your liking and restart and see it if works. Try it with shutting down/starting up to make sure it fully works.
(edited)
DELL-Jesse L
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April 17th, 2025 09:41
You can click here for resolving touchpad issues.
To receive assistance from Dell chat support, they need to verify the warranty status and ownership. Then you must troubleshoot with them. Click the "Get Help Now" icon on the right to start a live chat session. If already out of warranty, click here for the Dell out of warranty offering.
DELL-Jesse L
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April 17th, 2025 14:05
Are you referring to the 2009 M15x R1? Click here
mattyb3
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April 24th, 2025 03:06
It really sounds like you need that driver for it to work properly. There is a valid reason for hardware drivers.
I've restored a few old M15x's and I've had some weird touchpad things happen a few times. In my case it was due to the CPU being too hot. There was a very large buildup of fluff wedged in the heatsinks which you can't see until you remove the heatsinks and fans. Since your issue only seems to happen at a specific time, this probably isn't your issue but it's worth checking, if you haven't already stripped the laptop down.
Does AWCC not have any touchpad adjustments? I thought the old versions did have some features you could mess with but I haven't checked for a long time.