updated, lost coherence, then lost mouse entirely

Running WinXP under Parallels 4.

Recently updated from Parallels 3. Went smoothly, but lost mouse synchronization in a funny way. Coherence seemed to work for applications windows, but not if I opened a window onto the XP desktop. I.e., I could mouse in and out of application windows, but to exit the desktop I'd have to hit alt+option.

Yesterday, I did the automatic update to the latest build. Started up, got a message "can't automatically enter coherence mode" and could only open applications within the same window as the XP desktop.

Read these forums, found the suggestion to reinstall parallels tools. No change.

Then I found the suggestion to uninstall parallels tools using Add/Remove Software (from inside Windows). Did that, restarted, reinstalled the Parallels tools.

Now, the mouse doesn't work at ALL within Windows. I get an error "mouse synchronization tool not installed" (even though the parallels tools installer seemed to do its thing.

So, now I'm completely stuck - I can't do anything inside the VM - since it doesn't recognize the mouse.

Suggestions? I can back up to previous versions (Time Machine is a wonderful thing), but what are all the files that need to be reverted?

Thanks much!

 

mfidelman,

Please boot into Safe Mode, go to Control Panel -> System -> Hardware -> Device Manager. There, delete the mouse pointer and reboot into normal mode. Reinstall Parallels Tools after this.

 

now it's totally bollixed

1st off, easier said than done, when one doesn't have mouse control - had to use the USB controller menu to capture the mouse - but now it became impossible to get out of the window without shutting down the vm

took a while to boot into safe mode - wouldn't recognize F8 - had to use msconfig to set safe boot mode

removed the PS2 mouse (which had an ! next to it), didn't remove the USB mouse (sort of hard to do anything without a mouse) - rebooted, rebooted into normal mode

removed parallels tools with add/remove software, rebooted

came back up, launched hardware wizard to install new PCI hardware (not sure where that came from) - couldn't find driver, couldn't install parallels tools

enough's enough

going off to see if I can run a copy of the VM from a few days ago (thank you, time machine) - if not, then I'm going to see if I can revert to either the previous build, or to parallels 3

this is just plain broken

 

fixed

restored an older copy of the VM from time machine

started it up
- no coherance mode on startup
- parallels auto-installed the new tools and rebooted itself
- still no coherence mode

went into device manager: there were two copies of the mouse synchronization device, one with a "!" next to it
- removed the !d copy
- rebooted

now everything seems to work fine

perhaps there's a clue in there to the problem a lot of people seem to be having!

 

Same Problem after Update: No Coherence, No Mouse, No Joy

I've had exactly the same problem, immediately after installing the latest update. First, coherence became disabled with the alert that "automatically capture mouse" needed to be checked in the config panel. It already was checked, but was "grayed out". Then, mouse quit within Windows XP quit working -- it was just frozen on the windows screen.

I performed the suggest repair routines from forum posts -- mainly reinstalling tools and restarting (multiple times) with no luck.

I also used the USB mouse capture of OSX mouse to attempt to work, but even that quit working after awhile.

I even downloaded a fresh copy of Parallels and reinstalled, but still no joy.

After wasting an entire day messing with this problem, I've had to return to an old backup just to function.

It appears that each update carries with it assorted problems that the end users are stuck with identifying and resolving. Anyone else here feel like a "guinea pig"?

 

Could you please create ticket in support we can check it closely?
http://www.parallels.com/support/desktop/request/

 

inCoherent mouse - this worked for me, so far

The inCoherent Mouse problem - my short story and how I fixed it in my world.

Note: in this text I have a tendency to use "VM Window" and "Windows window" interchangeably. What I am trying to describe is the Parallels Window in which is running my Windows XP virtual machine.

Problem: mouse becomes trapped in VM window and requires key sequence to release it "Ctrl Alt" . Also Coherence does not work and demands Config be changed by Checking (or unchecking) Automatic capture check box (but doesn't say exactly where - it's under Config-Services).


I am running XP Pro in a system that is basically "default everything" as far as I have been involved in installing things. There are some quite old programs that were supplied with the CD that still start up on Restart and of course anything changed by my Windows application (IRIS UK Accounting Practice Software) and some "Folio Views" reader software for my CCH tax information system again UK.

I have run this installation from I think PD version 2, all upgrades eventually and this PD 4 install requires "manual" completion, which frightened me to death, but the instructions did work.

I do not allow Windows xp updates to run (SP2 eventually when my applications demanded it) - at least not very often. I did buy Parallels 4 and allow an update for that but it did not fix this problem. I then had to allow the Tools to re-install. That is how I got to here where I discovered:

Coherence failes with a message to uncheck (or is it check?) Automatically capture mouse pointer (which is under Config SERVICES and the VM must be off (not running) or it is greyed out. The Help is silent and the Knowledge Base mentions Services but not that the VM must not be running (else box greyed out).

So in a separate system I tried this, and now this is my live system:

double click virtual machine in virtual machine list
click Start (top left of VM Window)
wait while Windows splash screen, then plain black screen then window auto resizes to larger size, then desktop appears and usual startup processes
click Start menu, mouse pointer is captured and moved away from where I clicked, so move pointer back over Start menu and click again,
click control panel
click System
click Hardware tab
click Device Manager - Device Manager window opens File/Action/View/Help
Read down the list Batteries - Computer - Disk drives - Display adapters - until see "Mice and other pointing devices" - IF the + or - sign to the left is + then click on it so:
click + Mice and other pointing devices
AND THEN

in my system I see I have two sub entries like this:

Parallels Mouse Synchronisation Device

! Parallels Mouse Synchronisation Device

Note the yellow circle with an ! in it beside the second entry.

Right Click (Ctrl-Click) the dysfunctional second item and select "Disable"

in my config I then click: (no ok or apply or anything else and no other applications running except started automatically at start up, so you may need to close some or all of those to restart safely)

Start Menu
Turn Off
Restart

AND NOW: My mouse pointer enters the Windows Window, works and can exit without having to press Ctrl Alt or anything else.

Doubtless one could delete the offending driver, but "Disable" (from the context menu (Right click) is (I feel) less invasive.

Coherence: does that work? Let's see... took a couple of click on the Coherence icon top right of my VM window.

wow! my VM (Windows windows has zoomed to the left and a different Spaces screen (I am using OSX "Spaces") has appeared with a Parallels message saying I am now in Coherence Mode etc.




LATER: Loaded VM XP and nothing seems to happen, where's my VM Window? Gradually dawns on me, it is in Coherence mode so there is no window! Only Windows applications are apparent as if they are running unDer Mac OSX. It has been a long time since I have seen Coherence running, so I have become conditioned to seeing a Windows window and not integrated MACOSX/Winpws.

Arriving at this point has included a lot of grief over quite a long time, so here is hoping it helps someone out there.

This post was inspired to its conclusion by the one above by mfidelman, for which my very grateful thanks for the "clue" - it's a very long time since I delved into device manager. Hopefully it will be again.

Anthony