System-Wide Fix for Gaming Mouse Fluidity in Windows 8.1

Posted Dec 10, 2013 by

You have upgraded to Windows 8.1 from Windows 8, and noticed bad performance from your gaming mouse? More input lag and worse fluidity, even when dragging windows around on the desktop, not just in video games?

You’re not alone.

There is now a system-wide solution. Follow KB 2908279 Instructions, install the hotfix (skip that step if already installed), and then add c:\windows\explorer.exe to your registry in Step #4. Although Explorer is not a game executable, this solution enables the high report rate (e.g. 1000Hz) system-wide from your gaming mouse in all your applications. This fixes all fluidity including window dragging, scrollbar dragging, etc.

UPDATE: Microsoft has modified the page.
You may have the Microsft update already installed. A better step by step:
www.howtogeek.com/175722/how-to-fix-mouse-lag-in-pc-games-on-windows-8.1/
Instead of C:\Program Files (x86)\Game\Engine.exe, enter C:\Windows\Explorer.exe

With this fix, your mouse will perform as well as it did under Windows 7 and Windows 8.
NOTE: If anyone from Microsoft is reading this, see Comments for scientific explanations why 1000Hz is better for window-dragging/scrolling, even on a 60Hz or 120Hz monitor.
Also, see the new Blur Busters Mouse Guide.

About Mark Rejhon

Also known as Chief Blur Buster. Founder of Blur Busters. Inventor of TestUFO. Read more about him on the About Mark page.

21 Comments For “System-Wide Fix for Gaming Mouse Fluidity in Windows 8.1”

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ronaldjeremy
Member
ronaldjeremy

I just started having bad mouse cursor lag after updating to Windows 10. That led me here — unfortunately though it wont let me install KB 2908279 on Windows 10. Any idea how to get around that?

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8 years 7 months ago
ChrisDiGi
Member
ChrisDiGi

Alright so I added the C:\Windows\Explorer.exe at step 4 like you said but do I stop there and restart my computer or do I continue with the rest of the steps he had up there?

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9 years 7 months ago
MarkC
Member
MarkC

My testing of the recent Windows 8.1 Update (8-April-2014, KB2919355) shows that Windows 8.1 no longer has the mouse lag reported here : It no longer coalesces and merges mouse input, and tools like MouseRate.exe (http://www.softpedia.com/get/System/System-Miscellaneous/Mouse-Rate-Checker.shtml) shows the full mouse polling rate, at least for Windows 8.1 running on a desktop PC.

In other words, it is back to the Windows 7/8 behaviour.

Possibly it now works differently on laptops or tablets than it does for desktops?

Does anybody (with a laptop or tablet or otherwise) care to test it?
(After removing the system-wide “Explorer.exe” given here in this blurbusters.com post of course.)

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10 years 11 days ago
PanzerIV
Member
PanzerIV

Hi guys! I’m wondering something, when I try to install this (KB 2908279) update, it says it doesn’t apply for my system even though I’m not stupid and know that I currently use 8.1 64bit so what’s wrong??? I’ve looked in the Control Panel and I don’t see the update listed as those already installed so I don’t know where else to look around.

I always do all Windows Updates including the optionnal ones so does it mean I already have it?

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10 years 1 month ago
PanzerIV
Member
PanzerIV

Ahh let me guess… the update (KB 2903939) already includes the one for the mouse fix as well as a few other things and has been installed on my computer through Windows Update on December 24th 2013 so I should in theory already have this mouse fix. This whole news scared me for nothing (-_-)

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2903939

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10 years 1 month ago
Mark Rejhon
Author
Mark Rejhon

You are all good and set for the KB installation!
However, you still want to install the registry tweak if you want to ensure system-wide 1000Hz performance, including dragging windows which looks noticeably smoother at 1000Hz especially when combined with a motion blur eliminating strobe backlight (e.g. LightBoost, EIZO Turbo240, NVIDIA ULMB, or BENQ Blur Reduction).

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10 years 1 month ago
PanzerIV
Member
PanzerIV

You were right Chief! Even though the update was still installed, I don’t know what was the point of it as it didn’t fixed anything on it’s own. I still did the registry trick for “Explorer.exe” and then I suddently noticed a big difference even on my (BenQ GW2450) 60Hz monitor that I’ve overclocked to 71Hz. I then wanted a proof that it wasn’t just a placebo effect so I re-openned my 2 main mouse tools which you can see from the link below and the results were different than before. Something weird is that before I make the registry fix, the upper-left corner program “DirectInput Mouse Rate” would show me 1000Hz as if it was all okay but the other program from 2009 would peak out at 125-200Hz then just after the fix it went back up to 1000Hz!
http://uppix.net/nZLyhH.jpg

I really don’t know wtf Microsoft thought when doing this and it’s sad as 99% of the people won’t know about it. I can understand for a laptop but it shouldn’t do this on a PC and even less when you selected “High Performance” power mode in the control panel.

Just to make sure, any games that have (Raw Input On) won’t need the shortcut in the registry to work at 1000Hz right? Thanks again, you’re a very valuable genious to the geek community and because of you I’ve finaly been able after so long, to take a decision on which gaming monitor would be the best for me “BenQ 2411Z with firmware v2” and which overclockable 2560×1440 IPS monitor would be the best for my photography buddy 🙂

Like2Vote Down 
10 years 1 month ago
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