Microsoft IntelliMouse Is Not Detected or Causes Hang in Windows 2000

If there is a Microsoft IntelliMouse connected to your computer, the IntelliMouse may not be detected or your computer may stop responding (hang).

This behavior can occur for any of the following reasons:

• The wheel mouse is an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) wheel mouse other than the mouse that was originally included with your computer.
• The wheel mouse is connected to a switch box with an unreliable 8042 port.

The Microsoft retail wheel mouse has additional circuitry that allows it to be queried by the operating system. If a wheel mouse is connected to the computer, it returns a string identifying itself as such. Note that running the query does not enable the wheel mouse; it simply lets the operating system know that a wheel mouse is attached. Running the query is safe; it does not cause the computer to hang.

To resolve this issue, use any of the following methods:

• Use an OEM wheel mouse that has been tested and confirmed to work with your computer.
• Use a Microsoft retail wheel mouse that contains the additional circuitry.

Also, check the Advanced Settings tab in the mouse's properties in Device Manager. Make sure that the enabling code is not being run by verifying that Assume Wheel Is Present is selected in the Wheel Detection box.

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article.