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How to Fix Dell Laptop Touchpad Not Working

Touchpad Not Working
Written by Kelly Houstan

Well, the touchpad (also called trackpad) plays the prominent role of the primary pointing device in laptops actually. Although, nothing is oblivious to errors and also issues in windows. Touchpad errors and malfunctions are universal in nature and they are experienced at least once with every laptop user irrespective of their laptop brand and operating system versions. Just read this article to know all about How to Fix Dell Laptop Touchpad Not Working. Let’s begin!

However, in recent times, the touchpad issues have also been reported to a greater extent via Dell laptop users. So, we have a separate and more comprehensive guide for how you can fix a touchpad that is not working along with a list of 8 different solutions, in this article, we will go over the methods in order to fix a touchpad in Dell laptops specifically.

The causes for a Dell laptop’s touchpad, not working can also be narrowed down to two reasons. First, the touchpad may also have been accidentally disabled via the user, or second, the touchpad drivers also have become outdated or corrupt as well. Touchpad issues are primarily experienced after an incorrect Windows software update and many times, also out of the blue. Luckily, fixing the touchpad, and thus getting its functionality back is really simple.

How to Fix Dell Laptop Touchpad Not Working

Make sure to create a restore point just in case something actually goes wrong.

As mentioned earlier, there are basically two reasons like why your touchpad may not be responding to your benign touches. We will be fixing both of them, one after the other, and then try to revive your touchpad.

We will start via ensuring that the touchpad is indeed enabled and if it isn’t. Then we will be switching it ON via the Control Panel or Windows Settings. If the touchpad functionality still doesn’t return, then we will move forward to uninstalling the current touchpad drivers and also replacing them along with the most updated drivers available for your laptop.

Use the Keyboard Combination to Enable Touchpad

Every laptop has a hotkey combination to instantly turn on and off the touchpad. The key combination comes in handy whenever a user connects an external mouse and doesn’t want any conflicts between the two pointing devices. It is also specifically useful to quickly turn the touchpad off whenever typing to avoid any accidental palm touches.

The hotkey is normally marked along with a rectangle inscribed with two smaller squares on the bottom half and an oblique line passing through it. Mostly, the key is Fn + F9 in Dell computers, however, it could be any of the f-numbered keys. So look around for the same (or perform a instant Google search for your laptop model number) and then simultaneously tap on the fn and touchpad on/off key to enable the touchpad.

If the above doesn’t really fix the issue then you have to double-tap on the TouchPad on/off indicator. Just like shown in the below image to turn off the Touchpad light and enable the Touchpad.

Enable Touchpad from Settings | Touchpad Not Working

  • Tap on Windows Key + I then select Devices.
  • From the left-hand menu just choose Touchpad.
  • Then make sure to turn on the toggle under Touchpad as well.
  • Now reboot your PC in order to save changes.
  • This should fix the Dell Touchpad Not Working issue in Windows 10, however, if you’re still experiencing the touchpad issues then continue along with the next method.

Remove Other Mouse Drivers

The Dell touchpad not working may also arise if you have plugged multiple mice into your laptop as well. What happens here is whenever you plug in these mice into your laptop then their drivers also get installed on your system and also these drivers are not automatically removed. So these other mouse drivers might be interfering along with your touchpad, so you have to remove them one by one:

  • Tap on Windows Key + R then type devmgmt.msc and hit Enter in order to open Device Manager.
  • In the Device Manager window, just expand Mice and other pointing devices.
  • Right-click on your other mouse devices (other than touchpad) and then choose Uninstall.
  • If it asks for confirmation then choose Yes.
  • Now reboot your PC in order to save changes.

Enable Touchpad via Control Panel | Touchpad Not Working

Apart from the hotkey combination, the touchpad can also turn on or off from the Control Panel as well. Many Dell users who faced touchpad problems after a Windows update actually reported. That enabling the touchpad from the control panel basically solved their issue. In order to enable touchpad from Control Panel, just follow the below steps-

  • Click on the Windows key + R on your keyboard to open the run command. Type control or control panel and click enter.

(Just like that, click on the start button, search for the control panel and tap on open)

  • In the control panel window, you have to tap on Hardware and Sound and then Mouse and Touchpad.
  • Now, tap on Additional mouse options.

(You can also access Additional mouse options through Windows Settings. Open windows settings (Windows Key + I) and then tap on Devices. Under Mouse and Touchpad, tap on Additional mouse options present at the bottom or right side of the screen as well.)

  • A window titled Mouse Properties will also open up. Switch to the Dell touchpad tab and then check if your touchpad is enabled or not. (If the said tab is absent, then just tap on ELAN or Device Settings tab, and then under devices, look for your touchpad)
  • Also, if your touchpad is disabled, then simply press on the toggle switch in order to turn it back On.

If you do not find the toggle switch, then open run command once again, then type main.cpl and press enter. Switch over to the Dell touchpad tab if guys you aren’t already there and tap on Click to change Dell Touchpad settings At last, click on the Touchpad on/off toggle and switch it to ON. Click on save and exit as well. Check if the touchpad functionality returns actually.

Enable Touchpad from BIOS Configuration

The Dell touchpad not working issue many times may occur because the touchpad may disable from BIOS. In order to fix this issue, you have to enable the touchpad from BIOS. Boot your Windows and as soon as the Boot Screens comes up just tap on the F2 key or F8 or DEL to access BIOS. When you are in the BIOS menu, search for Touchpad settings and then make sure the touchpad is enabled in BIOS.

Update Touchpad Drivers (Manually) | Touchpad Not Working

The second reason for touchpad breakdowns is corrupt or outdated device drivers as well. Drivers are computer programs/software that basically helps a piece of hardware communicate effectively along with the operating system. Hardware manufacturers roll out new and updated drivers frequently in order to catch up with OS updates. It is important to have your drivers up-to-date along with the latest version. In order to make the most of your connected hardware and not face any issues.

You can either select to manually update your touchpad drivers via the device manager or take the assistance of third-party applications. In order to update all your drivers at once. The former of the two is explained in this method as well.

  • We start via launching the Device Manager. There are multiple methods to do that and we have listed a few below. Follow whichever feels the most convenient as well.
    • Press Windows key + R in order to launch the run command. In the run command textbox, just type devmgmt.msc and click on OK.
    • Click on the Windows start button (or tap on Windows key + S), type Device Manager, and click enter when search results return.
    • Open Control Panel via the steps explained in the previous method and tap on Device Manager.
    • Press Windows key + X or right-tap on the start button and choose Device Manager.
  • In the Device Manager window, just expand Mice and other pointing devices via clicking on the arrow next to it or double-clicking on the label.
  • Right-tap on Dell Touchpad and choose Properties.
  • Now switch to the Driver tab of the Dell Touchpad Properties window.
  • Click on the Uninstall driver button in order to uninstall any corrupt or outdated driver software you might be running.
  • Then click on the Update Driver button.
  • Now, in the following window, select Search automatically for updated driver software.

Further

You can also manually download the latest and also the most updated drivers for your Dell touchpad via Dell’s website. In order to download touchpad drivers manually:

  • Just open your preferred web browser and search for your ‘Dell laptop model Driver Download’. Do not forget to replace the laptop model along with the model of your laptop.
  • Tap on the very first link to visit the official driver download page.
  • Then type Touchpad in the textbox under Keyword. Also, tap on the drop-down menu under the Operating System label and choose your OS, system architecture.
  • At last, click on Download. You can also check the version number and last updated date of the drivers via clicking on the arrow next to the Download Date as well. When downloaded, extract the file via the built-in Windows extracting tool or WinRar/7-zip.
  • Just follow steps 1-6 of the earlier method and this time choose to browse my computer for driver software.
  • Tap on the Browse button and locate the downloaded folder. Hit Next and also follow the on-screen instructions in order to install the latest touchpad drivers.

Just like that, you can also install the drivers via simply pressing on the .exe file and following the on-screen prompts.

Update Touchpad Drivers (Automatically)

You can also select to automatically update your touchpad drivers via a third-party application. Many times it is impossible to find the correct driver version for a certain laptop model. If that’s the case for you or also you simply don’t wanna go through the hassle of manually updating drivers. Then consider using applications such as Driver Booster or Driver Easy. Both of them have a free as well as a paid version and also boost a long list of features.

Conclusion

Well, That is all from my side. If you want to know more about this article or have any queries. Then feel free to ask me anything in the comments section below.

Have a Good Day!

Also See: How to Compare Two Folders in Windows 10

About the author

Kelly Houstan

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