Right mouse button no longer works? Many users face such an unusual problem. In today’s article, we will tell you what can be causing this problem and how you can fix it as soon as possible.
The right mouse button does not work – causes of the problem
- Incorrectly working mouse drivers.
- Depleted wireless mouse batteries.
- Problems with the rightmost button.
- Damaged system files and component store.
- Conflict with third party software.
Right Mouse Button Does Not Work – Solution Methods
Method # 1 Disable Tablet Mode
In some cases, the right mouse button may stop working when activating tablet mode in Windows 10. You need to disable this mode and then check if the button works. Tablet mode is disabled in different ways …
Notification Center
- Press Win + A to open the Action Center;
- click on the “Tablet Mode” tile.
Parameters
- Press Win + I to open System Options;
- go to the “System” section, then to the “Tablet mode” subsection;
- disable the option “Enable additional touch capabilities of Windows when using the device as a tablet.”
Registry editor
- Press Win + R to bring up the Run dialog box;
- write down Regedit.exe and press Enter;
- go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER SOFTWARE Microsoft Windows CurrentVersion ImmersiveShell;
- right click on the parameter TabletMode on the right side of the window and select “Change”;
- put zero (0) in the parameter value and save the changes.
Still not working with the right mouse button? Let’s try something different then …
Method # 2 Shell Extension Manager
Problems with clicking the right mouse button can sometimes arise due to extensions from third-party developers used for context menus. Shell Extension Manager is a small utility that will help you get rid of these extensions.
- Download Shell Extension Manager;
- select the executable utility file with LMB and press Ctrl + Shift + Enter;
- click on the “Options” button in the menu bar and select “Filter by Extension Type”;
- select only (!) the “Context Menu” item in the list and click “OK”;
- select all the items in the list that appear that are colored pink, and then press the key F7to disable them;
- now press Ctrl + E combination to restart Windows Explorer.
Use your mouse and check if the right button is working. If it was a third-party context menu extension, then the problem should be resolved.
Method # 3 Applying SFC and DISM
It may be that your right mouse button is not working due to corrupted system files or Windows Component Store. Both can be restored using SFC and DISM.
- Press Win + R;
- write cmd and press Ctrl + Shift + Enter;
- enter the command sfc / scannow and press Enter;
- wait until the tool finishes working and restart the PC;
- reopen Command Prompt (required as administrator!) and run the following series of commands:
- Dism / Online / Cleanup-Image / CheckHealth
- Dism / Online / Cleanup-Image / ScanHealth
- Dism / Online / Cleanup-Image / RestoreHealth
- restart your computer again.
Once you enter Windows, test your mouse.
Method # 4 Cleaning the Windows Registry
Sometimes it is enough to delete a few entries in the system registry and your mouse buttons will come to life! Try the following:
- call the registry editor, as shown above;
- go to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT Directory Background shellex ContextMenuHandlers NvCplDesktopContext;
- delete ALL folders on the left side of the window, except for the following:
- FileSyncEx
- New
- Sharing
- WorkFolders
- when the Windows GUI disappears, you will need to restart Explorer (Win + R -> explorer.exe).
Still not working with the right mouse button? Ok, let’s move on …
Method # 5 Removing / disabling conflicting software
Today it is known that some programs can interfere with the mouse connected to the PC. The list of such software includes:
- HP Display Control (PdiShellExt.dll)
- Symantec System Recovery
- 7zip
- WinZip
Try to get rid of these programs if they are installed on your computer, and then check for the problem.
Method # 6 Reinstalling the mouse driver
And finally, reinstalling the mouse driver. Perhaps your mouse driver has started to work incorrectly, as a result of which you cannot use it normally. Reinstalling the driver is done as follows:
- press Win + R;
- write down devmgmt.msc and press Enter;
- expand the section “Mice and other pointing devices”;
- double-click LMB on the connected mouse;
- go to the “Driver” tab and select “Remove device”;
- reconnect the mouse to your computer – Windows will automatically install a driver for it.
There is clearly something wrong with your mouse, if even reinstalling the driver did not help it. Try connecting it to another computer to make sure of this. If the right mouse button does not work on another PC, we fork out for a new “rodent”.