Check Device Manger for conflicts on game port
Update or reinstall Microsoft® DirectX
Check for updated drivers for the sound card
Try
the game controller on another system
VIA USB 2.0 Enhanced Host Controller
1. Introduction
This document details the steps to resolve detection issues with Logitech® Entertainment devices connected to the game port. Before continuing with this document, it is important to discern if the issue is a detection issue or a game setup issue. To do this, verify the device is working in Gaming Options or Game Controllers (Windows® 98) by doing the following.
Click "Start."
Select "Settings."
Click "Control Panel."
Double-click "Gaming Options."
If the Logitech® game controller is listed under "Gaming Options" and the status is listed as "OK," the hardware is being detected properly by the system. When the game controller works properly when tested in Windows® Control Panel, but does not function properly within a particular game, the most likely cause is that the game controller is not properly configured or enabled in the game. Please refer to the games documentation or contact the game manufacturer for instructions on configuring game controllers in the game.
Check the hardware connections. Visually examine the connectors on both the joystick cable and ports on the computer, looking for bent pins or other damage. Insure that the connector on the controller's connector is completely seated in the game port on the computer. If device is attached through a switch box or Y-adapter, try connecting directly to the computer.
NOTE: A 15-pin connector on the back of the system does NOT always indicate a game port. Other peripherals also use 15-pin connections, such as Network or MIDI music connections. Connection to a 15-pin port other than a game port can result in damage to the Logitech® game controller or the port. Therefore, it is important to verify you are connected to a game port. Also, some systems have two 15-pin game ports, and you may be connected to the wrong one. Try connecting to the other port.
3. Check Device Manger for conflicts on the game port
Windows® 98, 98SE, Me, 2000, XP (Classic View)
Click Start, "Settings, then Control Panel.
Double-click System.
Click the Device Manager tab. (Windows 2000 users, click the Hardware tab, then the Device Manager button.)
Click on the plus (+) sign next to the "Sound, video and game controllers."
Observe the entries listed under this section. Yellow or red marks on the key for the gameport indicate a problem with the gameport. If this is the case, please contact the sound card manufacturer for assistance.
Windows® XP (Default View)
Click on "Start" then "Control Panel."
Click on "Printers and Other Hardware."
Click on "System" in the "See Also" Box.
Click on the "Hardware" tab, then the "Device Manger" button.
Click on the plus (+) sign next to the "Sound, video and game controllers."
Observe the entries listed under this section. Yellow or red marks on the key for the gameport indicate a problem with the gameport. If this is the case, please contact the sound card manufacturer for assistance.
In some cases, corrupted system files can cause detection issues. System File Checker can check for corrupted files and attempt to repair them. Please do the following to run System File Checker.
System File Checker (Windows® 98)
Click "Start," then "Run."
In the Command line type, SFC.
Click OK. This will bring up the System File Checker.
Select Scan for altered files.
Click Start.
System File Checker will now scan for damaged and altered files. If SFC finds such files, use the option to repair or restore the files. Please note that if SFC finds that "USER.EXE" is damaged, do NOT restore this file. "USER.EXE" is a core Windows® component and indicates a serious problem with Windows. If you decide to restore "USER.EXE," you should back up any important data, as Windows may not restart if this file is restored.
System File Checker (Windows® 2000/XP)
Click "Start," then "Run."
In the Command line type, CMD."
At the DOS prompt, type SFC/SCANNOW.
Hit the "Enter" key.
Select Scan for altered files.
Click Start."
System File Checker will now scan for damaged and altered files. If SFC finds such files, use the option to repair or restore the files. Please note that if SFC finds that "USER.EXE" is damaged, do NOT restore this file. "USER.EXE" is a core Windows component and indicates a serious problem with Windows. If you decide to restore "USER.EXE," you should back up any important data, as Windows may not restart if this file is restored.
System File Checker (Windows® Me)
Windows® Me does not include System File Checker because the file protection system makes it unnecessary.
5. Update or reinstall Microsoft DirectX
In many cases, updating or reinstalling Microsoft® DirectX can resolve these types of issues. The latest version of Microsoft® DirectX can be downloaded from the DirectX home page.
6. Checking for Software Conflicts
Windows® 98, Windows® Me, and Windows® XP
The following information details how to boot clean in Windows® 98, Me, and XP using the MSCONFIG utility. Using this utility makes it easy to boot your system without resident programs loading from the Windows® registry, the StartUp folder, and system files.
Click on the "Start" button from the Windows® desktop and select "Run."
In the open command line, type MSCONFIG and click "OK". The System Configuration Utility should appear.
For diagnostic purposes, we suggest you create a backup by clicking on the "Create Backup" button. Windows® Me and XP users should use the "Launch System Restore" button and follow the on-screen prompts to make a backup. Under Startup Selection, make sure Selective Startup is marked. Clear the check mark from the following boxes:
Windows® 98, Windows® Me, and Windows® XP
Process Config.sys file Load Static VxD's Process System.ini
Process Autoexec.bat file Load Startup group items Process Win.ini
Process Winstart.bat file Load environment variables Load system services
Process Win.ini file Process Win.ini Load Startup group items
Load Startup group items
NOTE: XP users should make sure the radio button for "Use original BOOT.INI" is selected.
Next, click on the tab labeled "Startup". These programs are loaded from the Run folder of the Windows® Registry. Remove the check mark from every box, except for the entry for "System Tray (SysTray.Exe)" and the Logitech entries ("Start Logitech Profiler"). This will prevent memory resident programs from loading from the Run folder and other startup folders of the Registry. NOTE: Creating a Backup file, as described above, does not create a backup of the Run folder. Therefore, it is important that you note which programs you are disabling, so that you can enable them when you have completed diagnostics.
Once finished, click the "OK" button and Windows should prompt you to reboot. After rebooting, install the Logitech software again. After installing, restore your system by doing the following.
Open MSCONFIG.
Reverse any changes you made to the Startup tab.
Windows® 2000
Windows® 2000 does not have a handy utility such as MSCONFIG; however, there are still ways to eliminate programs loading at startup. First, temporarily remove items from the
Startup group and place them on the desktop. To do this:
Right click on the Start button and choose "Explore."
Click on the plus (+) sign next to "Programs," then click on the Startup folder.
Drag each program shortcut to the Desktop. This will prevent them from loading automatically when Windows® starts up.
Besides the Startup group, programs also load from the Run folder of the Registry. These, too, can be temporarily eliminated from the boot cycle. To do this:
Click "Start" and choose "Run." In the "Open" command line, type REGEDIT and press [enter].
Click on the plus (+) sign next to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE.
Click on the plus (+) sign next to SOFTWARE.
Click on the plus (+) sign next to Microsoft.
Click on the plus (+) sign next to Windows.
Click on the plus (+) sign next to CurrentVersion.
Click on the Run folder; the contents will be display on the right side of the Registry.
Create a back-up of the Run folder by clicking on "Registry", then "Export Registry File."
Make sure the Export range is "Selected branch," give the file a name and click Save. Be sure to make a note of the directory you have the file to. This creates a .REG file, which can be easily merged back into the Registry by double-clicking on it at any time.
On the right side of the Registry, delete each entry, except for Systray and Explorer, if they exist.
Exit the Registry editor; saving is automatic. Then, reboot the system.
After rebooting, test the device to see if the issue disappeared. If it has, one of the programs loading at startup is causing the issue. To isolate the problematic application, first add the Startup group back to the loading process. Drag the programs back into the Startup group, one at time, rebooting between each addition. If the last addition of the Startup group items fails to make the issue appear, you must add back the items in the Run folder. Each item you deleted cannot be added individually, so you must start with the original Run folder. To do this, double click on the .REG file you created in the steps above; this will merge that information back into the Registry so the entries you deleted earlier will be back in place. Next, delete each entry, one at a time, rebooting between each deletion. When you find the problematic application, please contact that program manufacturer for more information or a possible work around.
7. Check for updated drivers for sound card
Please contact the manufacturer of your sound card for driver updates.
8. Try the game controller on another system
If the above steps did not identify the problem, then it is possible that the game controller is defective. Try testing the game controller on another system. Be sure to install the Logitech® Gaming Software on the test system, as the drivers are required for the device to be detected. If the joystick fails on the test system, it may be defective. Exchange the game controller at the point of purchase if it is within 30 days of the purchase date. If you have had the game controller for more than 30 days, please contact Logitech® Customer Support to inquire about an RMA (Return Merchandise Authorization) number.
9. Problems on Windows XP with VIA USB 2.0 Enhanced Host Controller
Over the past few months we have received some reports from users that encounter problems when using digital gameport devices under Windows® XP on AMD® ASUS® A7V333 motherboards with CPUs in the 1.8 range (not sure if this is a factor). The problem reports are that after a few seconds of using a digital gameport device in the game controllers test page a warning message stating "device is not properly connected" appears. During game play the problem can manifest itself as a "stuttering" in the input control i.e. start/stop of reports from the device.
Users report that the "VIA USB 2.0 Enhanced Host Controller" has a side effect on digital gameport devices connected to the game port. After the "VIA USB 2.0 Enhanced Host Controller" driver is disabled in the device manager the digital gameport devices works correctly.
We have reproduced the problem at Logitech® with a number of different gameports. In addition we have reproduced the problem with controllers from competitors such as Microsoft®, Gravis®, etc....
The problem has been report to Microsoft®, VIA®, and ASUS®. No updated status as of this time (10/2/02).