SPP not working with official driver

Questions and answers about 3Dconnexion devices on Windows.

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Phil999
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SPP not working with official driver

Post by Phil999 »

usually I always use the beta driver on all my systems, but recently the joystick emulator gave me problems when I tried to assign my Saitek X52 joystick to a racing game. So I did a clean install of the latest official driver (3-17-6 r1586, on W7 64-bit, no Service Packs), following the steps genuinely except step 7 which was never necessary, the machine is on a local network and not connected to the internet, and the firewall is off. No Antivirus installed anyway. But the SPP LCD only shows the Space Pilot Pro image, and there is no functionality at all (tested with 3dsmax 2012). Windows did show a message "your device is ready to use" after installation, but it isn't.

Maybe my 'clean install' instruction is outdated? Here it is:
2. Remove the current driver through the Add/Remove programs. Then make sure the 3DConnexion folder in C:\Program Files is deleted.

3. Navigate to C:/Documents and Settings/your profile/Application Data or C:/Documents and Settings/admin/Application Data/ and delete the 3DConnexion folder. Check both locations to be sure.

C:\Users\Phil\AppData\Roaming
C:\Users\Phil\AppData\Local

NOTE: on Vista machines the paths to the profiles will be found in C:/Users/your profile/AppData or C:/Users/admin/AppData/.

4. Before proceeding with the next steps, It is strongly recommended that a backup of the registry be made. Instructions to create a back-up and to restore the registry can be found on the Microsoft's Knowledge Base article Q322756.

5. Under the 'Start' button and 'Run' type in 'regedit' and hit OK to bring up the Registry Editor. There are 2 registry entries to remove: Under the branches ‘HKEY_CURRENT_USER’ and ‘HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE’ and under each of their ‘Software’ folders delete the 3DConnexion folder found in each location (note: sometimes there might not be one under the Local Machine key folder).

6. Remove the device if it is still plugged in and follow this by rebooting the computer.

7. To rule out installation conflicts with firewalls or antivirus software please disconnect from any local network if applicable (with most places, depending on how their network and licenses are managed you can physically unplug the network cable after logging back into Windows), disable any antivirus programs and turn off any local firewalls. The Windows firewall settings can be accessed from the Windows control panel. All of these items can be reconnected/turned back on after the driver is successfully installed.

8. Install the latest driver previously saved to the desktop. Once the driver is installed, plug the device back in and open the 3DConnexion Control Panel (Sometimes the device will ‘wake up’ immediately after plugging it back in and other times it will not ‘wake up’ until after opening the Control Panel). Hit the Calibrate button to rezero the device motion settings. The Control Panel can be closed after this.
What can I do to make the SPP work with the official driver? Should I install Service Packs for W7? Or are there some more registry entries I have to delete? Thank you in advance for your help.
Space Navigator x2, Space Pilot, Space Pilot Pro, SpaceMouse Enterprise
Fred
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Re: SPP not working with official driver

Post by Fred »

Your instructions are outdated they were for the standard driver.
http://www.3dconnexion.com/faq/28
ngomes
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Re: SPP not working with official driver

Post by ngomes »

Hi Phil999,

Did you install an SPP -specific 3DxSoftware package? The installation package file names for the SPP have the device abbreviation "3DxSoftware64SPP..."

If you did install, try checking the LCD Manager has your device enabled.
Phil999
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Re: SPP not working with official driver

Post by Phil999 »

thanks for the help. Indeed, the link shows an additional line
6. Go to C:\Windows\System32 and delete the files spwini.dll and siappdll.dll. On 64-bit operating systems, also go to C:\Windows\SysWOW64 to delete the files with the same names.
But after deinstallation of the driver I cannot find those dll's. 'Show hidden files, folders, and drives' is activated, so if they're there, I must see them. Before deinstallation, they are there. So, the deinstallation routine takes care of those dll's. Step 6 is therefore obsolete, or has become obsolete with the latest drivers.


I think the problem is on a different side. I operate my SPP through a KVM switch, which works fine. It looks like the official driver doesn't like that (the USB port on the KVM switch is technically a hub), while the beta driver has no problems with it. The official driver works fine when I attach the SPP to a different USB port (no hub), but as soon as I attach the SPP to the KVM switch, it doesn't work anymore.

I've done the procedure now several times, but I end up with the same result. The official driver does not work when I have my SPP attached to the KVM switch. It's no big deal, it's my 'game' OS, I don't necessarily need the SPP there. On my other OS's and machines the SPP works flawlessly (attached to the KVM switch). With the beta driver. Which again shows me how important this beta driver is for me. Without it, I could use my 3dx devices only at 10% (or had to unplug them all the time because I use 3 computers with my SPP alone, or had to buy a USB switch or something like that).
Space Navigator x2, Space Pilot, Space Pilot Pro, SpaceMouse Enterprise
Phil999
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Joined: Tue Jun 30, 2009 5:20 am

Re: SPP not working with official driver

Post by Phil999 »

hi ngomes,

yes, the driver is 3DxSoftware64SPP_v3-17-6_r1586.exe.

Good idea with the LCD Manager, after running LCDMon.exe I get the image back on SPP's LCD. There it says "3D Mouse driver not running". I then go to Start/All Programs/3Dconnexion/Driver/Start Driver, but it doesn't start.

I'm sure it's the hub. Never mind.

Thank you.
Space Navigator x2, Space Pilot, Space Pilot Pro, SpaceMouse Enterprise
Phil999
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Joined: Tue Jun 30, 2009 5:20 am

Re: SPP not working with official driver

Post by Phil999 »

ehm, can somobody please change the thread title to "SPP not working with official driver and USB hub" or something like that?
Space Navigator x2, Space Pilot, Space Pilot Pro, SpaceMouse Enterprise
ngomes
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Re: SPP not working with official driver

Post by ngomes »

More likely than not, the hub is not supplying enough electrical power to the SPP. Are you using a powered hub?
Phil999
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Re: SPP not working with official driver

Post by Phil999 »

it's a KVM with power supply.
Space Navigator x2, Space Pilot, Space Pilot Pro, SpaceMouse Enterprise
ngomes
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Re: SPP not working with official driver

Post by ngomes »

Phil999 wrote:it's a KVM with power supply.
Should work but we know of issue with hubs. Can you check if it works as expected when plugging the device directly to the machine?
Phil999
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Re: SPP not working with official driver

Post by Phil999 »

yes, works perfectly fine when attached directly.
Space Navigator x2, Space Pilot, Space Pilot Pro, SpaceMouse Enterprise
Phil999
Posts: 425
Joined: Tue Jun 30, 2009 5:20 am

Re: SPP not working with official driver

Post by Phil999 »

Phil999 wrote:Good idea with the LCD Manager, after running LCDMon.exe I get the image back on SPP's LCD. There it says "3D Mouse driver not running". I then go to Start/All Programs/3Dconnexion/Driver/Start Driver, but it doesn't start.
Space Navigator x2, Space Pilot, Space Pilot Pro, SpaceMouse Enterprise
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