Logitech wireless keyboard / mouse hangs
Problems
- Intermittent nature
- The mouse will often hang (won't move)
- The keyboard will often not type
- Sometimes, the keys get saved up and come out later all at once, and sometimes they never come out
- The mouse seems to have difficulty traveling to the top left of the screen.
Equipment
- Dell Precision M3800 Laptop
- Windows 10 Professional operating system
- Logitech wireless keyboard (K270)
- Logitech wireless mouse (M185). They came in the same box / use the same dongle.
- "Plugable USB 3.0" docking station that runs the DisplayLink software. It has two monitors attached to it, one by DVI and the other by HDMI. It's plugged into the laptop by USB.
Troubleshooting Steps Taken
Wired keyboard and wired mouse work great.
When wireless was plugged in, it was in a USB port on the laptop itself, not the docking station
I rerouted the monitors to plug directly into the laptop (take this docking station out of the equation). So far the wireless keyboard/mouse are not malfunctioning. This seems to indicate that the docking station is a necessary component to reproduce the problem). But I have to give it 1-2 days to make sure because the problem is intermittent.
Question
What would be a good first choice for a fix I can try that won't hurt anything (update a driver...where?)?
Given the new details, this looks to be a case of USB 3 interference in the 2.4 GHz band.
From Intel's note on USB 3.0 Radio Frequency Interference on 2.4 GHz Devices (page links to the full PDF download):
The purpose of this document is to create an awareness of radio frequency interference to wireless devices operating in the 2.4 GHz ISM band as a result of certain USB 3.0 devices and cables. [...] The 2.4 GHz ISM band is a widely used unlicensed radio frequency band for devices such as wireless routers, as well as wireless PC peripherals such as a mouse or keyboard.
Among recommendations to mitigate the issue, posted in a Logitech wiki at Potential USB 3.0 interference:
If your PC has multiple USB 2.0 connectors available, separate your USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 receivers by as much distance as possible. For example, if your PC has a choice of USB 2.0 connectors, use the one on the opposite side of the PC from the USB 3.0 connector.
Position your USB 2.0 receiver as close as possible to your wireless peripheral (mouse, keyboard, headphones, etc.).
Use a standard, USB-adapter cable to position your USB 2.0 wireless receiver as far away as possible from your USB 3.0 connector.
The last one might be the best one to try in the case of a docking station, where space between USB connectors is usually tight.
USB 3.0 has been interfering. I disconnected the mass storage device adapter connected to the USB 3.0 back plane and now I have no problems with my wireless keyboard and mouse.