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Blank Empty CyHidWin and Cypress TouchMon Windows on the XPS 15z
BLANK WINDOWS THAT APPEAR ON A SECONDARY MONITOR WITH THE DELL XPS 15Z. (Cypress TouchPad Drivers)
The Cypress TouchPad drivers for the XPS 15z have had this annoying issue for a while where by two empty windows are visible when a secondary monitor is used. The problem only seems to show itself when a multi monitor configuration is used, when just using the laptop on its own you never see them. See the screenshot below of the two empty windows on a secondary monitor.
Cypress TouchMon: Is the Touchpad icon in your notifications tray (Bottom right). You can disable the icon and this will get rid of this blank window.
CyHidWin: Is for the Cypress Touchpad multi gestures. Manually closing this or the CyHidWin.exe process will stop your multi gestures from working.
These empty windows only appear when a either a secondary monitor is active (As long as you don't move them onto the primary display) or when you use some form of docking station for your XPS 15z, This has been a problem on the XPS 15z for a while and more recently has also been reported on the XPS 13.
Updated drivers for the XPS 13 were released by Dell to correct this problem. However no such update has occurred for the XPS 15z, which is a shame. The XPS 15z was released before the XPS 13 and still hasn't been fixed. The XPS 13 drivers are not compatible with the XPS 15z so this isn't a solution.
Report/Findings:
I've been fed up with this issue for a while and have been pushing Dell to do something about it. Sadly, I haven't really been successful, but when I've had time I've been trying to get to them bottom of the problem with a bit of testing. Here are my findings:
- This problem occurs when a secondary monitor is attached in Extended Mode
- I CAN reproduce the issue with a VGA monitor (MiniDisplay Port - VGA)
- I could NOT reproduce the issue with HDMI - HDMI connectivity (Tested on a 42" Toshiba TV, both screens set to native 1920 x 1080 1080p)
- If you put the XPS 15z into standby or hibernate after logging into Windows, the blank windows disappear on the secondary monitor when you log back in again.
Temporary Solutions to this problem:
- Esc Key: These windows will appear on start up (when logging into Windows) however they can be closed with keyboard shortcuts (Due to the lack of Maximise, Minimise and Close buttons). If you select the window title bar to gain focus and press the esc key on your keyboard, they can be closed. This will however, cause the driver to not function fully. These windows are actually tied to the driver processes. You will find closing them will cause most of your touchpad and its features to not work.
- Hibernate/Stand by your 15z: I noticed one time that if I hibernated or put my laptop into stand by, after logging into Windows again the blank windows were gone on the secondary monitor and didn't come back until the next shutdown and cold startup
- Downgrade the Driver: I remember a while back I had some success remedying the problem with a complete uninstall and reinstall of an older version of the Dell Cypress Touchpad Driver, however this isn't a viable solution because the newer drivers fix certain problems which make using an older driver redundant for this issue.
- Remove the Cypress Driver: This is a drastic solution, but because the driver is the problem. Removing the driver will get rid of the issue. The downside to this is the touchpad will then be controlled by default Windows drivers which lack any of the multi touch gestures as well as other features.
Please Dell fix this problem for the XPS 15z! :(
James2k
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May 15th, 2012 12:00
XPS 13 drivers are being released to fix this problem, will the XPS 15z get a fix too?
gbruintjes
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May 16th, 2012 21:00
Good question. Just got an XPS 15z and these screens are not quite annoying.
James2k
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May 17th, 2012 02:00
I remember you can resolve this by doing some really funky uninstall and reinstall steps when you have the secondary monitor plugged in. Though this problem has been present for a while and should be fixed. If the XPS 13 gets a fix, I think its fair that XPS 15z owners should get one as well, seems we use a similar Cypress Touchpad setup and the fact the XPS 13 and XPS 15z are part of the whole XPS family line. You know seems the XPS 15z being the XPS 13's older cousin!
James2k
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May 17th, 2012 16:00
Terry B has asked Dell Engineering to see if a fix for XPS 15z is in the works also. Lets hope!
James2k
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May 22nd, 2012 04:00
Updated the thread with some temporary solutions that can remove the blank windows. I haven't heard anything regarding a driver for the XPS 15z, though I am aware the XPS 13 now has a new driver which fixes the problem. Hopefully some more news on the situation soon.
James2k
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May 23rd, 2012 01:00
Bad news, Dell are not working on a driver to fix this problem for the XPS 15z..
Correction: I completely mis-read my email from Terry B this morning (Forgive me it was 6:15 AM!). A new driver IS being released by Dell Engineering to fix this problem on the XPS 15z, no ETA at the moment, but its in the works
I've added a few more temporary solutions to the thread that can fix the problem while we wait for the new driver.
gbruintjes
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May 23rd, 2012 07:00
Thank you for the updates. The temporary solutions are also helpful. I use external monitor a lot so hopefully when the driver finally gets released I can feel like I really have a 'new' laptop. Funny how little things like this can put a damper on the 'newness' factor.
~Gerrit
James2k
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May 23rd, 2012 07:00
Your welcome. I also use a external monitor regularly at work on my XPS 15z and it gets mighty annoying. I'll be watching the Dell Drivers FTP and Downloads site like a hawk, I'll post back whenever the driver is up.
James2k
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June 27th, 2012 00:00
PeteL17
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June 27th, 2012 00:00
So It's been a month. I also have a 15z. Has any new driver been released yet? Terry B are they any closer to fixing this yet?
Also does the A06 driver change this problem at all? I think I'm still on A05 not sure if it's worth update if it doesn't fix the problem.
James2k
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August 12th, 2012 04:00
Well its been a while since I last looked at this issue, but the bad news is Dell haven't fixed this problem for XPS 15z. The XPS 13 received a driver update that corrected issue a couple of months ago, but 15z owners still suffer from it.
Dell doesn't seem to be releasing a driver for us after all...
From the advice of a moderator here on the forums I did try the XPS 13 drivers on the 15z but sadly, the incompatibility between the two was too great and the multi touch gestures stopped working completely.
I have however been doing some tests and found out some interesting information. I've added it to the original thread under Report/Findings. There are methods to workaround this issue, but nothing will truly fix the problem until a driver update is released like the XPS 13 got.
Just to confirm it is a driver issue, I recently had the whole front plate replaced on my XPS 15z (due to a worn trim) which includes a new touchpad assembly. Unsurprisingly, the problem remains.
This is due to the Cypress Touchpad driver. Simple as that.
James2k
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August 15th, 2012 04:00
You can get rid to the Cypress TouchMon blank window by electing to not display the touchpad icon in the taskbar. It really isn't required anyway and will only save you a couple of seconds to access the settings, apart from that you don't lose anything:
Go to Start > Control Panel > Mouse > Cypress Touchpad
Uncheck display icon in taskbar. The CyHidWin blank window remain, as its related to the Multi Touch Gestures. Still working on a method to get rid of it.
James2k
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August 22nd, 2012 01:00
I've come across a newer driver for the Cypress Touchpad:
www.dell.com/.../DriverFileFormats
Its release date is listed as January 2012, however the version I have installed on my XPS 15z is 2.3.6.21, this version happens to be 2.3.6.26. Not sure if it will fix anything.