Windows 11 2024 Update is making mouse cursors disappear. Here’s what to do
This month’s massive Windows 11 2024 Update comes with all kinds of helpful new features and improvements, but the problematic rollout leaves a lot to be desired. Microsoft certainly dropped the ball.
Just last week, we reported on the fact that Windows 11 24H2 is causing blue screens and various other issues. But now, another puzzling issue has reared its head: disappearing mouse pointers.
Windows Latest reports that a bug in Windows 11 24H2 is causing the mouse cursor to disappear in text input fields. Specifically, it’s been seen happening in Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Slack, Spotify, along with several other apps that rely on Chromium.
To be clear, you’ll be able to see the mouse cursor just fine when, say, moving it across the screen; the problem only occurs when you interact with text input fields. For example, the cursor disappears and is completely empty when you move it towards the address bar in Chrome or Edge. Likewise when you try to search for songs on Spotify.
Some users have tried to resolve the issue by reinstalling touchpad drivers, switching to a USB mouse, and reinstalling mouse drivers — none of them proved successful.
What to do if you’re affected by this bug
If this issue is bothering you and you want a temporary workaround, you can tweak a mouse-related setting in the Windows Control Panel.
Launch the Control Panel by opening the Start Menu and searching for control panel. Then, in Control Panel, click on Hardware and Sound, then look under Devices and Printers to click on Mouse. This will launch the Mouse Properties dialog window.
In Mouse Properties, navigate to the Pointers tab, then look under the Customize section. Scroll down to Text Select, click it, and then click the Browse… button:
HCD
In the file selection window that pops up, scroll down and select the beam_r.cur file (or just beam_r if you don’t have file extensions visible), then click Open. Finally, click OK. Your mouse pointer should now be visible in input text fields again.
Further reading: The best changes in Windows 11’s 2024 Update