Associating a DualShock 4 controller with Windows 7
#1
So, a lot of you know this can be quite problematic, and Windows 7 has a different Bluetooth stack than Windows 8, and it behaves weirdly with the DS4. I've come up with a list of stuff to do to help ensure the controller associates properly on the first try, and have tested it numerous times.

Step 1: Reset all Bluetooth devices and settings.
If you have NEVER attempted to associate the DS4 controller in question, you can probably skip this step.

To do this, you must first uninstall your bluetooth adapter:

1.) Click start, and type "device manager" open the first thing that shows up.
2.) Under Bluetooth devices, right-click your Bluetooth adapter and click Uninstall
3.) Leave device manager open after you complete the uninstall, we'll need it later.

Then, you'll need to remove the following keys from the registry - these are system protected keys, so you MAY NEED to install sysinternals, and follow an additional step.

1.) Click start, type "regedit" and open the first thing that shows up.
Before proceeding, click file, then export and save a backup to your desktop!
2.) Navigate the left-hand side to this location:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Enum\
3.) Right-click on BTHENUM and click delete.
4.) Right-click on BTH and click delete.
If step 3 or 4 fail due to a "permissions" error, follow the steps below, if not - move on.

1.) Install Sysinternals from here: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysin...42062.aspx
2.) After you have installed sysinternals, open an administrator level command prompt by clicking start, typing "cmd" and right-clicking the command prompt and selecting "run as administrator"
3.) in the administrator command prompt type "psexec -i -s regedit.exe" and press enter. This will create a system level process and run Regedit as the child of that process. DO NOT FIDDLE WITH OTHER REGISTRY ENTRIES WHILE RUNNING IN THIS MANNER - you can literally delete ANYTHING now.

Step 2: Reinstall your Bluetooth adapter
1.) Switch back to Device Manager
2.) Click the far-right icon on the toolbar ("Scan for Hardware changes")
3.) You should hear the detection sound and the Bluetooth adapter should reinstall - IF IT DOES NOT; restart your computer, it should reinstall on boot.

Step 3: Disable the device permission dialog
This feature of Windows 7 seems to be the main problem with the DS4 associating with a Windows 7 computer.
1.) Click the Bluetooth icon in the taskbar (bottom right, you may have to click the arrow to reveal it)
2.) Click Open Settings
3.) In the settings window UNCHECK the box that says Alert me when a new Bluetooth device wants to connect (you can probably re-enable this later when all of your controllers are working)
4.) Click "Ok"

Step 4: Associate your DS4 controller.
BEFORE DOING THE STEPS BELOW Stop any DS4tool you have running. Make sure they are NOT running at all - they can interrupt the pairing process.
1.) Go back to the Bluetooth icon in the taskbar
2.) Click Add a Device
3.) Hold the PS button and Share to put the controller into pairing mode.
4.) Select the controller (not the headset portion) and click next
5.) Immediately the controller will detect, but the Bluetooth stack will turn it off during driver installation. This also ruins the pairing. To prevent this, every time the controller turns off - press the PS button again. Eventually the controller will stay on, and the driver installation will have finished.
6.) Click start, type "Game Controllers" and click the first option that shows up.
7.) Double click on "Wireless Game Controller" and verify your DS4 now works.
8.) Open up your DS4Tool of choice and see that the controller behaves as intended.
You're DONE!

I know this seems like a lot of steps, but once you've done it you'll realize its not that hard. Especially since you can skip Step 1 if you have not associated the controller with the Bluetooth adapter on the current install of Windows before. I really really dislike Windows 8/8.1 and have been successful enough getting controllers to pair by trial and error until now. Today I received a new Bluetooth dongle (my old one had some odd latency issues) and decided to figure out a nearly failproof method to pair on Windows 7. This seems to be it, I've deleted the controller and re-paired multiple times with a high success rate.

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#2
(08-27-2014, 09:58 PM)Xaero Wrote: So, a lot of you know this can be quite problematic, and Windows 7 has a different Bluetooth stack than Windows 8, and it behaves weirdly with the DS4. I've come up with a list of stuff to do to help ensure the controller associates properly on the first try, and have tested it numerous times.

Good write up, thanks for doing this!
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#3
I'm having trouble getting "psexec -i -s regedit.exe" to run. It gives me an error in the command prompt window. I believe I the sysinternals stuff installed properly. Any suggestions?
#4
(11-28-2014, 06:45 AM)srghyc Wrote: I'm having trouble getting "psexec -i -s regedit.exe" to run. It gives me an error in the command prompt window. I believe I the sysinternals stuff installed properly. Any suggestions?

One suggestion would be to give us the error so we know what it is.
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#5
Thumbs Down 
Hello

I'm having an issue here. I am stuck at the very end (Step 3 6) )

The driver installation did finish perfectly (the HID thing). Now my issue is, the device will not show up under my paired bluetooth devices, BUT, if i press the PS button, the light bar stays light up. Therefore, it is safe to assume the DS4 is paired with the computer, but for some reason every traces of it went rogue. It does not appear in the device manager, nor i appears in the bluetooth devices.

I can try to re-pair it, it'll work and do the same. It shows up into my "Devices and Printer" window labelled as "Wireless Controller", it doesn't show up in the "Game Controller" window, then its name switches to HID, then it goes rogue, and i hear the hardware unmounting sound.

Which is weird, because afterwards, once i click the PS button on the DS4, the light stays on, just like if it paired. I can shut it down holding the PS button for 10 seconds, and restart it, it will instantly pair.

If i turn off my bluetooth daughter card, the DS4 will not pair doe (aka will not become a full lighted bar).

This is super frustrating. I spent my entire day fixing up the stupid bluetooth daughter card in my Lenovo T420, and spend my whole evening trying to figure this out. Please help.

If that helps, i am running "ThinkPad Bluetooth 3.0" in my device manager.

EDIT 1 :

Sorry for the double posting but i have an update already.

Now what i meant in case i wasn't clear is that either the controller show up on the computer during installation or it's paired. It cannot do both for some reason. It never shows up in the DS4 tool neither.

Now one thing that just left me wondering is, the device changes name at some point randomly. It changes from any name i gave it (i called it "DS4") and at some point it changes to "HID game controller" which is dumb, it shouldn't be changing on its own.

If i open the properties before the controller goes rogue, in "General" and "Hardware" tab, the device is called "DS4". In "Services", the list goes blank. In the "Bluetooth" tab, the devices shown name is "HID Game Controller" and i have a lot of missing information.

Please help this is incredibly frustrating. It's obviously a windows issue because i can get the controller to work using a cable. There's just something getting into conflict with stupid bluetooth but i just can't figure it out on my own so far.

Thanks.

EDIT 2 :

Me again, new update on the weird situation. What i just realised here is pretty funky. When the controller goes rogue, if i left open the service tab with the checkbox (checked HID Services), the i can uncheck the device and recheck it, then it reappears labelled as "DS4" again and shows up in the "Game Controller" window, but then its name rechanges to "HID Game Controller" and it dissappears again.

The controller never responds to anything. When plugged, i can use the trackpad to actually move the mouse with the controller. Now it seems paired but it's lifeless. If i try to test the Game Controller, it simply have no reaction to any input. All i have is a unconfirmed paired, lifeless controller.

That's pretty boring cause i don't know what i'm doing wrong so far.

Thanks again for reading all of my problems, hope you can fix them.

EDIT 3 : Changed some formatting.
#6
Update on the situation.

I believe i have managed to circle the issue here. If you read the post above, remember i mentionnend my controller was suddently disappearing when it was switching from "DS4" (or "Wireless Controller") to "HID Gamepad"?

Well now i've realised if i do not go in the bluetooth services and check the "Driver for keyboard, mouse, etc. (HID)" checkbox, the gamepad does not suddently disappears.

But it's grayed out and refuses to do anything. When i try to pair the device, it does pair for a second (Solid light), then the device shuts down.

If i check the box for the driver, i hear the new device sound in windows. The wireless controller is not grayed out anymore in the Devices and Printers window. There's a clock showing to it's left bottom. Then, the clock disappears, the name changes to HID Gamepad, and the controller disappears completly from the devices and printers window.

But the weirdest part is that now when i press the PS button, the controller pairs and stays paired for at least a good 30 secondes of inactivity. It's "Paired", but it's not shown anywhere in windows.

Bonus : Since the property window for the wireless controller is still oppened, i can uncheck the box and recheck it back. If i do so, when unchecked, the controller instantly unpairs. If i check back the box, the controller reappears for a second in the Devices and printers window, labelled as "HID Gamepad", and then is gone again.


My final beliefs is that Windows automaticly deletes all my HID Gamepad devices when connected via bluetooth. I do not understand why, but Windows refuses to leave them there. Because if they would stay in the Devices and Printers window, since the controller pairs, i would have no issues at all.

These hardware behaviors are confusing.

Many thanks for the reading, hope you know about HID Gamepad drivers.
#7
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#8
Hello everyone.

I am still struggling with the issue. I stopped trying now because i've hit a wall. If someone could help me out a little i would appreciate. Many thanks again.
#9
Just registered to say thanks. Took me hours but this finally did the trick and I'm using the DS4 wirelessly with xpadder on Morrowind right now. Tight!
#10
Sad 
Ok, I've followed this and am still having problems.

So, my DS4 seems to pair ok, and I see it under the bluetooth devices as a "wireless controller" but it does NOT appear under the game controllers section of the device manager at all. It does when I plug it in via USB.

I have the appropriate Microsoft Accessories and .NET installed.

Also, I'm using this dongle from amazon: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00M3RFII2/re...TE_3p_dp_1

Any ideas? It's driving me crazy!




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