GNS 530 - Peripherals (stick, throttle & pedals) Freeze

[Gustavo]

Hello,

I hope you all are doing well.

I noticed the peripherals (stick, throttle & pedals) disconnect or freeze on several occasions:
- When GPS window is maximized (R_ALT + Enter) in the unit
- When you click on things on a second monitor (not always but often)
Then it unfreezes by itself after a min or two. A faster option is to press again R_ALT+ENTER or minimize the GPS window in the unit if the window was not in full screen, that action unfreezes the peripherals. I decided to leave it maximized (without R_ALT+ENTER) so I can quickly minimize/maximize when it happens. But it is a pain, since I'm constantly checking things in the other monitor when flying (e.g. approach plates, Say Intentions, Little Navmap, etc.).

I am running the Game in Steam, Windows 11,
System Model: OMEN by HP Gaming Laptop 16-wf0xxx
Processor: 13th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-13700HX, 2100 Mhz, 16 Core(s), 24 Logical Processor(s)
Installed Physical Memory (RAM): 32.0 GB
Graphic Card: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU
VKB Stick and Throttle
Virpil pedals

Thanks!

 

[Administrator]

Hello,

I hope you all are doing well.

I noticed the peripherals (stick, throttle & pedals) disconnect or freeze on several occasions:
- When GPS window is maximized (R_ALT + Enter) in the unit
- When you click on things on a second monitor (not always but often)
Then it unfreezes by itself after a min or two. A faster option is to press again R_ALT+ENTER or minimize the GPS window in the unit if the window was not in full screen, that action unfreezes the peripherals. I decided to leave it maximized (without R_ALT+ENTER) so I can quickly minimize/maximize when it happens. But it is a pain, since I'm constantly checking things in the other monitor when flying (e.g. approach plates, Say Intentions, Little Navmap, etc.).

I am running the Game in Steam, Windows 11,
System Model: OMEN by HP Gaming Laptop 16-wf0xxx
Processor: 13th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-13700HX, 2100 Mhz, 16 Core(s), 24 Logical Processor(s)
Installed Physical Memory (RAM): 32.0 GB
Graphic Card: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU
VKB Stick and Throttle
Virpil pedals

Thanks!

This is a known MSFS behavior: when a pop‑out or pop‑up window (GPS, VFR map, etc.) or another app on a second monitor has focus, MSFS can stop processing joystick/throttle/pedal input until focus returns to the main sim window. The fact that it “unfreezes” when you hit R‑ALT+ENTER or re‑focus the GPS window matches this.

What is happening​

• MSFS only processes controller input while its main 3D view window has focus; when a pop‑out cockpit window or external app has focus, the sim can ignore joystick/HID input even though visuals and sound continue.
• This is especially reproducible with pop‑out avionics/VFR map moved to a second monitor: as soon as that window has focus, the stick, throttle, and pedals appear “frozen” until focus returns to the main MSFS window.
• Using ALT+TAB or ALT+ENTER, or even opening the security screen (CTRL+ALT+DEL then Cancel), often “nudges” Windows/MSFS back into a good focus state, which is why your workaround works.

Things to change in MSFS​

Try these changes first (one at a time, but you’ll likely want a combo):

• Run the sim in borderless/windowed instead of exclusive fullscreen; use the in‑sim Display Mode setting, and avoid using R‑ALT+ENTER if possible.
• If you are using pop‑out panels (right‑ALT + click on GPS), test one flight without any pop‑outs and only the in‑cockpit GPS to confirm that the freeze only happens when a pop‑out exists.
• If you do need the pop‑out, keep the main MSFS window as the active window: after clicking something on the second monitor, click once back on the main 3D view before touching controls. This avoids the “focus stuck on pop‑out” state.

Windows / GPU settings to try​

These reduce focus/monitor weirdness under Windows 11 with gaming laptops:

• In NVIDIA Control Panel, set both monitors to the same refresh rate if possible and disable G‑Sync/VRR for MSFS while testing, as mixed refresh plus exclusive fullscreen can cause oddities.
• Make sure no third‑party overlays (GeForce Experience, Steam overlay, Xbox Game Bar, Discord overlay) are grabbing focus while you are interacting with the second monitor; temporarily disable them and re‑test.

Controller‑specific checks​

Even though this is focus‑related, confirm there is no HID power‑saving or USB reset involved:

• In Device Manager, under Human Interface Devices and USB controllers, disable “Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power” for your VKB and Virpil devices and for the USB root hubs.
• If you use VKB/Virpil software, make sure they are in standard joystick/HID mode with no virtual keyboard/mouse layers that might confuse focus handling when you click other windows.

Practical workflow workaround​

Until Asobo/Steam/Windows fully iron this out, a stable way to operate with charts/“Say Intentions”/Little Navmap on the second monitor is:

• Keep MSFS in borderless windowed mode and avoid using R‑ALT+ENTER during the session.
• After interacting with anything on the second monitor, make a habit of a single click into the 3D view before moving the stick/throttle; that re‑asserts focus on the sim and prevents the 1–2 minute “freeze” you’re seeing.

If you want, share whether you are actually using MSFS 2020 or 2024 and whether your GPS/VFR windows are “popped out” to the second display or just maximized in‑cockpit; with that detail, a more targeted set of steps for your exact layout can be suggested.

 

[Gustavo]

Thanks for the reply! I will try a few things and let you know. Cheers!