PS4 controller cannot reconnect on bluetooth

Submitted by famus484 on #1

When I connect my PS4 controller to mybluetooth dongle connected to my pc by virtualhere, the pairing works well, and so do all functionalities of the controller. However, if the controller is disconnected for any reason (stopping virtualhere or the device, shutting down pc, turn off the controller or connection temporaty lost), I cannot reconnect it whatsoever. When I try, the controller displays a pale blue light (the same color as pairing mode), and Windows settings say it's connected, but the controller is not detected by any software. The only workaround is forgeting the DS4 and restart the whole pairing process again, which is really tedious when done each session.

When I connect my PS4 controller to bluetooth via physical USB, the controller works perfectly, including trivial reconnection by pressing PS button.

I have tried two different dongles and I have tried Nvidia Shield and Linux Servers, with the same results. My PC bluetooth, while existent, is disabled in BIOS, so conflict seems unlikely. Other USB devices work well. Both my PC and Nvidia Shield TV are ethernet connected, and the latency is 95% well below 1ms, 99.99% below 2ms.

While I could wire connect the DS4, it would lead to other problems not worth dealing with. I have seen another post with similar issue ( https://www.virtualhere.com/content/usb-bluetooth-dongle-issues ) , but the solution evoked does not work for me, as the Sony adapter seems discontinued and quite expensive on Amazon.

Solving that problem would be really important to me.

Submitted by famus484 on Fri, 2021/07/30 - 12:00

#2

I have also tried to use client as a service, and to start with admin rights, it did not change anything

Submitted by famus484 on Fri, 2021/07/30 - 13:38

#4

Thank you for your help! It did seem like a good suspicion. I turned off USB selective suspend on client windows pc, and rebooted.

It might have helped? What I find is that even though the DS4 most often cannot reconnect, there were rare instances in which it did succeed, maybe twice in 30 tries. Moreover, the probability of success seems to go up to like 1/5 (or less, it's not consistent behavior) if I go in the "add bluetooth or other devices" menu, without selecting bluetooth.

Also, even in failure, the controller is connected to the PC. Indeed, the second I switch bluetooth off in the settings, the DS4 lightbar stops, indicating the controller is off.

My main dongle is registered in virtualhere as CSR8510 A10, with Vendor ID 0x0A12.

My second is the tp-link nano usb adapter. registered as null.

Submitted by Michael on Fri, 2021/07/30 - 15:01

#5

OK, could you double check you have the latest firmware in the gamepad & ps console https://www.playstation.com/en-au/support/hardware/ps4/system-software/ i see its recently updated.

Im thinking the bluetooth adapter might be ok and its the gamepad side of things. Its a really difficult to know exactly what the issue is. The fact it occurs on both bluetooth dongles tends to suggested the gamepad.

Submitted by famus484 on Sat, 2021/07/31 - 03:07

#6

I have also tried with another ps4 gamepad, with the same issue, multiple tries needed to reconnect. I do not have a ps4 console, but I don't find that there are firmware updates on the DS4 itself? Google didn't give me anything conclusive either.

Even though the gamepad itself may behave weird, I still feel that windows somehow treats the adapter (more precisely, the connected devices) a bit differently when it's on virtualhere compared to physical, as the reconnection works there. Also, the previous person (https://www.virtualhere.com/content/usb-bluetooth-dongle-issues) had bluetooth xbox controllers also not reconnecting, although I myself don't have one to test.

Is it impossible for you to reproduce the bug? Like, if you use the latest clients/server, a typical USB bluetooth adapter, a normal ps4 controller, reconnecting works everytime by pressing PS button? If so, can something be done in my drivers?

Submitted by Michael on Sat, 2021/07/31 - 10:01

#7

Actually i dont have a DS4 controller but i could probably buy one and give it a test this week...

Submitted by famus484 on Sun, 2021/08/01 - 02:14

#8

Ohhh, if that is possible, thank you! In the meanwhile, I'll also try to test other bluetooth devices and see what results I get. For example, my wiimotes have no problem at all, but I suspect that's because connections don't need to be remembered and that dolphin deals with them, not Windows.

Submitted by Michael on Sun, 2021/08/01 - 07:45

#9

Yes i ordered a ds4 controller yesterday from ebay, ill get it next week and i can test then.

Submitted by Andykt76 on Tue, 2021/08/03 - 02:17

#10

I have the same issue. Also disabled the bluetooth on my PC incase it interfered. Definitely a problem reconnecting my DS4 once it's been disconnected. Removing device and repairing gets it back, but not a solution.

Submitted by Michael on Tue, 2021/08/03 - 08:09

#11

Thank thanks for the report, i haven't yet got my controller but will around the 8th August.. then i can test

Submitted by famus484 on Tue, 2021/08/03 - 23:59

#13

Ah, perfect! Thank you very much for the support. Looking forward to the results of the test.

About the sony adaptor, living in Canada, I haven't found anywhere below 98$ (£65.69). I tried CEX website, but haven't found the item there.

Submitted by Andykt76 on Thu, 2021/08/05 - 23:19

#14

UPDATE - My Sony DS4 Wireless Adapter arrived today, seems I got lucky on the CEX purchase as famus484 pointed out they are like £60+ everywhere else!

I use DS4Windows to hide the DS4 inputs and emulate an XINPUT/X360 controller instead.

Using DS4Windows when I plugged the WA in, I see it appear in DS4Windows as "Sony WA (00:00:00:00:00:00) and it stays active in the software even before connecting my DS4. Once I paired a controller to it and it then shows the proper MAC address of the controller (but still as Sony WA (xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx).
Upon disconnecting the controller, it reverts to the 00's mac address, but crucially shows in the software still.

My other controller shows as DS4 v.2 (xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx) and when I remove it, it drops from the program.

This is all done locally with the wireless device plugged into my machine's USB port at the moment.

Once I have time, I'll stick the adapter into the RPI4 running the CludHub software and see how it behaves. Early signs seem to suggest that as the Sony WA device shows active all the time, so it might be OK (very similar to how my xbox360 wireless USB dongle operates on the VirtualHere cloud).

Also it appears I can only pair one controller to the WA at a time, if I try to pair my second controller, it forgets the first one connected. So if you need more than two DS4 controllers connected using this method, it may mean buying two of these adapters!

Submitted by Andykt76 on Fri, 2021/08/06 - 00:27

#15

Update, using the WA it re-connects every time, no more issues with the dreaded pale-blue light on the DS4 or trying to reconnect/delete device and pair again.

Hopefully Michael can fix it so the adapter isn't needed, but at least this is a workaround to get it working for now (albiet quite expensive).

Submitted by Michael on Sat, 2021/08/07 - 07:59

#16

OK thanks for letting me know, there is a covid lockdown where i am so the mail is delayed for a week or so...so i haven't yet received the controller

Submitted by famus484 on Sun, 2021/08/08 - 00:52

#17

I think the Sony WA works because the device itself might remember the connections, not the pc (hence why the pc always see a controller plugged). A way to confirm it would be to connect the WA in another compatible device, and see if the controller still automatically connects without pairing.

If yes, I think it works like the Mayflash Magic-NS in this department, which is exactly like that and way cheaper (23$, less than a quarter of Sony WA). Whichever device I plug it into (including through VirtualHere) only sees an always on controller (what kind depends on the mode, can be Dinput, Xinput, Switch Pro and others), whether my DS4 is turned off or on, and I can turn on my controller at any point, even after the game started, and it will just work.

The problem for me is motion controls. They only work when the device emulates a Switch Pro Controller, which is not that well supported on pc (and even less when it's a third party controller like the Magic-NS) and doesn't have analog triggers. Since motion controls are a fundamental part of my gaming experience (and why I got a VirtualHere license in the first place), I still use a bluetooth dongle (which works excellent except for the issue of the thread). But if someone wants the functionality but doesn't need motion controls on pc, the Magic-NS could be a good workaround.

Submitted by Andykt76 on Mon, 2021/08/09 - 16:22

#18

Yes to answer your question. The DS4 pairs when the usb is connected to another pc.
Also managed to pick up a 2nd dongle for £22 on ebay, pretty lucky find :)

Submitted by Michael on Wed, 2021/08/11 - 21:00

#19

OK i received my DS4 controller today and have started testing...

Submitted by famus484 on Fri, 2021/08/13 - 12:44

#20

Oh, super, that's good to know! Just to be sure this is a general problem, are you able to reproduce the issue?

Submitted by Michael on Fri, 2021/08/13 - 13:49

#21

Yes i was able to reproduce the problem. I havent figured out why it does that or how to fix it yet however :(

Submitted by Michael on Fri, 2021/08/13 - 21:13

#22

Ive spent a few hours looking at this but i find the exact cause. I see that just in windows (not even using virtualhere) this was a big issue about a year ago https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/all/ps4-controller-no…

Apparently microsoft made some fixes in windows 10 1903 (https://www.reddit.com/r/techsupport/comments/cy16ua/ps4_controller_not…) im thinking those fixes somehow arent being made when the device is sent via virtualhere. I think for the time being you will need to use that work-around plugging in the other device. I suspect its some bug in windows that is still there but microsoft might have just fixed it in their driver

Submitted by famus484 on Fri, 2021/08/13 - 22:25

#23

Thank you for trying! For me, another device cannot work. The Sony WA is wayyy too expensive for what it does at current price. In parallel, I had written Mayflash themselves about the Magic NS or Magic S Pro (a model with PS4 mode, making it functionally the Sony WA minus gyro), and they told me that adding gyro functionality to other modes except Switch Pro was not in the works. I don't know and have not heard about any other adapter.

Another solution I have tried is simply going full wired, but for some reason sudden disconnects/reconnects happen often, and when they do Windows does its weird Windows stuff and I can't reconnect as player 1 with DS4Windows until restart. Moreover, behavior with Moonlight is a bit chaotic, as the controller is used there before, so I also get Player 2 unless I do some hoops. So basically off the table.

Do you have a linux (and/or mac) client at the moment? That way, we could confirm that it really is a windows-only issue.

In the case it's a Windows-only issue, are there 3rd party bluetooth drivers? Like, a software that deals with pairing and remembering connections, that would work well with PS4 controllers?

I am still hopeful we can solve this :D

Submitted by Michael on Sat, 2021/08/14 - 20:59

#24

I am going to spend some more time early this week testing this more.

I dont understand how the bluetooth stack is constructed in windows as its not usb related, so im reading up about that...

Submitted by Michael on Mon, 2021/08/16 - 13:58

#25

I don't know unfortunately, i cant figure out why its doing that. I spent some more time over the weekend trying to figure it out. I couldn't accurately reproduce it in a constant series of steps. I was hoping there was some way e.g Disabling the driver in Device Manager or some sequence of turning off and on to get it to re-pair it but it didn't seem to help. Sometimes it reconnected immediately and sometimes it took 5 or more times for it to reconnect after a disconnect.

Submitted by Nonary on Mon, 2023/05/15 - 01:37

#26

Hi, I know it is rude to bump posts but just wanted to post here because this is basically the top google search result.

The latest Windows Update this month appears to have resolved this issue. I can now reconnect my DS4/DS5 controllers without having to use scripts to unpair and pair them again. It now works exactly as expected, if you are having this issue please make sure to update your Windows to the latest KB.

I am using Windows 11 22H2

Submitted by Michael on Mon, 2023/05/15 - 07:43

#27

Thats great news, thanks for letting me know!

Submitted by felipearmat on Thu, 2023/07/06 - 14:57

#28

I do have a problem like this on my PC, but not only with a DS4 joystick, but also with my joycons. It's seem to be something that get worse when I have the ds4windows active before connecting, but It also happens when I leave It stopped when connecting and start It after joysticks are paired. All of this suggests something like a driver problem... I would like to know If It is something related to Windows systems...

Anyway If you can find the reason behind this issue, at least people would get relieved that virtualhere isn't really the cause...

Submitted by Michael on Thu, 2023/07/06 - 18:09

#29

Are you running the latest update to win11 like in the prev post? 

Submitted by felipearmat on Thu, 2023/07/06 - 21:22

#30

Yes I've got latest update, I've never used virtualhere without this update actually. I even formatted my Windows OS to test If It would fix, but It didn't lol 🥲

I've Just have bought virtualhere like 4 days ago, and I've tested It in many ways since to use It with moonlight and have motion sensors working on games. I've got a DS4 joystick and a joycon pair, both have this problem, and I've checked many setups since then. I've noticed that the issue happens when using virtualhere, but having ds4windows active make it worse. I haven't tested the USB power saving thou, but I'm going to test It today. This seems to be a driver issue, since having ds4windows deactivated prior to conecting make things run smoother.

I've got unable to reconect joycons most of the time, and ds4 happens quite often with some variants, like not being recognised by ds4windows only and not being recognised by steam and ds4windows. Repairing always works for both.

I've also tested two dongles and discovered that my cheap dongle can only have two bluetooth devices connected at time and left a comment on a thread that someone was having the same problem.

I'm going to test more setups on next days and I will report those here, since I've read these threads I'm thinking about some conflict between steam and ds4windows when we use the virtualhere source.

 

Submitted by felipearmat on Fri, 2023/07/07 - 03:14

#31

Hi again!
I've just did some tests on many setups since I've noticed that everyone is trying to use it with DS4Windows and Steam.

TL;DR; This probably isn't a problem with VirtualHere. But, anyway, virtualHere make other softwares harder to recognise controllers. (maybe because some latency?)

Long Answer:
Since I've found some issues on reddit, steam foruns about the use of VirtualHere and also this forum I've decided to test some scenarios to get it right on what is causing the error with the DS4 and Joycon pairing.
--------------------------->Starting by DS4<----------------------------
With both DS4Windows and Steam disabled (USB and VirtualHere): It seems that bluetooth dongle always connect (I've tryed many many times), no sudden disconnection, and neither any necessity to re-pairing the joystick. Anyway, without Steam or DS4Windows DirectInput API, pairing a DS4 on crude windows is almost useless.
With Steam Running (USB): like the case before, DS4 joystick always connect. Sometimes the joystick gets connect and it takes a little time to Steam to recognise it and change the LED to clear Blue, but flawlesly Works.
With Steam Running (VirtualHere): The DS4 always connect, but sometimes it disconnects right after connecting. It seems that Steam tries to enable the driver for directInpuct and then some error occurs and it gets disconnected. Retrying gets it connected, but sometimes Steam doesn't seems to recognize it at all, sometimes the clear blue led turns on and it recognize it, working normally afterwards. Sometimes everything goes smooth and joystick works flawlessly on first try.
With DS4Windows Running (USB/VirtualHere): The DS4 always connect, but sometimes DS4Windows doesn't recognize it, what is weird... it should work just like Steam works, but it doesn't. Tested also by virtualHere and it ain't got any better, just the connection get more rare. Some docs on ds4windows says that slow response from bluetooth might cause this behavior.
With DS4Windows and Steam Running (USB/VirtualHere): In this setup all the other problems apply, it seems that you combine all the chances of it failing. Turning DS4Windows off with only steam On seems to be the best setup to use either with VirtualHere or with the dongle via USB (as I have concluded before all this investigation)
--------------------------->Joycons<----------------------------
Just with Windows: Joycons on windows, even when the dongle is in USB, seems to be very buggy. It never reconnects as far I've tryed, only by re-pairing it works again. It looks like the problem that we had with DS4 before the Windows 11 22H2 update, so it might be a native bluetooth problem on Windows and testing it through VirtualHere would not be of any benefit, once it seems that VirtualHere just does his job right (connecting the USB data to a remote computer).

Conclusion: This doesn't seem to be a problem with virtualhere itself, but it does make the Windows problem worse, maybe because some delay might be added to the packets sent through network, making Steam unable to recognise it sometimes. The DS4Windows seems to have some problems to recognize the joysticks, even when the dongle is on USB, and might be caused by low quality bluetooth dongle.

All tests where made with the USB server running on a Samsung Active 3 (Android 13) and the dongle is connected via OTG with native Bluetooth disabled (disabling the native bluetooth doesn't seem to make any difference anyway). Haven't tested it on other OS.

Submitted by Michael on Fri, 2023/07/07 - 08:20

#32

Its almost like its wifi interference.

(I know if you use nvidia shield with wifi and also try to use a bluetooth dongle via virtualhere on that the wifi interference is too much. And it will get dropouts or run really slow.)

If you can, use some other device as a vh server and connect it to the network via ethernet and i suspect it would work

Submitted by felipearmat on Fri, 2023/07/07 - 12:37

#33

I will try the setup using my cellphone with wi-fi disabled to check If the chance of get It right improves. Anyway, the virtualhere software seems to work just right. The real problem seems to be with windows drivers itself... 🥲

Submitted by Nonary on Sat, 2023/07/08 - 12:42

#34

As a follow up from doing this for about 2 months now... I don't know the exact percentages, I'd guess about 90% of the time it works fine without needing to unpair the controller since the windows update. Which is a complete reversal of what it was, where it would fail 90% of the time. 

I don't have to unpair and pair anymore, if it does get stuck a simple toggle of bluetooth generally fixes it.

As for DS4 tool, I use that and haven't noticed any more issues.

Submitted by Snake on Sat, 2024/10/05 - 03:51

#35

im still having the same problem here even with windows 11 24H2 update, is there any solution ?