Mouse cursor has trails following it as it moves.

Issue

Mouse cursor has trails following it as it mouse moves.

Cause

This is a Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows NT, and Windows XP feature.

Solution

This is a feature is known as a "pointer trail" feature and is designed to help users with smaller screens or difficulty with seeing the mouse cursor locate the mouse and track it more efficiently.

To enable / disable this feature follow the below steps.

  1. Click Start, Settings, Control Panel
  2. In Control Panel double-click the Mouse icon.
  3. In the Mouse Properties window click the "Motion" tab and check or uncheck the "Show pointer trails" option to enable or disable the feature.

Additional information

By default this feature is only found in the above listed Microsoft Windows operating systems, users who are using Microsoft Windows 2000 will need to install third-party software to enable mouse trails.