[libhid-discuss] Does libhid require a driver installation on windows?

[Gabriel Rossetti]

Hello,

I would like to use the HID interface so that I do not have to write a
driver to control my USB device. I found libhid and it looks interesting
as it is cross platform. I see that it uses libusb, and the last time I
had used libusb I had to install a driver on windows. I read on the
libhid mailing list that libusb-win32 was going to use the native
windows HID driver in it's future releases, which would require no
/>/ > The thing is that you need to uninstall the kernel HID driver and
/>/ > use the libusb-win32 device driver for this kind of HID device. This
/>/ > significantly reduces the usability of libusb-win32 for HID device
/>/ > under Windows. Yet many USB device disguise them as HID device
/>/ > just to avoid writing a device driver.
/>/ >
/>/ > Just wondering if it is possible to use an alternative backend
/>/ > (Windows HID apli) and make libusb a wrapper on top of it.
/>/ > I understand then it should perhaps be called libhid-win32 then.
/>/
/>/ This sounds like a great idea! I'll add a native HID backend to the
/>/ next version of the DLL. It should be possible to implement most of
/>/ libusb's features on top of Windows' hid.dll such as open, close,
/>/ interrupt-read/write and basic control messages. The rest can be
/>/ emulated/simulated.
/>

(http://lists.alioth.debian.org/pipermail/libhid-discuss/2007-April/000136.html)

I searched both libhid's and libusb's websites and I found nothing
concerning this, does anyone know what the current status is? Does a
driver have to be installed to use libhid on windows? Also, what is the
difference/advantage with using libhid in comparison with directly using
libusb's hid support?

Thank you,
Gabriel

[Xiaofan Chen]

On Wed, Mar 11, 2009 at 4:51 PM, Gabriel Rossetti

Post by Gabriel Rossetti
/>/ > The thing is that you need to uninstall the kernel HID driver and
/>/ > use the libusb-win32 device driver for this kind of HID device. This
/>/ > significantly reduces the usability of libusb-win32 for HID device
/>/ > under Windows. Yet many USB device disguise them as HID device
/>/ > just to avoid writing a device driver.
/>/ >
/>/ > Just wondering if it is possible to use an alternative backend
/>/ > (Windows HID apli) and make libusb a wrapper on top of it.
/>/ > I understand then it should perhaps be called libhid-win32 then.
/>/
/>/ This sounds like a great idea! I'll add a native HID backend to the
/>/ next version of the DLL. It should be possible to implement most of
/>/ libusb's features on top of Windows' hid.dll such as open, close,
/>/ interrupt-read/write and basic control messages. The rest can be
/>/ emulated/simulated.
/>
(http://lists.alioth.debian.org/pipermail/libhid-discuss/2007-April/000136.html)
I searched both libhid's and libusb's websites and I found nothing
concerning this, does anyone know what the current status is? Does a
driver have to be installed to use libhid on windows? Also, what is the
difference/advantage with using libhid in comparison with directly using
libusb's hid support?

You can try out the SVN version of libsub-win32 1.0. Last time
I tried it out, it has the HID backend (along with WinUSB backend
and the libusb-win32 device driver backend). It could find the device,
but interrupt read/write did not work.

The SVN version:
http://libusb-win32.svn.sourceforge.net/viewvc/libusb-win32/trunk/libusb1/

It seems to me that this has not been updated for a while. So I guess
it is still not working. But Stephan mentioned that he would try to
finish this with this year.

libhid is right now based on libusb.

Xiaofan

[Gabriel Rossetti]

Post by Xiaofan Chen
On Wed, Mar 11, 2009 at 4:51 PM, Gabriel Rossetti

Post by Gabriel Rossetti
/>/ > The thing is that you need to uninstall the kernel HID driver and
/>/ > use the libusb-win32 device driver for this kind of HID device. This
/>/ > significantly reduces the usability of libusb-win32 for HID device
/>/ > under Windows. Yet many USB device disguise them as HID device
/>/ > just to avoid writing a device driver.
/>/ >
/>/ > Just wondering if it is possible to use an alternative backend
/>/ > (Windows HID apli) and make libusb a wrapper on top of it.
/>/ > I understand then it should perhaps be called libhid-win32 then.
/>/
/>/ This sounds like a great idea! I'll add a native HID backend to the
/>/ next version of the DLL. It should be possible to implement most of
/>/ libusb's features on top of Windows' hid.dll such as open, close,
/>/ interrupt-read/write and basic control messages. The rest can be
/>/ emulated/simulated.
/>
(http://lists.alioth.debian.org/pipermail/libhid-discuss/2007-April/000136.html)
I searched both libhid's and libusb's websites and I found nothing
concerning this, does anyone know what the current status is? Does a
driver have to be installed to use libhid on windows? Also, what is the
difference/advantage with using libhid in comparison with directly using
libusb's hid support?

You can try out the SVN version of libsub-win32 1.0. Last time
I tried it out, it has the HID backend (along with WinUSB backend
and the libusb-win32 device driver backend). It could find the device,
but interrupt read/write did not work.
http://libusb-win32.svn.sourceforge.net/viewvc/libusb-win32/trunk/libusb1/
It seems to me that this has not been updated for a while. So I guess
it is still not working. But Stephan mentioned that he would try to
finish this with this year.
libhid is right now based on libusb.
Xiaofan

Ok, thank you,

Gabriel