Excel keep scrolling until I didn't click somewhere else, even without hover

Question

I'm using Windows 10 with a dual monitor setup. I'm having an issue where I want to scroll on the software with my mouse by simply hovering over the program, but this does not always work.

Here is a typical example of what my layout looks like:

On the left screen, I have a VS code opened (for this example this program could be anything else).
On the right screen, I have Excel opened. When Excel is clicked on and has focus, it keeps scrolling ONLY in Excel until I click on something else.

Even when my mouse is hovered over something other than Excel, it will still only scroll Excel. This issue only seems to happen with Excel, not with Word or other applications.

My mouse is a Logitech M185 (wireless). The issue is really only with excel and the scroll lock seems to be disabled.

How can I fix it?

Wireless mouse with dongle? Try unplugging the dongle, wait 30s then plug back in again. — Tetsujin, May 31 '23 at 11:41
@Tetsujin Yes with wireless mouse with dongle. With pad (my PC is a thinkpad) it seems to works fine. Do what you ask didn't change anything — Elikill58, May 31 '23 at 11:52
Both already tried, also the problem seems to be only on excel so I think it's not directly related to mouse — Elikill58, May 31 '23 at 11:55
Maybe you have Scroll Lock On? https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/turn-off-scroll-lock-a78492cc-c124-4782-a38b-df46669520e0 — Yisroel Tech, May 31 '23 at 19:22
@YisroelTech it's disabled on my virtual keyboard and on excel (as described at end of the article) — Elikill58, Jun 01 '23 at 06:24
See my answer below, but in the meantime perhaps let us know which build of Windows you are using, and which version of Excel you have installed. — Kalamalka Kid, Jun 01 '23 at 18:15

Kalamalka Kid · Accepted Answer · 2023-06-01T18:20:25.167

This seems to be an ongoing window focus issue with Excel and Windows. As described in this answer:

It appears as though Microsoft addressed this issue in the Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 17040 for PC

We fixed an issue where inactive window scrolling wouldn’t work if Excel 2016 was in focus.

For those of us not subscribed to Insider Preview Builds, we must wait until Microsoft deems this ready for release. At the time of the original response, the public release is Version 1709.

There are various comments in that answer that suggest this issue is off and on, so it is possible that even though this issue was resolved by Microsoft in the past, that it may have resurfaced. A very recent posting about the issue can be seen HERE which is dated June 28, 2022 so its likely the issue is still present.

There may be something that could be done on the user end by enabling 'inactive scrolling' as described in this article. To do so, follow these steps:

Right-click on the Windows Start button and choose Settings.
Go to Devices.
Navigate to the Mouse settings in the left-sidebar.
Turn on the toggle below "Scroll inactive windows when I hover over them.

Sadle, this option is already on true... And on another computer that didn't make the update, it seems to be working so yes, the latest versions seems to break it — Elikill58, Jun 02 '23 at 06:13

Excel keep scrolling until I didn't click somewhere else, even without hover

1 Answers1