Can't drag and drop objects in Visio Pro 2021

[zimbrich]

I have this issue that started about two (2) weeks ago. I can't drag an object with my mouse but have no problem resizing it with the mouse, or moving it by the arrow keys. This also affects dragging and dropping a shape onto my sheet. If I click on the shape then hit copy (ctrl-C) then move my mouse to the sheet and paste (ctrl-V) the shape appears on my sheet. But, as above I cannot move it with the mouse.

I have read many posts in many places and have tried the "magic esc key while using the mouse" and that did nothing. I have performed a "repair" on the app in "Settings > Apps > Installed apps" but no change. One odd thing I noticed is that I have two (2) instances of Visio listed in my apps, both listed as "Microsoft Visio - en-us 16.0.18129.20158 | Microsoft Corporation | 11/22/2024". This is running on a Surface Pro 9 with Windows 11 Pro 24H2 with O/S build of 26120.2702. This does not happen in any other programs. Drag and drop functions fine in everything except Visio Pro 2021.

Has anyone else seen this behavior? Is there a known fix?

Thanks!!

[zimbrich]

UPDATE:
I have figured out that if I drag a shape right to the page, it will not allow me to drop it there. All I get is the red "slash circle". But if I drag just slightly out of the shapes group, I have a small "window" in which I can drop the shape, and that works but the shape is placed on the far right of my screen. As described in the previous post, I can resize shape, rotate, etc. with mouse and move shape with arrow keys only. But I cannot move the object with the mouse.

Here is where it gets really weird. If I move the shape back to the far left (off the page) I can then left-click to drag it, but a "transparent" version of the same shape appears on the far-right side of my screen, and I can place (drop) it there. I have included a ScreenRec video of what this looks like, since describing it in detail is difficult.

https://screenrec.com/share/XP47QLt6bY

[Nikolay]

Just watched the video - looks weird. May there be an issue is with some unusual monitor setup?
Like, you have five monitors, and some of them are horizontal and some vertical or something
If it is a laptop connected to some monitors, could you try if the issue can be reproduced when the monitor is disconnected?

I can also think of some weird graphic card settings. Do you have some "tweaker" tool for it or some similar utility like virtual desktop, maybe?
That is, from the video, it looks like the mouse position is calculated incorrectly by Visio for some reason.

One more idea - could you try to disable hardware acceleration (in Visio settings)?

[Surrogate]

One more idea - could you try to disable hardware acceleration (in Visio settings)?

Is there an option to disable hardware acceleration in the latest updates?

 For example in this build or latest...

[Nikolay]

I think in 2021 there was this option, i.e. it was removed later.
But not sure. Maybe the registry setting is kept.

It is just something to try though, I would not put much hope on that.
From the video, it looks more like somehow mouse coordinates are not matching to Visio coordinates.
I have never seen this behavior, so just shooting in the dark basically. Could also be some special monitor or some software installed.

@zimbrich
If there are Microsoft support tickets, I would just try that. They actually still have human support, that is helpful.

[zimbrich]

@nikolay I think you are on to something. I have a Microsoft Surface Pro 9 with a Thunderbolt 4 Docking Station with two (2) additional monitors (24" Dell and a 27" Sceptre 4K). I usually run Visio on my 27" Sceptre since it is larger and has 4K resolution. But itf I drag Visio to the middle monitor which is the Surface Pro 9 it works perfectly. If I drag it to my Dell monitor, I no longer have the "dead spots" like shown in the video. I just added the 27" Scepre 4K two (2) days ago and it is running 2880 x 1920 which is what is recommended for the SP9 (2:1 display, I believe). Whereas the new 27" Sceptre is running 3840 x 2160. Before two (2) days ago, I ran the 27" Sceptrre (non-4K version) at a lower resolution. This ecplains why it started to act differently.

This definitely is monitor related. Thanks for the catch! I have a few other programs that have somewhat similar behavior (Carveco Maker for CNC Router designs) does something strange as well. If I run "simulation" with the control bar, the control bar shows up on the center monitor (Carveco is again used on the right monitir which is the 27" Sceptre (new one or old one).I can then drag it back to the monitor I am working on. It is one of those little quirks I have learned to live with since I run simulation so infrequently (not like draging shapes onto my sheet in Visio which I do much more frequently). O do not see "hardware acceleration" setting but I will keep looking. At this oint, I need to get this topic started on the Surface support page (I have posted duplicates of each of these posts on this Microsoft help topic:

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/msoffice/forum/all/visio-2021-cannot-movedrag-shapes-on-page-or-from/448edeb8-11cb-40c4-b297-eb4172f9e792?rtAction=1735488322962

Thanks for the suggestions and the help!!

[zimbrich]

UPDATE: It seems to be related to the monitor it runs on and where they are positioned relative to th eSurface Pro 9. For reference, I have a Dell 24" monitor on the left, my SP9 in the middle and a Sceptre U275W 27"4K monitor on the right. If I run Visio on the right (Sceptre) monitor, I get the behavior in the video (link above in my last post). If I drag Visio to the center monitir (SP9 Display) Visio works exactly as expected. If I drag Visio to the left (Dell 24") monitir, I see similar behavior as in the video (link above) but if I move the mouse cursor, the shape moves in a disproportionate ratio to the mouse as I move from the lower left to the upper right. I am totally baffled by this.

Also on the right monitor, the "active" zone as I am calling it, moves according to where I position that monitir in the System > Displays > Multiple Displays graphic in Windows settings.

Here is what I have:

Dell 24" 1902 x 1080 (Recommended)
SP9 2880 x 1920 (Recommended)
Sceptre 27" 4K 3840 x 2160 (Recommended)
All connected to a Thunderbold™ 4 Dock.

Visio on Dell 24" Monitor:
ScreenRec Video

[wapperdude]

Visio running correctly on the "host" processor screen seems reasonable.  That would be where I would think the mouse is getting its settings.  (So says he who is multi screen naive.). Have you tried setting the two aux screens to the same setting as center screen such that all have same settings? 

[wapperdude]

I pursued this with M$ Copilot, describing your setup.  Here is the response:

Here are a few potential reasons and solutions:
Resolution and DPI Scaling: When you have monitors with different resolutions and DPI (dots per inch) settings, the operating system has to scale the display content differently for each screen. This can cause issues with mouse tracking and app behavior. Ensuring all monitors have the same resolution and DPI settings can help mitigate this problem. 1,2

Multi-Monitor Support in Apps: Some applications, including Visio, might not handle multi-monitor setups with different resolutions very well. This can lead to abnormal behavior when moving the app between screens. Running multiple instances of Visio, one on each screen, might help. 3,4

Graphics Driver and Settings: Outdated or misconfigured graphics drivers can also cause issues in multi-monitor setups. Make sure your graphics drivers are up to date and configured correctly for a multi-monitor environment. 1

Operating System Settings: Windows has settings to manage multiple displays. Ensure that the "Extend these displays" option is selected and configured properly. Sometimes, tweaking these settings can resolve display and mouse behavior issues. 5

Physical Size and Aspect Ratio: Different physical sizes and aspect ratios can also contribute to the problem. While having identical resolutions might help, it won't completely eliminate issues if the physical sizes and aspect ratios are different. 6

In summary, while having identical resolutions on all screens can help improve the situation, it might not completely resolve the issue if other factors like DPI scaling, graphics settings, and app support are not addressed.

1: www.digitaltrends.com
2: answers.microsoft.com
3: answers.microsoft.com
4: answers.microsoft.com
5: answers.microsoft.com
6: www.tomsguide.com

[Nikolay]

Looks like a bug to me. I would raise a support ticket,
and let them look at that or at least make a new issue in their tracker to fix that.

BTW, I'm also using 3-monitor configuration (and one of them is 4K), but for me, Visio works just fine on all monitors.
Meaning, this bug is not a generic one; this must be a specific monitor or hardware setup or configuration.

[zimbrich]

@wapperdude, thank you for the suggestions. I am familiar with all of the points raised and am confident that none of the suggestions resolve the issue. But many thanks for the reply.

@Nikolay, I am in total agreement with you as this issue is only seen in Visio Professional 2021. I have been running Visio on many different PCs since Visio 2007 (I think...) and have been running multiple monitors for a very long time with no issues. It may be coincidental, but I had a major Windows 11 issue about 2 months ago with one of the Windows Updates hanging up. I spent six (6) hours on the phone with Microsoft support (four different support persons, and totally free because it was a Windows Update issue) and in the end we resolved the issue and I did not lose any installed apps or files. But it seems like this issue started around then. Previous to that issue, I had been running this Surface Pro 9 for over a year with three (3) monitors (one was the SP9 and the other two were a Dell 24" and a Sceptre 27" non-4K) and had absolutely no issues with Visio.

I will try to reach out to Microsoft Visio support and see if I can get anywhere there. Thanks again for the reply!!

[zimbrich]

UPDATE: Solution found with the help of Microsoft support. It did have to do with DPI settings (thanks @wapperdude!) and was in a very obscure location.

• Find the "Visio" shortcut (use "All" for list of apps in Windows 11 or "Start" menu in Windows 10
• Right-click and select "Go to file location" from the context menu
• Right-click on Visio shortcut and select "Properties" from the context menu
• In "Properties", select "Compatibility" tab
• Towards the bottom, select "Change high DPI settings"
• From there, check the "Override high DPI scaling behavior"
• Select "Ok" and then "Ok" to close properties
• Restart Visio

[wapperdude]

Glad this is resolved.  I think Nikolay  deserves more credit than I do.  For my part, AI partially filled in the voids.  Hopefully, this post will help multi monitor users.

[BANovice]

I have a similar issue. I am using 2 external BenQ monitors with an HP Spectre with Windows 11. I cannot move shapes or place shape to the diagram using the external monitors. I've tried with the track pad and an external mouse. I can move shapes with my mouse if Visio is on my primary laptop monitor. I noticed with the external mouse that when Visio is on my second monitor, the mouse pointer is grabbing items from the start bar on my third monitor and not the shape I am clicked on.

I don't use Visio on a regular basis so I don't know exactly when this started. The last time I used Visio was in November 2024.

[wapperdude]

Have you verified all of the settings / suggestions?