Taking Care of the Basics

• Touchpad sensitivity can be affected by temperature extremes. Tracking movement can be affected by sweat and oil. So you want to make sure your hands and the pad are clean and that the laptop isn't overheating. Many touchpads have a physical lock to prevent you from interacting with it by accident when you don't want to use it. A slide or a strip next to the touchpad will indicate its status.
  
  

Checking Out Software Issues

• The Add/Remove Programs applet contains your touchpad software.
  
  If the touchpad is still inoperable, it's probably a software issue. Restart the laptop into Safe Mode. In Safe Mode, only the mouse drivers are loaded. Mouse management software is not. So if the mouse is working in Safe Mode, you know the problem is the software. Uninstall the software. Go into Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel. If your touchpad is not working in Safe Mode, you still will remove the software as a process of elimination because both the software and the drivers may be causing problems. Press the Windows key, then with your arrow keys navigate to the Control Panel, then Add/Remove Programs. Remove the software that mentions your touchpad. You will need to use the Tab key several times to cycle to the "Remove" button. When you've removed the touchpad software, reboot the laptop. To do that, press the Windows key and then the up arrow key to navigate to the shutdown menu.
  
  

Checking Out Driver Issues

• Device Manager contains your touchpad drivers.
  
  If it's still broken, there may be a driver issue. (You may want to plug in an external mouse at this point, but it's generally not a good idea to introduce additional hardware when trying to fix existing hardware.) Go into Device Manager to remove the drivers. Click the Windows key, then navigate through Control Panel>System>Hardware tab, Device Manager. Use the Tab key to navigate through the System Properties window. Go to "Mice and other pointing devices" by pressing the Tab key and navigating with the down arrow key. Hit the the right-arrow key to expand the menu. Select the mouse driver and press the menu key on your keyboard, usually between the space bar and the right-hand Ctrl key. Navigate to the Uninstall option with the down arrow key. There may be a category called "Other Devices" in the Device Manager. This is where all unrecognized devices go. Expand that menu and remove those devices.
  
  Reboot your laptop again. If Windows does not recognize your touchpad and reinstall its drivers at this point, you will probably need to consult your laptop manufacturer. You should be able to use a external mouse in the mean time.