Mouse without Borders - use own security key

Question

Mouse without Borders - use own security key

BrianC 20

Is there a way to use my own personalised security key for Mouse without Borders, not one generated on one of the devices.

I managed to do this for 5+ years, until recently, when the app started insisting on a unique security key generated on at least one of the PCs. I only use the app on my home LAN, and don't want to have to copy the complex key to each of 5 PCs.

This should be an option the user can choose to use or not.

How can I work around this?

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Answer 1

Dear BrianC,

Manually Setting a Custom Security Key in Mouse without Borders May Offer a Workaround

It is no longer possible to directly input a personalized security key through the Mouse without Borders user interface. Recent versions of the software, particularly since its integration into Microsoft's PowerToys suite, mandate the generation of a security key on one computer which must then be used on all other connected devices.

This change from older, standalone versions of Mouse without Borders has been a point of frustration for long-time users who preferred the convenience of a simple, memorable key for their local network setups. The current design prioritizes a more secure, automatically generated key to encrypt the connection between computers.

However, there is a potential workaround that involves manually editing the application's configuration file. This method is not officially supported and requires careful editing of a JSON file.

Potential Workaround: Editing the settings.json File

Users have reported success in setting a custom security key by following these steps:

Locate the configuration file: The settings for Mouse without Borders are stored in a file named settings.json. You can find this file in the following directory on each of your computers: %localappdata%\Microsoft\PowerToys\MouseWithoutBorders\

You can paste this path into the Windows File Explorer address bar to directly navigate to the folder.

Edit the settings.json file: Open the settings.json file with a text editor like Notepad.

Find and modify the security key: Inside the JSON structure, locate the "SecurityKey" setting. You will see a long, randomly generated key. You can replace this value with your own desired personalized key. Ensure that the key you enter is enclosed in double quotes.

Repeat on all computers: You must repeat this process on all computers you wish to connect with Mouse without Borders, ensuring that the SecurityKey value is identical in each settings.json file.

Restart PowerToys: After saving the changes to the settings.json file on all machines, restart the PowerToys application on each computer for the new settings to take effect.

Important Considerations:

Unsupported Method: This is not an officially documented or supported feature. Future updates to PowerToys or Mouse without Borders could potentially break this workaround.
Risk of Errors: Incorrectly editing the settings.json file could cause issues with Mouse without Borders or other PowerToys utilities. It is advisable to create a backup of the original file before making any changes.
File Permissions: In some instances, you may need administrative privileges to save the changes to the settings.json file. Manually Setting a Custom Security Key in Mouse without Borders May Offer a Workaround It is no longer possible to directly input a personalized security key through the Mouse without Borders user interface. Recent versions of the software, particularly since its integration into Microsoft's PowerToys suite, mandate the generation of a security key on one computer which must then be used on all other connected devices. This change from older, standalone versions of Mouse without Borders has been a point of frustration for long-time users who preferred the convenience of a simple, memorable key for their local network setups. The current design prioritizes a more secure, automatically generated key to encrypt the connection between computers. However, there is a potential workaround that involves manually editing the application's configuration file. This method is not officially supported and requires careful editing of a JSON file. Potential Workaround: Editing the settings.json File Users have reported success in setting a custom security key by following these steps:
1. Locate the configuration file: The settings for Mouse without Borders are stored in a file named settings.json. You can find this file in the following directory on each of your computers: %localappdata%\Microsoft\PowerToys\MouseWithoutBorders\ You can paste this path into the Windows File Explorer address bar to directly navigate to the folder.
2. Edit the settings.json file: Open the settings.json file with a text editor like Notepad.
3. Find and modify the security key: Inside the JSON structure, locate the "SecurityKey" setting. You will see a long, randomly generated key. You can replace this value with your own desired personalized key. Ensure that the key you enter is enclosed in double quotes.
4. Repeat on all computers: You must repeat this process on all computers you wish to connect with Mouse without Borders, ensuring that the SecurityKey value is identical in each settings.json file.
5. Restart PowerToys: After saving the changes to the settings.json file on all machines, restart the PowerToys application on each computer for the new settings to take effect.
Important Considerations:
- Unsupported Method: This is not an officially documented or supported feature. Future updates to PowerToys or Mouse without Borders could potentially break this workaround.
- Risk of Errors: Incorrectly editing the settings.json file could cause issues with Mouse without Borders or other PowerToys utilities. It is advisable to create a backup of the original file before making any changes.
- File Permissions: In some instances, you may need administrative privileges to save the changes to the settings.json file.

Best Regards,

BrianC 20 Reputation points

2025-06-26T00:01:14.62+00:00

Hi Simon.

Thanks for the reply - that is helpful and is what I'm looking but it doesn't work for me.

That settings file location is only for the PowerToys version. It isn't used for stand-alone installations of the app.

Do you have any clue where else it could be?

I originally installed MouseWithoutBorders (MWB) using the stand-alone installer and more recently, using Chocolatey, using Choco to update all my software on multiple PCs.

I have installed the latest MWB version on all, it still seems to be using a different location to store the settings.

On one PC, without MS PowerToys installed, that directory doesn't exist.

On another PC, with PowerToys installed, the directory is there and setting the password and starting the app doesn't make use of the password set. The password displayed in the MouseWithoutBorders app settings screen is a different self-generated one. Clicking "New key" button doesn't change this settings.json file, so it is using another place to store the key.

Do you know where else the password can be stored? I've looked through the registry, but didn't find anything there either.

I've accepted your answer but marked it "not solved my problem" because it should work for others, even though it doesn't cover my scenario.

PS, You've got the instructions in twice. :-)

Feature request: This should be an option in the app. Password complexity can be enforced if required. It doesn't get enforced on the local user accounts, so why in this app?
Max 20 Reputation points

2025-07-17T11:45:11.0633333+00:00

Hello BrianC

did you found any solution yet? I´m also looking for that.

Answer 2

Hi Max

You currently have to auto-generate the key on one device - still a nuisance and shouldn't be required in my opinion. It should be the user's choice.

So, to avoid having to type in lengthy garbage key characters on many PCs every few months, I force it to expire many years in the future.

I used the instructions from this page: https://superuser.com/questions/1749241/how-to-prevent-mouse-without-borders-security-key-expiration

The important bits are this:

I auto-generate the key on one PC.
On that PC, set the key entry date to a future date. The key entry date is stored in registry, in HKEY_USERS.DEFAULT\Software\Microsoft\MouseWithoutBorders\myKeyDate. It seems to be base64 encoded UTF16LE m/dd/yyyy string. Set it to MQAvADAAMQAvADIAMgAyADIA (1/01/2222).
Either type the key manually, or use some other means to copy and paste it on the other devices, either by clipboard transfer via a phone or a shared file.

Max 20 Reputation points

2025-07-28T10:41:54.16+00:00

Hi,

I also have the problem even if it is the same device. Every user has to enter the code again.

Do you know any workaround for that?

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Mouse without Borders - use own security key

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