Loss of touch input on Virtual Display after switching focus away from scrcpy

[Shrey113]

Bug Description

When using scrcpy with a virtual display, touch/input works correctly at first.
After switching focus away from the scrcpy window to another application (for example, a browser) and returning later, touch/input stops working while the video continues to display normally.

---

Steps to Reproduce

1. Run scrcpy with virtual display:

   scrcpy -s 192.0.0.2 --new-display=1920x1080/280 --no-audio --start-app=com.example.androiddex --no-vd-system-decorations

2. Virtual display opens and touch/input works correctly.

3. Switch focus to another desktop application.

4. After some time, return to the scrcpy window.

---

Expected Behavior

Touch/input control should continue working after refocusing the scrcpy window.

---

Actual Behavior

• Screen continues to display normally.
• Touch/input control stops working.

---

Logs

Command used:

adb -s 192.0.0.2:5555 logcat -v time | findstr /i "scrcpy Display Surface InputController MotionEvent KeyEvent InputDispatcher InputReader"

Log output:
https://github.com/Shrey113/all_app_updates/releases/download/Test/scrcpy_vd_control.txt

---

Device Information

• Device: OnePlus 11 5G
• Android Version: Android 16
• Lock Screen Enabled: Yes

---

Notes

Additional logs or test cases can be provided if required. @rom1v

[rom1v]

Some things may have changed in Android, but IIRC, on some devices, inputs did not work when the physical device was locked / turned off.

[Shrey113]

That makes sense. Is there any workaround or script to restore input after focus changes / device lock? Happy to test or share logs if useful.

[Shrey113]

@rom1v

I think this behavior might be related to Android power management when the device becomes locked or idle (For Android V 13 to 16 or new), rather than a direct bug in scrcpy.

In my testing after switching away from the scrcpy window for some time:

• Video continues normally
• Audio continues normally
• The ADB connection still appears active on Windows
• But touch/input events stop working

It seems that video and audio keep working because they continuously send data, so Android does not treat those processes as frozen or low-priority.

However, input only sends data when the user touches or interacts. If there is no touch activity for a long time while the device is locked or idle, Android may deprioritize or freeze the input handling part. When the user comes back and tries to interact again, the connection still exists but Android no longer processes the injected touch events.

Just sharing this observation in case it helps identify the root cause.

[Shrey113]

@rom1v

😅 Problem identification is clear, but what could be a possible solution or workaround to prevent Android from deprioritizing the input channel when the device is idle or locked?