Bypassing Windows 11 to BigBox using PS4 controllers

[stigzler]

Thought I'd post this here, partly for future reference and also as potential help for others who find themselves in this situation. 

My aim was to have Bigbox bypass windows (with as minimal windows stuff as possible) and have PS4 controllers connected. Took me nearly a full day to get working....

1. Bypass windows Login

When installing windows, I skipped the linking the login to a msn account to create just a local account. Details here: 

 

Next, I automated login. Good guide here:

Sadly, the default windows login screen and background pops up momentarily. I did mess around in the new Windows Settings to change the background etc, but weirdly, it still showed the default blue background. I used this application here to change some of the default login screen settings:

https://winaerotweaker.com/

All were under the "Boot and Login" section. Some of the key ones:

Disable Lock Screen

Disable Login Screen Background Image (this just displays as black)

You can also change your UserName as it flashes up briefly. I just changed it to the name of my gaming unit. You can it change it via the OG Control Panel (don't you dare take that out M$):

Control Panel>User Accounts>Change Your Account Name 

Lastly, check your motherboard's manual for how to disable any full screen logos and enable fast-boot if you can. 

2. Booting straight into BigBox

3. Getting PS4 controllers set-up

Firstly: aaaaarrrrrrrrrgggghhhhhh! 😡

Now that's out my system, here's what to do:

1. Reset your PS4 controller to factory by sticking a paperclip in the little hole near L2

2. Make sure your Bluetooth drivers are up to date. 

3. Windows Settings>Bluetooth: Add the controller. 

4. PS4 doesn't play well with windows. You need some software to get them playing nicely: https://ds4-windows.com/

5. In the above app, make sure "Run At Startup" is disabled. Here are my settings:

6. In launchbox, set DS4Windows to run at LB/BB startup (mine says task.bat, but I'm pretty sure the direct executable will still work):

7. Make sure there are no scheduled tasks to run DS4Windows at startup (you might have set this up unintentionally if messing about trying to get it all to work). Do this by typing "Task Scheduler" in the windows search box and exploring the different tasks. 

And that should be it. I had to faff around loads with windows and bluetooth, so there might be some randomness to getting it to work. Also, the controllers do take a few tries to connect. However, after all of that, you should get: