# nefarius/ViGEmBus

Windows kernel-mode driver emulating well-known USB game controllers.

Repository: https://github.com/nefarius/ViGEmBus
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/vigembus
Homepage: https://docs.nefarius.at/projects/ViGEm/
Language: C++
License: BSD-3-Clause
License Family: permissive
Topics: xbox360-controller, dualshock4, usb, hid, windows, driver, emulation, bus-driver
Archived: true
Last push: 2023-11-02T16:40:49+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 10/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-02T17:46:02.011165+00:00)
- activity 0, release rhythm 8, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 3139, "days_push": 1035, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: archived
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 4238, forks 402 (observed 2026-08-28T04:08:39.568667+00:00)

## What it is
ViGEmBus is a Windows kernel-mode bus driver (built on KMDF) that emulates Xbox 360 and DualShock 4 USB gamepads as virtual devices, letting user-mode applications feed controller inputs via the ViGEmClient API. The project was retired and archived in 2023 due to a trademark conflict and is no longer maintained.

## Use cases
- use an unsupported input device in games without modifying the game
- emulate a DualShock 4 controller for PS4 Remote Play
- make games that only support XInput accept other controllers
- replay recorded user inputs for game testing and benchmarking
- work around XInput player slot assignment issues
- forward controller input to another machine over a network

## When to choose
- you need kernel-level, hook-free virtual gamepad emulation on Windows 10/11
- you are maintaining legacy tooling already built on the ViGEmClient API
- you need games to detect a virtual controller as genuine hardware with no proxy DLLs

## When to avoid
- you are starting a new project - the driver is retired with no future updates or security fixes
- you need Windows Server support, which was never officially supported
- you need emulated devices other than Xbox 360 or DualShock 4 gamepads

## Facets
- artifact type: application
- maturity: abandoned
- function: simulation, game
- domain: gaming-tools, windows, hardware
- platform: windows
- tags: kernel-driver, virtual-gamepad, hid, xbox360-controller, dualshock4, controller-emulation, kmdf, retired

## Member repositories
- nefarius/ViGEmBus (main) score 10

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:08:39.568667+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-29T18:22:17.068610+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/nefarius/ViGEmBus (fetched 2026-08-28T04:08:39.568667+00:00, sha 23baac2fa3eb)
  - homepage: https://docs.nefarius.at/projects/ViGEm/ (fetched 2026-08-29T09:12:15.342295+00:00, sha f921b71ea5f6)
  - site_page: https://docs.nefarius.at/projects (fetched 2026-08-29T09:12:15.351207+00:00, sha fa280add4bef)
  - site_page: https://docs.nefarius.at/projects/AirBender (fetched 2026-08-29T09:12:15.353160+00:00, sha d0db065cbd91)
  - site_page: https://docs.nefarius.at/projects/BthPS3 (fetched 2026-08-29T09:12:15.355158+00:00, sha ffe7294acf6c)
  - site_page: https://docs.nefarius.at/projects/BthPS3/API-Documentation (fetched 2026-08-29T09:12:15.369318+00:00, sha 9ece06af9f78)
  - site_page: https://docs.nefarius.at/projects/BthPS3/About-Controller-Compatibility (fetched 2026-08-29T09:12:15.372033+00:00, sha db340d8c497f)
  - site_page: https://docs.nefarius.at/projects/BthPS3/DualShock-4-FAQ (fetched 2026-08-29T09:12:15.374866+00:00, sha 334609a066b6)
  - site_page: https://docs.nefarius.at/projects/BthPS3/How-to-Install (fetched 2026-08-29T09:12:15.377266+00:00, sha 1ecb2321d8bc)
  - site_page: https://docs.nefarius.at/projects/BthPS3/Installation-Guide-Shibari-Edition (fetched 2026-08-29T09:12:15.379556+00:00, sha 0bb66ee76408)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.