XBMC not recognizing harmony commands after other program actions

I have Windows 7, an HP windows media center IR adapter and Harmony remote. The harmony remote is set up as a windows media center keyboard and I have all the normal commands mapped to work with XBMC. If another program in the background, Sickbeard for example, updates and takes focus from XBMC, I cannot get my remote to work with XBMC any more until I reboot. In the example here, Sickbeard updates and minimizes XBMC in the process. If I restore XBMC, the remote does not work. Same with other programs. Closing and restarting XBMC has no effect on the remote capability.

I can use my wireless keyboard/mouse to control everything, but for watching shows and movies, the remote is a lot more convenient. Has anyone else ever seen this before?

What if anything have you done to configure the remote? Are you using some helper software like eventghost?

Teh harmony simply has a device setup as a windows media center keyboard. All XBMC functions are mapped as keyboard commands on there. Other keys which should function universally like Win+1 dont even work. The light blinks on the receiver, but nothing happens. its only when some other program does something in the background to take the focus of XBMC.

The HP receiver will only partially work with XBMC unless you configure it with either the MCERemote add-on or EliteGamer360's scripts. The fact you're using a Harmony handset is not relevant since the Harmony is just emulating the HP handset i.e. as far as the receiver is concerned the IR signals it receives came from the HP handset.

See http://wiki.xbmc.org/index.php?title=Usi...in_Windows for more on configuring eHome IR receivers (the HP receiver is an eHome receiver).