Member Avatar for rethion

my rabbit recently ate my keyboard wire, so i bought a new keyboard. btw, this is in regards to my desktop dell dimension 5150, running on windows xp os.

anyways, here's the problem: i cannot type anything at the log in screen and i can't move my mouse. i CAN however get into the bios page where the keyboard works perfectly (least i know f2,f8 and f12 work!). Also, my mouse is working fine on my dad's laptop.

i've been looking for a solution for quite some time now, but i haven't found a problem like mine yet.. was wondering if anyone could help?

the stats are: New keyboard, USB port, (And yes, the keyboard works when i plug it into other computers)

i don't have a place to plug a ps2 connector in my desktop.
my mouse works fine on other computers, but does not work on my desktop.

my computer was working fine before the rabbit-eating-my-keyboard incident, but now with the new keyboard, i can't type anything in.

lastly, because i can't type or move my mouse, i'm stuck at my login 'welcome!' screen..

haaalp pls!! >.<

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Dani AI

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Good troubleshooting from and useful prompts from . The symptom — keys working in BIOS (F2/F12 etc.) but neither keyboard nor mouse responding at the Windows Welcome/login screen — generally indicates an OS-level USB/HID or startup-service problem rather than simple hardware failure.

Practical checklist (try in order):

  • Try a motherboard-mounted rear USB port (not a front-panel hub). Hubs and front panels can prevent proper USB enumeration.
  • Use the F8 boot menu and try "Last Known Good Configuration" before reinstalling anything.
  • If Safe Mode is available, open Device Manager (devmgmt.msc) and: uninstall any unknown/errored entries under "Keyboards" and "Universal Serial Bus controllers"; from View enable "Show hidden devices" and remove ghost USB devices; then reboot so Windows redetects devices.
  • Check the Plug and Play service (services.msc) is set to Automatic and running.
  • Perform a clean boot with msconfig (disable non-Microsoft services/startup) to see if a third-party driver or utility is blocking HID initialization.
  • Update the system chipset/USB controller drivers from the Dell support page for the Dimension 5150 (chipset/USB drivers rather than keyboard drivers are often the key).
  • If access remains impossible, a repair install or System Restore to a point before the problem is a practical fallback.

Short technical note: BIOS uses firmware-level USB support, so input works there even if Windows never loads the OS USB/HID drivers. That difference is why keyboards can respond to F-keys but be invisible to Windows.

For closure on the thread: on many forums people indicate resolution by editing the thread title to add “[SOLVED]” and posting a final reply that names the actual fix (driver name/source or the step that worked). Including that detail helps future searchers.

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Member Avatar for Xlphos

Does your mouse still work without the keyboard plugged in?
Have you tried plugging in the keyboard after windows has started?
Have you another USB keyboard to try?
Is the mouse USB aswell?

You may have to set something in BIOS, have you looked through that to see if there is anything relating the USB devices?

commented: :D thanks for the reply! +0
Member Avatar for rethion

hey.. thanks for the reply!
yes, they're both usb, and no, they don't work because i couldn't get into windows because i couldn't type in my password (since the keyboard doesn't respond). Also, i didn't try a different keyboard to try (cuz well, i don't have one) also because this one's new and i tested it out on other computers..

buuuuuut anyways! i solved it! :D i eventually decided to try going into safemode with networking to find my driver.. turns out that my os just refused to recognise my device until i found it.. :)

so now i'm on my desktop again! :D

(btw, how do i mark this as 'solved'?)

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