Member Avatar for KF4SQB

I'm trying to do a fresh install of XP on a new HDD. When I boot from the XP CD, I get to the 'enter to install, r for recovery, F3 to exit' screen, and my keyboard locks up. Won't let me ctrl + alt + delete, or even turn caps/nunbers lock on and off. I've already tried a different keyboard, including the one I'm typing on now, and different RAM, as well as both of the CD drives installed in the machine. Specs of the system are:

1.2 GHz Celeron
160 MB Maxtor EIDE HDD (new)
1 256 MB RAM stick
1 128 MB RAM stick
PS/2 keyboard
Not sure of the specs, but a CD-ROM and a CD Re-Writer drive.

Every thing was working fine before I tried to install XP on the new disk.

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by rsshilli

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Useful follow-ups and a quick checklist for this kind of pre‑boot keyboard freeze. ’s fix (correcting the drive jumper/cable mode and bypassing the KVM) and ’s note about the mouse are typical: these freezes happen at hardware/BIOS level, so focus on peripherals and master/slave wiring before chasing drivers.

Try this minimal-step workflow:

  1. Power down and remove the KVM. Plug keyboard (and only the mouse if needed) directly into the motherboard. Many KVMs or passive PS/2/USB adapters can interfere with keyboard emulation during BIOS/CD boot.
  2. If using USB keyboard, enable “USB Legacy/Keyboard Support” in BIOS so it works before the OS loads. If you have a PS/2 keyboard, use the correct PS/2 port.
  3. Test with the absolute minimum hardware: keyboard, monitor, and installer CD only. If lights blink dimly or keys are unresponsive, try unplugging the mouse (as @rsshilli did) — a faulty mouse or shared controller can lock the whole PS/2 subsystem.
  4. Check HDD jumper mode safely: power off, consult the drive label, and set jumpers to match the cable scheme. For cable‑select (CS), put the drive on the end connector; for manual master/slave, set one drive to MA and the other to SL. Incorrect jumper/cable combos can make the BIOS hang while probing devices.
  5. If still stuck, reset CMOS (clear jumper or remove the battery briefly) and boot with BIOS defaults. Then try the installer again.

Cautions: always power off before changing jumpers; consult the drive/motherboard manual; avoid hot‑swapping PS/2 devices. If these steps don’t help, test with another known‑good keyboard or try a small USB keyboard plugged directly into the back I/O — if that works, it narrows the issue to the KVM/PS‑2 path or mouse/controller conflict.

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Member Avatar for alc6379

Have you got any peripherals attached, like a printer, or external hard drive? Make sure that only your keyboard, mouse and monitor are attached, nothing else, for the installation. Also, set your BIOS to defaults, or pull the Clear CMOS jumper on your motherboard, that helps clear the ESCD, which stores hardware configuration. That can often cause the installation to freeze if there's a bum entry in that database.

Member Avatar for KF4SQB

Thanks for the reply, but I've solved the problem. I didn't look closely enough at the old HDD jumper settings. The system is set up to use cable select, and I tried to use jumper select to set it as a master. Also, the system didn't seem to like my KVM setup. I had to go with a local keyboard and mouse, after which it worked. I've never had any other system give any 'complaints' about my KVM before, just this one. I'm starting to really dislike HP (not that I ever really liked them in the first place).

Member Avatar for rsshilli

I had this same problem, and no KVM. The trick for me was to unplug the mouse. God knows why, but with the mouse unplugged the keyboard functioned again just fine.

Also, I should mention that my number lock, caps lock and scroll lock lights would blink very dimly before. Unplug the mouse and everything works just fine.

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