Keyboard not recognized error

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Windows 10, Dell desktop, got this error on start-up.  Tried different keyboard, plugging directly into computer – no joy.  Would appreciate help.  Thanks

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More details required, i.e. make/model/type, etc.

For example – wired or wireless keyboard? If wireless, charged and/or with good battery/ies?

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Thanks to both of you.  Wired keyboards (2 different ones) – tried USB hub and direct attachment to computer.  Optiplex 7450 Dell desktop. On screen keyboard not activated.

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How about the Device Manager (see below)?

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Re: Device manager.  Can’t access because of no keyboard input.

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Mouse click
Start button-All Programs-Windows System-Control Panel-Device Manager

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A couple of obvious points:

Look in Control Panel\Device Manager
Is there a warning yellow triangle on the device associated with USB ports? (Assuming a wireless keyboard would also have the transmitter plugged in a USB port)

In Settings\System\Tablet
Was the desktop accidentally put on “Tablet Mode”? That would mean the keyboard would be on-screen instead of plugged in.

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Robert Tomsak wrote:

Re: Device manager. Can’t access because of no keyboard input.

*Right*-click on Start button then select Device Manager.

Have you been plugging the keyboard(s) into one of the two USB 2 ports (a) or into one of the four USB 3 ports (b)… or tried both? (You should be using a USB 2 port for a keyboard IMO.)

Hope this helps…

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Also FYI
Right mouse on notification area and select ‘show touch keyboard button’

🍻

Just because you don't know where you are going doesn't mean any road will get you there.

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wavy wrote:

Also FYI Right mouse on notification area and select ‘show touch keyboard button’

GREAT idea! But only IF Robert has a touchscreen-capable monitor!  😐

In all honesty, I think he’s trying to get his normal, every-day wired keyboard to be recognized by his computer and might not be too interested in a touch keyboard setup. BUT, hey, that’s just my GUESS.

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GREAT idea! But only IF Robert has a touchscreen-capable monitor!

Great news! The Microsoft virtual keyboard does accept mouse click input without a touch screen.

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Robert ( @rtomsak )-

Exactly when during the machine’s boot process do you get the message about the keyboard not being recognized, during the first 10-15 seconds immediately after you turn the machine on (when, perhaps, the screen has a black background with Dell’s logo on it and nothing much else), or after that point, when control of the machine has been passed to Windows and you see the Windows log in screen or your desktop?

In other words, are you getting this message from within the Windows environment after it’s fully up and running, or are you getting the message immediately after you start your computer and before Windows has had a chance to start?

The answer to this question will help in further troubleshooting, and will also help us give you the correct answer instead of an answer that could wind up wasting your time or further frustrating you. It’s part of the “More details required…” plea above from Rick Corbett.

Where am I going with this? Well, it could be that your machine’s motherboard has a fault that isn’t allowing it to recognize the fact that you’ve plugged in a keyboard, OR it could be that you have a faulty USB port on the back of your machine that you’ve been plugging your keyboard and/or USB hub into.

To see if it’s a faulty USB port, try following Rick’s suggestion above and plug the keyboard into each one of the other USB ports on the back of the machine besides the one you’ve been plugging it into. I agree with Rick, in that you shouldn’t need to use a USB3 port (that has a blue-colored middle piece in it) for a keyboard, but, in this case try them anyway to see if plugging your keyboard into one of them makes it get recognized.

If you no longer get the error message after trying a different port (even one of the blue colored USB3 ones), then the port you were using is faulty and shouldn’t be used by any other device, period.

On the other hand, if changing the port to any one of the other available USB and USB3 ports doesn’t make the error message go away AND you’re getting the message right after you turn on the computer, then you could very well have a problem on your motherboard or within your BIOS/UEFI firmware.

Finally, if the keyboard error message comes up after Windows has loaded and you’re at your desktop (but NOT at any other time during the boot process), then that could be a driver that’s gone bad and needs to be replaced with a good copy of itself.

I hope this helps!

 

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