keyboard beeps but doesn't work

hi,

i'm running win xp and several days ago my keyboard stopped working. when i hit any key, the PC speaker chirps but nothing happens. i'm using a ps/2 keyboard and have tried another ps/2 keyboard, still the same problem. i then tried a USB keyboard and the same issue persists. if i hold down a key, after about 5-8 beeps, the character starts printing but a beep accompanies it each time. if i try another key, i have to hold it down for a bit to get it to work.

i've ran complete scans with avira antivirus, malwarebytes, superantispyware and finally TFC.exe. some items were found and successfully removed and now the scans all complete with nothing found.

however, the keyboard problem is still happening. i am at a loss as to what is going on, any help would be greatly appreciated.

tia,
dave

Go into Safe Mode, Device manager and remove all instances of the KB [Keyboard], Now reboot to windows, then after the drivers are installed, test the KB.

hi,

i tried that and the keyboard still doesn't work :(.

-dave

If you get a beep when you press a key, then the keyboard is likely working, but Windows is rejecting the keystrokes for some reason. Does the keyboard work normally when you go into the BIOS setup? You could also try booting a bootable CD (Windows setup or Linux) just to see if the keyboard works there. Also, try running the on-screen keyboard program and see what happens when you try to use that. Start, Run, OSK

Get your WinXP CD handy, then go to Start>Run and type "sfc /scannow" without the quotes (you don't get any report from the System File Checker, it just silently replaces and corrupt or missing system files that it finds).

hi All,

the on screen keyboard works as does the keyboard in the bios. i also ran the sfc /scannow and the keyboard still has the same problem. since it works in the bios does this mean it is a windows problem?

at a loss,
dave

Yes, it is a Windows problem.

hi,

would running a repair install of windows help? or anything else?

thanks,
dave

It might, but I'd recommend have the HijackThis experts take a look at your log files before doing that.

dharris70--Idle question. How are you doing things like run sfc /scannow and entering BIOS if your keyboard is not working?

hi Jim,

the keyboard will work if i hold down the key for 5-10 seconds. it constantly beeps but it works. i have to hold down each key to get it to work so i simply start the osk and use it for more typing. i'm gathering the required data to post to hijackthis however the trend housecall online scan will not download, it stalls after about 20% so i think something is preventing it from running. bitdefender does appear to be running though...

-dave

It sounds like you still have malware issues, either leftovers or the malware has messed up your system files. We need to verify that all malware is cleaned off first, and then deal with damaged or missing system files.

hi All,

i just posted this to the hijackthis forum, thanks for all you help on this problem.

-dave

hi Again,

the folks in the hijackthis forum said everything was clean so i did a repair reinstall of xp home... still the same keyboard problem. i'm on the verge of doing a fresh install but am wondering if this could be a hardware problem and the fresh install won't work.

any thoughts would be great,
dave

If the keyboard works OK in the BIOS setup, then it is unlikely to be a hardware problem. One way to tell would be to boot up a live Linux CD to see if it works OK there. ALso, if it works when you boot up a Windows installation CD and during the install process, then the hardware is OK.

I agree, this is almost certain to be a Windows issue, or there would be problems in the BIOS too.

hi All,

fresh install of xp did not fix the keyboard problem, very weird. anyway, the pc is about 6 years old and has had other problems so i'm at the point of shopping for a new one.

thanks again for all the help,
dave

One quick thing you could do is to try clearing the CMOS in case it got scrambled. There should be a jumper on the motherboard to do that, if there isn't or you can't find it then pulling the motherboard battery out for a few minutes will achieve the same result (unplug the power lead as well).

Start>control panel>Accessibility Options> uncheck all options here.


The beeping is and lack of function is caused by the Use FilterKeys option.

A year late, but I hope it helps someone else looking for this issue!

this same problem has aggravated me for the past two weeks. i joined this forum just to thank you for the advice and that it worked. Great job figuring out this problem. thank you