It’s bound to happen eventually. You’re in the middle of important work when your mouse and keyboard suddenly stop working on Windows. What do you do? Panic? Scream? Have a drink?
Don’t call in a technician yet. There are a few basic steps you can take to fix the problem on your own. In this post, we’ll share some tricks you can try yourself to get your mouse and keyboard working again.
Reboot The Computer
Have you tried restarting the computer? Sometimes users get overwhelmed when faced with computer issues that they forget about the most obvious solution.
So take a minute to reboot your PC before doing anything else.
- If you can’t move your mouse, you can shut down your computer by pressing פֿענצטער + X אויף דיין קלאַוויאַטור.
- דאס וועט ברענגען אַרויף די אָנהייב menu. Go to פאַרמאַכן אַראָפּ אָדער צייכן אויס > הייב אן נאכאמאל ניצן די פייַל קיז.
- Or you can select אַלט + F4 to bring out the Shut Down window and use the arrow keys to select הייב אן נאכאמאל.
A Temporary Keyboard
If restarting the computer doesn’t work and your keyboard has stopped working, you’ll need a temporary one that works. Fortunately, Windows has a built-in keyboard for such an occasion.
- די אויף-סקרין קיבאָרד (OSK) can be accessed by going to Windows Settings > יז פון אַקסעס > קלאַוויאַטור.
- ונטער Use Your Device Without a Physical Keyboard, באַשטימען ניצן די אויף-סקרין קיבאָרד צו די On שטעלע.
- איר קענט אויך דריקן פֿענצטער + קטרל + O to open the virtual keyboard.
- This will open the OSK. Use your mouse to type or navigate through Windows as you search for a more permanent fix.
באַסיק טראָובלעשאָאָטינג
- First, check your mouse and keyboard cables. Are they disconnected? Are they showing signs of wear and tear? Have they been dislodged from their designated ports?
- If you’re using a wireless mouse or keyboard, have you tried replacing the batteries? Have you checked if your Bluetooth connection is still active? Those who are using external Bluetooth transmitters should see if that is causing the issue.
- You can try plugging in a different keyboard and mouse. If your computer does not respond to any keyboard or mouse, you might be having a software problem instead.
Update Your Driver
Updating a device driver can potentially fix a problematic keyboard or mouse.
- נוצן זוכן to find and open דיווייס מאַנאַגער.
- אַמאָל עפענען, יקספּאַנד קייבאָאַרדס און Mice and Other Pointing Devices.
- Right-click on your device and select דערהייַנטיקן דרייווער.
The Keyboard Troubleshooter
Windows has a troubleshooter feature that deals with the nastiest of bugs and errors. It can also work out USB keyboard issues on your behalf.
- גייט צו Windows Settings > דערהייַנטיקן & זיכערהייט > טראָובלעשאָאָט. אונטער Find and Fix Other Problems, סעלעקטירן קלאַוויאַטור.
- גיט לויפן די טראָובלעשאָאָטער.
- Windows will go on to find issues with your keyboard.
- If it finds an issue, just follow the on-screen commands so it can resolve the problem. If it cannot find anything, you will be shown a message that says so.
- If successful, the troubleshooter should make your keyboard work again.
מויז פּראָפּערטיעס
Sometimes, the USB mouse isn’t necessarily broken. The settings just need to be updated.
- עפענען קאָנטראָל פּאַנעל. גיי צו ייַזנוואַרג און געזונט > דעוויסעס און פּרינטערס > מויז.
- Here you’ll find a number of mouse properties that can impact its performance. You can make changes to your mouse buttons, pointers, pointer options, wheel, and hardware.
- Configure your mouse to your liking. If you find your mouse speed to be slow, for example, open the פּאָינדער אָפּציעס tab and select a more acceptable speed by moving the slider around.
Hopefully, one of these mouse options will correct any of the perceived mouse errors.