Bios sees keyboard but windows doesn't

[JohnnyMCE]

I have a strange issue i've never come across before. I am helping out a relative. They have a dell vostro 220 running winxp. It was infected with alot of virii and was blue screening. I've popped the drive out and cleaned it up (avg, mbam and ad-aware). I put it back in the machine and it boots fine now, but when i get into windows the keyboard and mouse don't work. The keyboard works fine when surfing around in the bios, but as soon as i try to get into windows or safe mode i get no response from the keyboard or mouse.

Now currently I am trying to use the equipment I have at my house. I have tried combinations of USB mouse, usb keyboard, ps/2 mouse and ps/2 keyboard, but the system will just not recognize any of it. I called the guy to find out what kind he is currently using with it and he just said dell usb keyboard and mouse. Could there be something in the bios stopping this or could this be something completely different?

 

[TheStu]

I can't figure why a PS/2 keyboard wouldn't work. Are you sure you have it plugged into the right port (does that still matter?)?

With regards to USB, there might be a setting in BIOS to allow legacy keyboard support, ir might say legacy USB keyboard support. See if that is enabled.

 

[RebateMonger]

I've seen malware that disabled the keyboard on XP. I had to do a Windows XP Repair Install to get that functionality back.

 

[JohnnyMCE]

ok now things are really crazy. I tried doing a repair from the xp install disc and the computer just blue screens. Yet i can boot into safe mode and regular windows with no problems except that the keyboard and mouse to not react.

Reimaging the machine really is a last resort in this case. Is there anything else I can try. I verified in the bios that the usb controllers are enabled and yes I have plugged everything into the correct ports.

 

[Gunbuster]

boot to a live cd (hirens, bart pe, *nix) does it work there? If so back up and reimage.

 

[JohnnyMCE]

i've used hiren's and a couple other boot discs. I am able to boot into windows and safe mode with no issues just the mouse and keyboard won't work. I tried and boot into the recovery console and no matter whether i use a winxp disc or another kind of boot disc it still blue screens when i get to the part when the recovery console is "starting windows".

Is there a way I could pop the drive into an external enclosure place a file on it and fix this issue that way?

 

[mfenn]

i've used hiren's and a couple other boot discs. I am able to boot into windows and safe mode with no issues just the mouse and keyboard won't work. I tried and boot into the recovery console and no matter whether i use a winxp disc or another kind of boot disc it still blue screens when i get to the part when the recovery console is "starting windows".

Is there a way I could pop the drive into an external enclosure place a file on it and fix this issue that way?

So do the mouse and keyboard work in those boot disks?

 

[JohnnyMCE]

ok so here is the final twist in this weird tale. So i get the owner to bring me the dell keyboard and mouse that came with the computer. The keyboard doesn't work still but the mouse does. So i was able to use the accessibility keyboard to go to services.msc and I enabled plug and play and now the keyboard works.

So now my question is apparently the virus shut off a bunch of the services on the machine. Typically what services on a windows xp box should be running? Is there a way to start a bunch at once instead of 1 by 1?

 

[Gunbuster]

How much time have you sunk in this now? Backup data, format, reinstall, patch, copy data back. You would have been done in three hours.

 

[piasabird]

try a diff driver.

 

[TheStu]

try a diff driver.

A different driver, in an OS that will not see the mouse or keyboard? How would he install the driver?

 

[xboxist]

I have a strange issue i've never come across before. I am helping out a relative.

I'm so sorry.

 

[Modelworks]

Once I spend more than an hour trying to fix something I just do a reinstall. If they don't have a recent backup, tough, some people have to learn the hard way. Sometimes you have to be tough with relatives or they will never learn.