Keyboard failure,and trying to reinstall Win XP home

Hi all,I just found this forum while searching for answers to my strange problems.I hope someone can help me.

I will try to make this short as possible.I was helping my Dad clean old stuff off his computer,stuff he didn't use and such.We had to reboot the computer and now we get a black screen that says keyboard failure,it will sit there for about 5 minutes and go to the next black screen that has the different ways you can start windows,we picked the "normal" start.It then loads windows,but freezes at just about anything you do.The one time I thought well maybe we could reload windows,(so I couldn't just stick the CD in and restart,cause it would not boot at all,and just stay at the keyboard failure black screen),so I put it in and went to windows explorer and brought it up that way.But I went to the reinstall,or restore(I forget),and it told me my windows version was different than on the CD,and said I could not do that.That really confused me.We have all the CD's from Dell.

I have tried other keyboards,that doesn't seem to be the problem.It still comes up keybaord failure.

Any help I would love.He misses his computer very much,Thanks lots!

It is a PS2 keyboard.
Dell computer-Dimension 2400 Series,Intel
Celeron Processor at 2.2 GHz
512MB DDR SDRAM at 333MHz
windows XP home edition

hope this helps,I will be back to check in tomorrow night.Thanks again.
Lynn

 

Boot to the options screen by pressing the F8 key immediately after the initial POST period ends. That's the first screen display that you see. If you time it properly, you'll be shown the options screen that list "Last know good configuration," among other items. Choose that and hope for the best.

If that fails, and since you have indicated that you can actually boot into Windows with some degree of success, do so and immediately go to Start > Accessories > System Tools > System Restore > and select a date prior to your trouble causing session.

Post back your results.

Good luck.

 

Thanks Surferdude2,I will be trying this Monday.

We actually tried doing a system restore,but it would only go back to the day this all started happening.That also puzzled me.

hopefully this will work with what you said,I will be back Monday afternoon one way or the other.

Thanks again for your time and patience.

Lynn

 

When you get the computer to boot, go into device manager and check on that keyboard. You may want to uninstall and reinstall it? Check for updated drivers, too.

Johanna

 

surferdude2
They already are at the 'options' screen when the 5 minute delay is up, and they choose 'Normal'. It sounds to me like the "keyboard failure" message is from the BIOS.

Belive it's necessary to reinstall windows as suggested in the query, and it may be necessary to enter the BIOS setup program and adjust the boot order so that it boots from the CD.

LynnieDaPooh2, would check the manual for the directions for reinstalling. But by all means try the other suggestions first if you can.

 

I agree sparrow. I think there is something amiss in the BIOS since the keyboard drivers for Windows aren't a factor when the boot is hanging at POST. I didn't realize it was going to be so long between repair measures or I would have given more options. I just wanted to blow the easy stuff away first. Last known good and System restore are always a good chicken soup tests anyway.

I find it hard to believe that making some slip in Windows while cleaning house can hose the keyboard support from the MOBO though. It may just have been a coincidence and the time was ripe for a hardware failure. Then maybe the clean up effort involved physically cleaning the MOBO and static discharge hit the keyboard processor chip. I guess we'll find out later.

Since a substitute KB was tried without relief, it sure looks bad for the MOBO.

 

I'd like to know what else is on the black screen about keyboard failure. Should be a "Hit a key" message. Clean-up is the best idea. I can't put everything together yet.

 

If this is the case, I would tend to think it's not a motherboard problem. How can you select normal if you don't have a working keyboard? Also, though it may not be, usually the bios is set by default to halt on all errors. If it is set that way, wouldn't it come to a complete stop? Guess we'll have to wait for that too.

 

yes, and resetting the BIOS to defaults would be advised for starters. There should be a beep code and some error message with a little info such as , KB Controller Failure, or KB Error, or whatnot. Even without, defaults are more "chicken soup." Lynn was keeping it short so maybe she will come forth with more info now.

 

Hi again..I have read everything everyone wrote.I am going to my Dad's today to see if we can get any further with it.When the keyboard failure screen comes up,that is the only thing on the black screen,except for up above it,it says something about Dell(thats what it is),and then you have to wait like 5/10 minutes,that screen then goes to the next black screen,where you can choose what way you want to boot from.It has like 7 different options,I choose "normal boot ",it then goes into windows.And the keyboard works fine.It's all confusing.But when I put his restore Win xp CD in,it told me it was a different version of windows I was trying to install??!!It is the installation disc that came with the computer.

Today I will write everything down if we can not get any further.

You guys are the best,always willing to help someone,Thanks bunches.

I will be back later.
Lynn

 

LynnieDaPooh2,

Choose safe mode and let us know if things work better. The graphics won't be as good, but don't worry about that, just see how the computer works; you won't be able to use the CD in safe mode either.
If it seems better, try rebooting to normal mode and test it.
If you have a manusl, see how to get into the Setup program on boot; if you can do that, select defaults or similar in the menu and exit with save.

 

Well folks,I seem to be getting no where.Please hang in there,and I will try and explain to the best of my knowledge.

When the computer is first turned on now,it runs thru that "bar" that is loading,with the Dell logo,then goes straight to a black screen with a cursor way up in the top left corner,it then sets there for 5 minutes and then finally loads windows.I then try to reinstall windows XP(just hoping it would help all the problems),I insert the CD,click on win xp setup,and it goes to this error message.
"Windows setup.Setup can not continue because the version on your computer is newer than the version on the CD" I just don't know how that can be,it is the CD that came with his Dell computer.This is the first thing that confuses me.

So then we ran the diagonastics cd that came with his computer.But we had to get thru by the menu where you pick to run from CD rom,then it went to that black screen,then 5 minutes later brought up the test,took 2 hours to go thru the whole thing,and it came up and said everything was fine.This confuses me also.

Now the next thing,we restarted again,and the error came up "Error code 8602-Auxiliary Device failure.Keyboard failure.That showed only once,but when it was restarted after that,it just went to the black screen with the blinking cursor in the left.

Well after 4 hours of getting bummed about it,2 keyboards later,the keyboard is not working,there is no driver for a keyboard anywhere to be found,it's like it don't exist.It loads windows after 5 minutes of black screen.

As for getting in the BIOS of it,if I could even get in it,I don't think I would really know what to do.It seems harmed enough.

I hope this is all clear.I will wait for a reply.Just remember it's my dads computer,and I have to go to his house to try anything,and I also work,so it might take me a little bit to get back here.I really respect all of your help.

Thank you,Lynn

 

Dell has many different ways to enter the setup routine for the BIOS. Try pressing Delete right after the POST screen fades. If no joy, reboot and try F2. If still no joy, try Alt + Enter.

When you finally get it to the setup screen, look for something that says "Restore Defaults" or similar. Do what is necessary to accomplish that by following the instruction you will see on screen. Exit and save the changes. Upon reboot, if the error is still there, you may have to learn to live with it. You say that Windows finally boot and all works normally then. If that be so, then try pressing F1 when it hangs at boot time to see if that allows it to go forward.

It just sounds like the controller chip on the MOBO may have failed but diagnosis is tough by remote control.

Good luck.

 

From the manual:
To enter Setup:
Turn on (or restart) your computer.
When F2 = Setup, F12 = Boot Menu appears in the upper-right corner of the screen, press <F12>. ( I think setup is an option on boot menu too.)
If you wait too long and the operating system logo appears, continue to wait until you see the Microsoft® Windows® desktop. Then shut down your computer and try again.

Check the time and date in Setup (or in windows) and if it's not correct, set it; then check it again after you have shutdown and restarted. If it's not keeping time, it needs a new battery. See below for directions in windows.

Please answer all the following questions when you can.

About how old is the machine?

Does the computer beep on start-up? If so, how many times?

Are there four lights arranged in a rectangle on the back? If so, what are thier colors and are they all lit?

When you're in windows are the time of day and date OK?
Double-clk the clock at the lower right of the screen. If the date and time are not correct, set them and then look at them again next time you restart the computer (completely turn it off, wait a few minutes, and turn it back on). If they're not correct now, we should replace the battery. If you decide to do this and don't have directions, we can give you some if you ask.

We should try to reset the BIOS to defaults. This may require temporary battery removal. Let's wait on this to see if it's necessary.

These are the simplest steps to do now, and what's next depends on thier results.

surferdude2 It may be necessary to remove the battery to set the BIOS to defaults. I've been looking but so far nothing less that that.

For the record, flashing instructions are
here
(Document Number: FA1033387
Release Date: 09/08/2004 )

 

found it!

To reset the original factory system setup settings for the Dell Dimension Series systems listed above (2400), perform the following steps:

1. Restart your computer.
2. At the first text on the screen, or when the Dell logo appears, press the <F2> key every three seconds until the message Entering Setup appears.
3. When the System Setup screen appears, press the <Alt> + <F> keys at the same time to load the factory defaults.
A beep sounds to indicate the defaults have been loaded.
4. Check and, if necessary, reset the time, date, and year.
5. Change the Secondary Drive 0 setting to Auto.
6. Change USB Legacy Support to Enabled.
7. Press the <Alt> + <B> keys at the same time to save changes and reboot.
8. Proceed with the installation or troubleshooting that you were attempting.

Lynn, think you caould do that yourself? I do.

 

A couple of graphics you may need:

 

Surferdude2,
I have done the following of what you said(Dell has many different ways to enter the setup routine for the BIOS. Try pressing Delete right after the POST screen fades. If no joy, reboot and try F2. If still no joy, try Alt + Enter.)Except for the Alt & Enter.
I don't know if this helps any at all,but I would unplug the keyboard just to make it come up with keyboard failure so I could get to the screen where I could boot to "normal ".Other than that if the keyboard is plugged in,it would have spells where you would just get the black screen with the cursor,and after 5 minutes,it would load windows.
Again,Thank you for your ongoing help

Sparrow,
Below is your questions and answers.

Check the time and date in Setup (or in windows) and if it's not correct, set it; then check it again after you have shutdown and restarted. If it's not keeping time, it needs a new battery. See below for directions in windows.

Please answer all the following questions when you can.

About how old is the machine?It is 2 years old

Does the computer beep on start-up? If so, how many times?I think it beeps once.

Are there four lights arranged in a rectangle on the back? If so, what are thier colors and are they all lit?Okay when it is having it's bad spell,the first 2 are green and the next 2 are yellow.BUT after it gets into win xp,they all go green.

When you're in windows are the time of day and date OK?
Double-clk the clock at the lower right of the screen. If the date and time are not correct, set them and then look at them again next time you restart the computer (completely turn it off, wait a few minutes, and turn it back on). If they're not correct now, we should replace the battery. If you decide to do this and don't have directions, we can give you some if you ask.Yes,it displayed the right date and time everytime we shut down and restarted.

We should try to reset the BIOS to defaults. This may require temporary battery removal. Let's wait on this to see if it's necessary.

As I said I will try again tomorrow.I just hope I am explaining everything right..lol..I am doing my best.Thanks again for all your help.

Lynn

 

Makes you wonder if opting to not have it report keyboard errors would work around the prob.

Sparrow, you are too much. That's outstanding effort on your part!

 

Dude, I'm retired.

Lynn,

Sorry about my mistake- fixed it (forgot file was on my computer, not online ). here's the pattern in a picture below. Click to enlarge.
Go to this page and try to figure out which lights pattern you saw (two are possible from what you said).

 

Lynn,

Well, after sleeping on it, I have more to say . The problem is in the hardware and not in windows, although I'm not clear on how well windows is running when it finally starts.

I'm afraid the hardware fault may be expensive to fix (could be a chip on the motherboard) - the error message is spurious (= wrong, the manual states it indicates a stuck key, and we know that’s not true), not unusual in such situations. The lights on the back just confirm a transient hardware error, and personally I wouldn't put much faith in them as a diagnostic tool in this case. They may be no better than the error message.

If windows is running OK I'd try the Setup program and get the defaults, and use the arrow keys to scroll down to the keyboard line and hit enter to see what menu appears, and just guess what to change in the option. You can always go back into Setup and change it back.

Then I'd leave the machine running 24/7, just turning off the monitor to save electricity; if it goes into standby, fine, but that's not essential.

I would definitely NOT take it to a shop, unless money's no object. Intermittent faults can be almost impossible to diagnose and fix and VERY expensive. If something's going to stop working, better to wait till it does; then there's no doubt about what's broken.

If windows is broken, some of the suggestions above are helpful. If necessary, you can change the boot order in the Setup to put the CD first, or second after the floppy drive.