Moving mouse/keyboard from one USB port to another

[rhancox]

I just got a new PC with Windows 10. I had an old Compaq laptop running XP. I used a USB hub to connect a USB mouse and keyboard to the laptop. When I fired up the new PC, I just moved the USB cable from the hub from the laptop to the new computer. It immediately recognized the devices and I was off and running.

I have 6 USB ports on the new computer and I'd like to move the mouse and keyboard off of the USB hub and plug them directly in to the new computer. The problem is, they aren't recognized when they are in a different USB port. I can plug them back in to the hub and boom, there they are.

Why doesn't the "universal" in USB apply here?

What steps do I need to take to move a USB device from one USB port to another and still have it work?

 

[Tim Locke]

Power off, plug into the new ports and reboot. Works when I do it. Might need to wiggle the mouse and bang some keys.

 

[ndashutosh parekh]

I think windows has learned to only understand the hardware through hub. Dismount from hub and then connect using the computer ports. If windows still does not recognize them restart with devices connected to the computer ports. I believe once the computer recognizes the hardware through computer ports and your redock to hub it should work both ways.
All the best.

 

[rhancox]

No soap.

I turned off the computer, unplugged the hub from the front panel USB port and plugged it in to one of the USB ports on the back of the computer. Turned on the computer, nothing. No keyboard and no mouse. I moved the hub cable back to the front panel port and I now have a keyboard and mouse.

I uninstalled the hub in the device manager and then turned off the computer. I plugged the keyboard and mouse directly in to USB ports on the back panel. I turned on the computer, nothing. No keyboard and no mouse.

I unplugged the mouse and plugged it in to the front panel where the hub used to be plugged in. BAM! I have a mouse.

With the mouse and keyboard plugged in to the back panel, I went in to the BIOS just to see if there was something that could be done. The keyboard and mouse were recognized and were usable while viewing the BIOS. As soon as I escape out and let Windows boot up, nothing.

It seems Windows has taken the "universal" out of USB.

I appreciate the suggestions thus far. Any more suggestions?

 

[ndashutosh parekh]

This is real strange and I don't have a solution.
Can u check the device mgr and see if those USB port shows up in the listing?

 

[rhancox]

Under "Universal Serial Bus Controllers", I have the following:

3 "Generic USB Hub"
2 "Intel blah blah blah"
1 "USB Composite Device"
2 "USB Root bub"

When I look at the events for the 'generic' hubs, I can see that two were originally configured on 4/2 and one was configured on 4/19 (when I got the computer). The 'composite' device also shows the same date.

Other than that, how do I tell which port is which?

There are 8 ports altogether on this system. 2 in the front, 6 in the back.

 

[Trouble]

Can we assume that both the keyboard and mouse involved are individual hardware devices with their own separate USB cords and not part of a kit that uses a wireless USB dongle to operate?
Who manufacturers the two devices? What are their respective model names and numbers? Do they require a proprietary third party driver?
Have you tried booting your computer into Safe Mode to see if the generic keyboard and mouse drivers will allow you to swap your two input devices to other USB ports on your computer?

 

[rhancox]

They are separate devices. Microsoft Digital Media Pro keyboard and Microsoft Comfort Mouse 3000.

I have not tried the safe mode idea yet. Are you saying that while in safe mode, switch one of the devices to another USB port and see if it gets recognized properly?

If in safe mode, the keyboard and mouse would be controlled by generic drivers, and lets assume I can switch ports, what happens when I reboot in normal mode? Will the Microsoft drivers detect their respective devices on another port or give up because they're not on the ports they used to be?

 

[Trouble]

I would think, that if the input devices (keyboard and mouse) function normally in safe mode and allow you to switch ports randomly, either those ports on the rear of the computer or on the front face of the computer.......
Then perhaps Windows, when booted normally, is using inappropriate drivers for the devices, either as a product of a Windows Update or your having installed drivers that are not optimal for Windows 10.
Exclude the "Hub" for now during Safe Mode test. Just disconnect it and set it aside to take it out of the diagnostic equation.
What Hub is it?
Manufacturer, Model Name, Model Number?
Is it externally powered with a AC adapter or solely USB powered.
IS it USB 2.0 or 3.0 or greater.

 

[rhancox]

The hub is a Belkin 4-port, model F5U021, externally powered, USB 1.1.

The new computer is a refurbished Lenovo ThinkCentre M81 (small form factor). All 8 USB ports are 2.0

When I brought the new computer home, I just hooked up the hub, with the mouse and keyboard connected, to one of the front panel ports. I use my computer for work. I wasn't sure if I'd get the new one configured soon enough so I wanted to be able to easily move the hub cable back to my laptop in case I still needed it to work. Had I known this would have been a problem, I would have attached the mouse and keyboard directly to the new computer and gone through the hassle of moving them back and forth if necessary.

I understand about trying to take the hub out of the equation. One of the caveats however, is if a troubleshooting idea doesn't work, I can't poke around on the system to check anything because the keyboard and mouse do not work. If I try to do the mouse OR the keyboard, then I have to leave the hub in the picture so I can use the other device to check things. Bit of a catch-22.

FYI: I'm a programmer with 35+ years (as in, before the PC was born) experience in the computer industry. I've been MS certified but that was back in the NT 4 days. I've worked on PCs in the past, but it's been 10 yrs. I've messed with MS Windows enough in the '95 days to know how frustrating this sort of thing can be. I'm confident there is an answer, it's just about taking the rights steps to find it.

 

[Saltgrass]

I suppose some things to look at are what version of USB are your devices and are all your ports compatible with that version.. When you plug a device into a USB port it should load drivers for that port. If your devices are older it may not be able to do so.

Specific ports may be supported by a different controller. If they are not all Intel you may be seeing another controller version.

You might also check the Hubs in the Device Manager. On some of them when looking at properties there is an Advanced tab which may hold a Reset button which you might try.

And lastly, in Device Manger, use the View menu to show hidden devices. With that enabled, you may see devices for which drivers are loaded but the device is not present indicated by being greyed out. You could go through those and remove specific devices and let the system reinstall those drivers when you plug in that device.

 

[rhancox]

I hadn't thought of the device being too "old" to be recognized. I've had this keyboard for 5-6 yrs, maybe longer and the mouse almost as long.

I found a technical data sheet on MS' website for the keyboard and it doesn't say what version of USB it is, but when you read the requirements, it mentions Windows 7 and Vista as the latest OS' that it can be used with. The mouse's data sheet mentions 8.1 has the highest OS, but also doesn't mention what version of USB it supports.

I showed the hidden devices and there a bunch under the USB controller heading.

I'll give the reset thing a try too.

Thanks for the info, Saltgrass.

 

[rhancox]

Nothing seems to be working. I've reset all the USB hub that I can. I've even done it with the keyboard plugged in to one of the ports on the back of the machine and the F-lock light blinks (which tells me I reset whatever the keyboard was attached to) but still, nothing happens.

I showed all the hidden devices and uninstalled everything USB-related that was greyed out. Hubs, mice, keyboards, etc. I then plugged the keyboard into a back panel port and nothing.

I moved the mouse cable to the front panel port where the hub has always been plugged in, unplugging the hub obviously, and the mouse works. So I uninstall any other greyed-out devices and then plug the keyboard in to a back panel port, nothing.

I'm bummed.