Metropol

So, I have no better way to describe this in the title so I'll explain here.

The USB keyboard I have (wireless) is plugged into the front port of the PC. It works at boot (to get to bios) and in Windows.

However if I move the reciever to the back port, it stops working at boot and only works in windows.

How do I make it work again at the back at boot.

Does this make sense?

Swap the connectors on the motherboard - front and back ports are often on different connections.

Quite bafflingly I have the same problem on a machine at work, and I hadn't thought of it for myself until you asked.

I had this problem before with a whole host of USB peripherals - dongle, mouse, you name it, every time i moved it, Windows thought it was a new thing and "installed" it again before it would work.

Gavin Scott wrote:Swap the connectors on the motherboard - front and back ports are often on different connections.

Quite bafflingly I have the same problem on a machine at work, and I hadn't thought of it for myself until you asked.

Ah but due to the original back ports breaking on my motherboard my back ports are now a PCI card. Just to complicate matters.

And Alexia, it's not the issue where when you swap it in Windows and have to wait for it to install again, it's when you swap it before Windows boots it refuses to accept its there unless its on the front.

I wonder if going into the bios THEN swapping might work. Will try that.

The BIOS will only understand how to use the ports on the motherboard. It won't know anything about the USB card on the PCI bus, so won't know there are other ports on that card, or how to use them. Once Windows has loaded, it will load up the drivers for the PCI card, and those USB ports will become available.

If its a question of aesthetics (not that I'm suggesting you're a fusspot), you can get a slightly more discreet USB extension flylead with a male on one end and female on the other, in 30cm and 60cm lengths - that might look neater if you have to continue to use the front port.

I was recently given a couple of spare USB sockets that connect to the USB header on the main board. I'd imagine you could install that type of socket onto a spare PC slot blanking plate if you did have a spare USB header on your motherboard.
I might have one left over if you are interested!

Taking this thread slightly off topic momentarily, I have a USB port expander which is all well and good. However if I plug my keyboard into the expander instead of into the computer, I get a much higher incidence of typos - letters go in the wrong order (and no, it's not just coincidence - it's fairly regular anyway).

Can anyone explain why? Have I just got a dud expander or is this a known fault? My mouse is plugged into the expander as well as my printer and they don't complain.

Well it's OK to be honest, I've just bought a new machine so this one will become my brother's soon enough I was more curious than anything else. Didn't occur to me that it would be an issue with the PCI card but that makes far more sense.

Now back to waiting on Dell to make the thing before sending it out via their terrible delivery company.