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Fix: Mouse and Keyboard Not Working After Power Outage

Outages cause corruption which you need to immediately clear out

7 min. read

Updated onOctober 4, 2023

updated onOctober 4, 2023

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Key notes

Power outages, and the surges that come with one, can be pretty disastrous as they can cause serious damage to a computer, like frying internal systems, so nothing can be read.

And in this particular instance, we’ll recommend what you should do when those devices stop working. It would be a shame ifyour keyboardgot ruined by a power surge.

What other problems can a power outage cause?

Before going into the solutions, it’s important to point out the other computer problems a power outage can cause. That way, if they ever happen to you, you’ll know how to fix it:

To fix these peripheral errors, there are a variety of hardware and software solutions that you can do. There are a ton of fixes that you can try out. Even if one doesn’t work, you’re bound to find one that does.

How can I fix my mouse and keyboard after a power outage?

Here’s what you should do first:

1. Run Hardware Troubleshooter

If you’re using a laptop, it’s recommended that you first unplug all of your USB peripherals and then restart the computer using the touchpad.

2. Reinstall drivers for the mouse and keyboard

3. Turn off Power Management settings

4. Run System File Checker

Power outages can cause drives and files on your computer to become corrupted. This is why you should run both an SFC scan and a Disk Check to clear the corruption.

5. Run Disk Check

Disk Check is a Windows system tool that scans that hard drive for any system errors. If it does detect anything, the tool immediately cleans it out.

We recommend running Disk Check semi-regularly to keep up with good computer hygiene. After scanning, thetool creates a log filetelling what it found. Be sure to check it out.

6. Clean boot Windows 11

After restarting, your computer will launch under a Clean Boot. Go back to the Task Manager and reenable the apps you disabled earlier. See if there are any issues that arise.

If you encounter any problem with an app, uninstall it. If you don’t, you may have a faulty Windows Update affecting your computer, which you shouldimmediately roll back.

7. Disable Selective Suspend

What can I do if my motherboard is failing?

Power outages can alsoshort-circuit a motherboardwhich can result in systemic failures, random reboots, and crashing, complete with the infamous Blue Screen of Death.

Fixing this problem is a multi-step process you can do right at home. It does require you to open up your computer, replace some damaged parts, andclean out the motherboard.

If something like this intimidates you, you should take in your computer for repairs or send it back to the manufacturer.

Feel free to comment below if you have questions about other keyboard or mouse problems. And please tell us if there’s a specific guide for a Windows 11 error that you’d like to see.

More about the topics:Fix mouse issues,Keyboard issues,Windows 11

Cesar Cadenas

Networking & Security Specialist

Cesar has been writing for and about technology going on for 6 years when he first started writing tech articles for his university paper. Since then, his passion for technology blossomed into a prosperous writing career. He first started writing about tech in the entertainment world and would later move on to write about smart life tech and social media. He was recently a Technical Writer for tech company Extron where he wrote user guides for audio and video equipment.

He has since moved on to being a freelance writer looking to have a career in copywriting and hopes to share his love and knowledge of technology with the world. Recently, Cesar has written for the cryptocurrency news site, BTCPro and helping people understand tech.

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Cesar Cadenas

Networking & Security Specialist

Cesar is a tech expert passionate about Windows, Microsoft, and anything surrounding the world of PCs.