Arrow Keys not working in GRUB

Question

I have Ubuntu and Windows 7 installed in my computer, but since I update to Ubuntu 14.04 the arrow keys does not work in GRUB, so I can not boot Windows 7. However it is very weird that after it boots Ubuntu the arrows keys work perfectly.

Help!!!

is this problem consistently repeatable? If you reboot do the arrow keys still not work in grub and work in Ubuntu? Have you tried unplugging and replugging the keyboard? I've seen dust in USB ports cause all kinds of issues. — Elder Geek, May 02 '14 at 00:13

score 3 · Answer 1 · edited Aug 28 '17 at 19:24

Does your BIOS/UEFI setup have a setting for "legacy USB support" or "USB keyboard support"? If so, enabling this might allow your keyboard to work during boot.

These USB support options allow USB based keyboards to function as if they are traditional DIN or PS/2 keyboards like in the days before USB. This will only affect the time up until your operating system loads its own keyboard drivers, so it can allow USB keyboards to work during boot even for boot loaders without USB support.

I'm not sure if Grub should support USB keyboards without the legacy option. But in this case it's worth a try.

score 2 · Answer 2 · edited Sep 01 '18 at 02:11

2

Before Grub loads, (on my machine at least) when given the option to enter BIOS or select boot volume, I hit a key to go to one of those and then hit escape.
When it dumps me out at grub I now can move the arrows up and down. Whereas if I just let it load to Grub, keyboard does not work.

edited Sep 01 '18 at 02:11

David Foerster

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answered Aug 31 '18 at 13:34

nthChild

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score 1 · Answer 3 · answered Mar 15 '18 at 16:45

I encoutered a similar problem with an USB keyboard. Indeed, I couldn't navigate through my BIOS. I had to finded an old PS/2 keyboard. Fortunately my motherboard have a PS/2 connector and I manually configured the USB support in the bios.

After that I never faced this problem anymore.

To return to your problem, can you navigate through your bios ? The problem is only concerning grub ? Your keyboard have some lighting indicator during your boot ?

If you can't navigate in your bios, please try this solutions :

Change the USB port of your keyboard to another one
Try another keyboard
Use a PS/2 keyboard (if possible) and then enable the USB support in your bios.

score 1 · Answer 4 · answered Oct 11 '14 at 10:34

1

I had exactly this problem and I thought I would never get back into Windows. Thankfully the page down key does work, so problem solved.

Mine is a USB keyboard by the way and I am sure this is nothing to do with dust in the USB plug or sockets. It was the same with all 5 USB ports on the computer. And, like the poster of this problem the keys worked fine once Ubuntu had booted.

answered Oct 11 '14 at 10:34

Richieboy

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@Parto This doesn't look like a thank you answer to me. – Seth Oct 11 '14 at 14:43
@seth Yah, you're right. Thank you comment deleted. I'll also delete this in a moment. – Parto Oct 11 '14 at 15:04

score 0 · Answer 5 · edited Mar 15 '18 at 15:12

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I installed Ubuntu 18.04 LTS alongside Windows 10. Like you, after restarting the keyboard didn't work at all in GRUB, but worked in Ubuntu after it booted automatically.

I had plugged my keyboard in a USB3 socket. By plugging it into an ordinary USB, it worked in grub too.

edited Mar 15 '18 at 15:12

Martin Thornton

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answered Mar 15 '18 at 14:59

Mohammad

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score 0 · Answer 6 · answered Jul 22 '20 at 10:24

0

I have had the same problem with a clean install of Ubuntu 20.04 and Windows 10.

I found that grub would not respond to my keyboard when connected to a USB3 port, but works fine with legacy USB2.

answered Jul 22 '20 at 10:24

MrPaulDriver

209

score 0 · Answer 7 · answered Mar 01 '15 at 18:17

I had this problem too but it turns out that special characters such as '@' as in P@ssword was not being generated. At the prompt pressing RIGHT SHIFT and key 2 does not generate a '@' instead a '2' is generated. This can be confirmed by switching over to another TTY and typing in the password (CTRL + ALT + F1) which will echo the key press. In this TTY, I noted that using LEFT SHIFT and key 2 generated the '@' control character. Thus if LEFT SHIFT is used in complex password it will be typed correctly and cryptsetup will be able to decrypt the volume. It is very frustrating when grub can not accept complex password characters used on encrypted volumes during recovery booting.

If you have another question, please ask it by clicking the Ask Question button. — Elder Geek, Aug 28 '17 at 17:44

score 0 · Answer 8 · answered Aug 28 '17 at 17:20

I had the same exact problem with the grub menu and found a fix that worked for me. I tried looking into BIOS, and I tried 'Page Up/Page Down' keys- both with no success.. Finally I plugged in a different USB keyboard and the Up/Down keys were working normally with the menu.

The keyboard that didn't work was older, and the one that was working was newer.. Not really sure why one would work and the other wouldn't though.

Hopefully this helps!

score -2 · Answer 9 · edited Sep 22 '20 at 17:56

-2

Boot into Ubuntu, find the GRUB settings, and change the order from 0 to 2.

Now next time you power on your system, it'll directly boot into Windows. In this way you can save yourself from this situation.

edited Sep 22 '20 at 17:56

Eliah Kagan

117,780

answered Sep 20 '20 at 13:03

butterscotch

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Arrow Keys not working in GRUB

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