USB Keyboard Plugged into Monitor Often Doesn't Work

Using a USB extender cable has solved the problem for me!

Occasionally it will take maybe a minute to recognize the external keyboard after plugging in the Thunderbolt cable, but I've been batting 100% all week since this solution was first recommended above.

Amazing that it works -- and that it took so long for this workaround to come up.

Ditto, 27 thunderbolt display+MBP 15 inch retina (bought feb 2013), apple keyboard with attached mouse. It didn't do it right away, took a few months. Have to unplug and replugin keyboard a few times in different ports to make work.

Hello,

Just reporting that this happens to me as well. It happened to me for the 1st time today and I landed here after a Google search.

I bought my brand new Thunderbolt display yesterday, replacing an LED display (3 years old).

I took my laptop to work today. I came home and plugged in the power and Thunderbolt connection (the computer was asleep from having the lid closed).

Nothing. No keyboard input. I removed it from the back of the monitor and blocked it back in. Still nothing.

I plugged into the Macbook Pro directly on the left side USB. Started working perfectly.

I plugged in back into the Apple Thunderbolt display. Nothing.

I checked to see if I have the latest Thunderbolt drivers. I do. No updates. And the 1.1 version you can manually apply told me that I didn't need that update.

I then hooked up the provided extension cable as suggested in this thread. Plugged it into the Thunderbolt display. It came up just fine and I'm typing up this note

Very strange. I'll do some additional experimentation over the coming days as I transport my Retina MBP to and from work all the time.

Key Hardware:

• My keyboard is the Apple Keyboard with Numerical Keybpad - English (USA).
• My monitor is a 27 Thunderbolt.
• My laptop is this year's Retina display Macbook Pro.

Bus use - for reference:

• I have an Oxygen 61 key Midi keyboard on 1 of the other USB ports from the monitor
• I have a Lacie Thunderbolt storage on the Thunderbolt chain from the montior
• I have (or try to have?) the Apple keyboard from the monitor
• I have a Duet by Apogge (the original) on the Firewire port from the monitor

David

I then hooked up the provided extension cable as suggested in this thread. Plugged it into the Thunderbolt display. It came up just fine and I'm typing up this note

I, too, use the Apple keyboard with numeric keyboard and have found, like you, that I must use the power adapter from the display to my MBP in order for everything to function as expected.

Clinton

I have a

Macbook Pro Retina, Mid 2012 2.6Ghz, 16GB; OS X 10.8.4

LED Cinema Display

Apple USB Keyboard A1243

and am running into the same problem with my keyboard.

So getting a longer monitor cable will fix this? Seriously?

Yep, a simple USB cable solves the problem. Don't know why, don't know... but it works.

Hi,

It's still working for me (using the USB extension cable) over a week later with multiple shut downs, sleeps, pulling the Thunderbolt and power cable out, and all sorts of "normal" usage of moving your laptop between multiple places.

Computer

Late 2012 Apple Macbook Pro Retina 17"

Home:

Apple Thunderbolt 27" display

Ethernet via port

Work:

Dell IPS monitor

*Using Monoprice mini-display port to Display port/HDMI apdater (using Display port, not HDMI right now)

Thunderport to Ethernet adpater

Not having anymore bus problems once I put in the USB extension cable as was suggestion.

When I get home from work and jack into the Thunderbolt cable for the monitor into the Macbook, my USB keyboard attached to Thunderbolt Display, Thunderbolt display attached Lacie Raid drive, Thunderbolt atttached, firewire Apogee Duet, and Thunderbolt attached USB "piano" ... all come online and function as expected.

I can plug in additional USB harddrives to the Macbook itself and all of this is working without conflicts.

Highly recommend. I was surprised as the rest of you.

I've had the same problem... A new Macbook Air occasionally not recognizing a new, external Apple extended keyboard. (It worked 100% of the time with a 4-year-old Microsoft keyboard.)

I finally tried the completely illogical solution of adding a USB extension to the Apple keyboard's plug, and it seems to be working great.

Go figure.

As I see we have the same issue with a new Mac Air, thunderbolt display and a numeric usb keyboard.

So just to make it clear; I just need to buy a USB extension cable and connect it between the keyboard usb cable and the back of the Thunderbolt display (connect the thunderbolt cable and power cable to the Mac Air and close the Mac Air top) ... and this solves the problem?

I don't have a Thunderbolt display, it's a Viewsonic I think (I'm not in front of it right now).

My problem was that the Macbook Air wasn't recognizing the Apple extended keyboard, which was plugged into a USB port. The display was not part of the equation.

The solution was to add a USB extension to the end of the keyboard USB cord, thereby extending it, then plugging it into the same USB port. (I used the extension that came with the keyboard.)

I'd image the same solution would work it the keyboard was plugged into a Thunderbolt display.

Thanks.. works perfect ..directly connecting the keyboard via the USB extension to the USB port at rear of the Thunderbolt display.

Glad to hear it solved you question.

As an update, I've now had this solution in place for 1 week and it's working perfectly.

RESOLVED: Adding an Apple USB extension resolved this for me. This was mentioned in a previous post. The caveat is that I cannot use the USB keyboard to wake the my MBP w/thunderbolt only the bluetooth mouse.

Assuming the reason is it tipped me over the line for spending enough money to get this feature... 😉 j/k

I have the same exact problem.

- Apple 27 TBD

- late 2011 MBA running OSX 10.8.5 and

- Apple USB keyboard (ideally) attached to the TB display

Everything runs the latest firmware, I'm always keen on keeping everything up to date and running the latest software (being a software engineer). Attaching the keyboard directly to the MBA works just fine. Attaching it back to the TB display is an exercise in futility 19/20 times.

I've methodically tried every combination of plugging and unplugging things, waiting the typical 5-10 seconds USB needs to recognise stuff and so on. I have yet to establish a pattern that works every time.

This is a very annoying thing and I expect better from a 1200€ display and a 56€ keyboard.

Did you attach the extension cable to the TBD or to the Mac itself?

Thanks