Q: USB Keyboard Plugged into Monitor Often Doesn't Work

Just my 2 cents: same problem. Very annoying.

Same problem here.  MacBook Air and Thunderbolt.

Just to add, this issue seems to extend further than the USB bus. I have a thunderbolt-interface external hard drive, used for Time Machine, connected to the Thunderbolt Display (firmware ver 22.2). I also have an extened USB keyboard connected to the Thunderbolt Display. Plugging my MBP Retina (OSX 10.8.3) into the Thunderbolt Display and having EVERYTHING wake up from sleep happens 25% of the time. I always eject my external drives before disconnecting, and administered all the appropriate updates. Can't think of anything else, will be calling Apple.

The only workaround I've found that works reliably is to plug my keyboard directly into my MBP, use it for an hour or so, and then plug it into the monitor. Needless to say, this is not optimal.

Similar symptom.

Hardware:

1. Macbook Pro Retina (15"), Mid 2012, 2.6Ghz i&, 16GB RAM, OS X 10.8.3

2. LED Cinema Display 27"  USB Hub Version 1.0 Version 2.99, Display Audio Version 1.2, Display iSight  Version 2.61, Keyboard Hub Version 96.15

3. Apple Keyboard with Numeric Keypad - English (USA)  (USB) Version 0.74

4. Apple Wireless trackpad. (previously used Wireless  Apple Magic Mouse with same symptom)

I use the macbook on trips and typically enter sleep mode by closing the top cover (display). When I return I connect the macbook pro to display by connecting LED Cinema Display connections in this order; 1. Power (adapter for new power connector) 2. Mini display port 3. USB (on left side of MBP). I use the track pad to wake up the macbook.

Unpluging keayboard from back of Display works sometimes. Other times I have to open the laptop and reconnect to get Apple USB keyboard to work.

Trying to toubleshoot this AM I connected as usual and verified the Apple USB keyboard was unresponsive. Opened the macbook cover and then opened System Information -> Hardware ->USB.

Under USB Hi-Speed Bus ->Hub I could see: 1. Apple LED Cinema Display, 2. Display Audio, 3. Display iSight

After going through workaround to get Apple USB keyboard to work I now see Keyboard Hub and under that Apple Keyboard displayed in System Information. (Requires that you close window and click System Report)

Complete listing from System Information

System Information -> Hardware ->USB.

Under USB Hi-Speed Bus ->Hub I could see: 1. Keyboard Hub -> Apple Keyboard 2. Apple LED Cinema Display, 3. Display Audio, 4. Display iSight

Looks to me like the Apple LED Display Keyboard Hub is not being initialized properly.

Hi everyone, I think I might have a solution - convenient and cheap:)

I've had a similar problem - my Apple keyboard would sometimes work, sometimes it wouldn't, sometimes I had to plug/unplug or plug in another device for it to work.

But one day I was doing some organizing with all my spare or unused cables and I'd found I have 2 spare Apple USB cables. I thought it's a shame that they're wasting away:), so I figured I could use one for the keyboard - didn't really need it, but few extra CMs couldn't hurt. And since I've connected the keyboard via the extension cable my problems with TBD were GONE! Finally! I've used this set up for over 2 weeks now and had no problems. The keyboard works everytime right from the boot up and also after sleeping and then waking up my MBP. I've also checked that when I unplug the extension and plug in the keyboard directly the old problem returns.

Thus I encourage everyone having this annoying USB problem to try an extension cable for the keyboard.

Hope that helps you guys.

Take care.

This may not help everyone, but what worked for me was that I discovered the external screen will light up even when the plug into the MacBook is not properly seated. For some reason only the keyboard (plugged into the monitor) failed to respond. Going through the helpful suggestions above I noticed that the plug (video to MacBook) was not snug, so I pushed it in further, and then things worked normally. I would not have expected the video to come up at all, but apparently this connection is quite picky about the tiny little electrodes. I hope this helps someone, as this forum has often helped me over the decades.

Same problem here. What always works is for me is a very simple solution - the keyboard comes with an usb extension cord - connect it to your keyboard and then to your display. Done. It's not ideal because the keyboard cord is quite long now but at least it works.

Cheers.

Well as crazy an idea as I though extending the cord lenght was, I gave it a try. After many in home tests and 5 seprate trips away from the home office and back again I have yet to have the keyboard fail to respond properly. 

I went so far to troublshoot the issue by looking at System report under Hardware -> USB -> USB Hi-Speed Bus -> Hub (1st instance) ->Hub -> [Keyboard Hub -> Apple Keyboard ]= only appears when system recognizes the keyboard.  With the USB extension cable plugged in it connects every time.

Sounds like a timming issue in the display hub or keyboard where extending cable length changes impedance. Cable fix narrows down the issue to most likely being the display hub.

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

LED Cinema Display

Apple USB Keyboard A1243

4ft USB extension cable. Connected to LED Cinema Display (Does not matter which port)

Nice find Chris Panas!

The only consistent solution I've found is to this problem is to get the Apple Store to replace the keyboard.  Here's a few things to note:

I work in a business where we purchased 14 Thunderbolt monitors with 14 of the Apple USB keyboards.  There were a few keyboards that had various combinations of results with a few different monitors (the symptom described--keyboard doesn't respond when plugged into Thunderbolt monitor and laptop gets attached, yet will work when plugged into laptop directly).

I took the keyboard and Thunderbolt display to the Apple Store where a genius started working various combinations to see if he could recreate the problem.  It started working at first, then started showing the symptoms.  He tried a different monitor and he tried his laptop and no matter what combination, the keyboard wouldn't work unless plugged into the laptop directly.  I asked him to try a different Apple USB keyboard and it worked fine.  He then replaced my keyboard.

In short, the keyboard is the only part in the combination that consistently seems to show the problem.  When it's hooked into one Thunderbolt monitor, it may not show a problem.  When hooked to another, it may show the problem.  And sometimes when hooked into any Thunderbolt monitor it shows the problem.  I'm not sure what the problem is in the keyboard, electrical or otherwise, but sometimes they just don't work with the Thunderbolt display, period.  The other thing is timing--the problem would begin to show around a few days to a week later.  I don't remember ever seeing the problem when we first use the keyboard.

Of the 14 keyboards we originally purchased, I returned 3 keyboards for replacements.  Of those 3 replacements, I returned 1.  In total, 4 keyboards had to be replaced and I haven't seen the problem since.

Intersting. I would be inclined do the same, if it didn't require schlepping the TBD to the Apple store.

This sheds some light on the keyboard problem, but there I still see some quirkyness in waking the TBD.

I have a backup drive connected to the TBD via Thunderbolt cable. This is my Time Machine drive and I expect it to perform backups as necessary when my MBP is connected to the TBD. Unfortunatley, the drive isn't always recognized, even as an external drive. It sometimes requires unplugging and reconencting the Thunderbolt cable to the external drive. Only then will it be recognized and identified as the Time Machine drive. The connection success rate is about 50%.

I'm going to try a different (longer, and Apple brand) Thunderbolt cable between the two, akin to adding the externsion USB cable to the keyboard and see if anything changes.

Anyone else have a problem with other periferals connected thrugh TBD (ethernet, mouse, etc..) being recognized when waking up? Is power cycling the TBD before connecting the MBP the answer?

I've been getting this problem for years.  Still have it.  This time on a Mac Mini with TB display.  Was fine for a while, now it's come back the past few weeks.  Every time I reboot the keyboard and mouse don't power up and respond.  I've found that on the login screen, if I unplug the TB display and plug it back in (with the keyboard/mouse etc still plugged into the back of the TB display) then it all registers and works fine, until the next reboot.

OS X 10.8.4, Mac Mini 2011 quad core.

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