Q: Is 10.8.4 Update causing this problem for you too?

I have had a similar, but far worse issue with 10.8.4...
I have installed this update 4-5 times now and every time I get NO response at all from the mouse or keyboard at the signin screen... I have had to reboot and reinstall 10.8.3 every time... I tried using my Time Machine back ups, but now my Mac Mini won't recognize the external HD that I purchased from the Apple store... I sure hope they get this one fixed soon...

Try deleting the Finder .plist to see if that helps.

You need to look in your user Library/Preferences for the .plist. Hold down the option key while using the Finder “Go To Folder” command. Enter ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.finder.plist.  Move the .plist to your desktop.

Relaunch Finder and test. If it works okay, delete the plist(s) from the desktop.

If the Finder is the same, return the .plist(s) to where you got them from, overwriting the newer ones.

If you prefer to make your user library permanently visible, use the Terminal command found below.

http://osxdaily.com/2011/07/04/show-library-directory-in-mac-os-x-lion/

You might want to bookmark the command. I had to use it again after I installed 10.8.4. I have also been informed that if you drag the user library to Finder it will remain visible.

If there is no change, try setting up another admin user account to see if the same problem continues. If Back-to-My Mac is selected in System Preferences, the Guest account will not work. The intent is to see if it is specific to one account or a system wide problem. This account can be deleted later.

Isolating an issue by using another user account

If the problem is still there, try booting into the Safe Mode.  Shut down the computer and then power it back up. Immediately after hearing the startup chime, hold down the shift key and continue to hold it until the gray Apple icon and a progress bar appear. The boot up is significantly slower than normal. This will reset some caches, forces a directory check, and disables all startup and login items, among other things. If the system operates normally, there may be 3rd party applications which are causing a problem. Try deleting/disabling the third party applications after a restart by using the application unistaller. For each disable/delete, you will need to restart if you don't do them all at once.

Safe Mode

Safe Mode - About

General information.

Isolating issues in Mac OS X

Troubleshooting Permission Issues

Step by Step to Fix Your Mac

Dear Eric

Update to 10.8.4 has caused me also a lot of problems with stuck mouse and keyboard at the sign-in screen. I think it is more of a software issue related to the latest upgrade rather than anything else. I have a mac mini (mid 2010) and 8GB of RAM. Everything was fine till upgrade 10.8.3. The magic mouse and wireless keybd sprang to life simultaneously with desktop coming to life after a fresh start or restart. However, post upgrade to 10.8.4, both mouse and keybd would go into a hang (unresponsive) state for about 4 minutes, and would then become OK for the rest of the session. Waking up from sleep mode would not cause this problem, but shutdown and restart would again impose a wait of 4 minutes. Wired or wireless keybd and mouse made no difference, it behaved identically.

I tried to isolate the problem by trying out all suggestions to .plist ideas but to no avail. Then restarted in safe mode, and the problem would simply vanish ! So obviously there is nothing wrong with my hardware, including the bluetooth chip.

Then I did a fresh re-install on an external hard disk via USB to see if the problem would resurface. It was a fresh mountain lion install, and the system was booted from this disk - ver 10.8. There was no problem at all and both keybd as well as mouse responded as intended. But this was BEFORE upgrading to 10.8.4. I then applied the combined update to 10.8.4, and the same problem re-surfaced again !!!! Notably, this fresh install had non of my apps installed into it. So a conflicting driver from any of my apps could not have caused this problem.

So obviously, it is very clear, the unresponsive wait imposition of 4 minutes, after bootup and presentation of desktop, is a serious problem related to the latest Mountain Lion upgrade to 10.8.4, and APPPLE needs to look into this problem seriously and urgently. This problem has been echoed on the Support forums by many users, including other internet forums as well. Apple needs to resolve tihs issue ASAP.

Clean install of 10.8.4 on mid 2011 imac, mouse and keyboard come to life straight away. I'm not saying its not happening but my iMac is fine. Its only buggy with recognising the keyboard and mouse is in the recovery partition and has been since 10.8.3 for me.

I have the same issue.  10.8.4 runs fine on my 2009 iMac but the recovery partition does not recognize my keyboard or mouse (both apple products).  This is definiely a software issue as I've never had this problem before 10.8.4.

If you don't experience problems when booted into the Safe Mode, you may have some 3rd party application that is causing the problem when booted normally. Some anti-virus programs and MacKeeper have caused people problems. There are others. If you have any 3rd party applications, try disabling them or uninstalling them. If uninstalling, follow the uninstall instructions from the developer to ensure you got all the parts of the program.

Dear Eric

I do not have mackeeper or any other antivirus loaded. My apps were same as before.

Also, when I did a clean install on an external disk, none of the previous apps were loaded, it was just Mountain Lion Ver 10.8.4. Even then it happened. Yes, there could possibly be some relationship between this problem and Mac Mini Mid 2010 in particular. That is not being ruled out.

I have the same issue on MBP 2010 Mid

Dear Eric and all others who have been following my question posted on Jun 16 above.

After searching and experimenting for so many days, with no outcome, I finally took my Mac Mini to the Apple Service Center and explained the problem to them. The Engineer over there simply took my mac, and did a plain and simple opening up the unit, taking out the memory and bluetooth chip, and carefully re-inserted it back again. Then re-fired the unit and it was back to its original self with mouse and keyboard all responding beautifully. When I asked him what could possibly have gone wrong, he coolly replied, "sometimes a hammer at the correct place" gets everything  working again !!

So that was the happy ending to my woes. Best of luck to all those who have been facing the same problem.

Try running the combo updater. This has cleared problems for some people.

10.8.4 Combo Update

Refer to my earlier post on 22 Jun.

The problem re-occurred very soon within a couple of hours when I came back home from the service centre ! Then I tried to re-install again. But the problem persisted. Tried all solutions given by so many people in various forums - to no avail. Then finally yesterday I went back to the service center again and they changed the main board itself. No problem since then.

It is now almost a week and everything is back to normal. So obviously, it appears that there must have been something faulty with the main board itself.

Hi Vajpai

I'm not sure it was all hardware. Since the update my MacBook Pro has had grey screen problems even after they checked all my hardware and did a clean install. I have no apps or software on the Mac and I don't play iTunes just to try to keep the computer going. Anytime I try to add anything back, even iWork, I get grey screen problems, sometimes blue screen. They say all of my hardware checks out okay.

I think this is one of the worse updates ever. I'm going to go back this week to try to downgrade back to 10.8.3 and wait to update for a ling time.  :(

Same problem

Anytime I update my Mac OS I run Mountain Lion Cache Cleaner and perform DEEP and ALL cache cleaning. Then I repair pemissions with Disk Utility. Most of the problems encountered by others (about 95%) don't concern me.

I would the advice you to do the same.

Cheers

Simon