apple usb keyboard not working when connected to thunderbolt display

I had this exact problem, used the extension cable and it worked right away. Very strange indeed - but all is working now! :-)

This has been occurring with me since the 10.10.4 update, I have been using Macbook Retina 2014 model and LED Cinema Display. The morning ritual when i arrive at work has been unplug external keyboard, plug back in repeat.

Yet when i plug it into my secondary Macbook 2012 model it works, though sometimes you have to wait a few minutes after unplugging it from the other mac first.

All USB ports, have this problem, with just an extended keyboard.

Sadly I didn't have time to try an extension cable as my temper and frustration got the better of me and now the keyboard lay battered in the bin. The keyboard now lays battered in the bin as the keyboard worked perfectly on an older mac.

Reading these posts its clearly an obscure issue! Time for a new keyboard purchase!!!

It isn't the keyboard. I am on keyboard #2. I start every morning worried if the keyboard will work or not. I trade out the USB ports (I mean, who doesn't love having to move their monitor and reach around it 100 times and back again to test the keyboard? This is especially fun as a 5'3' person.) and sometimes it will just start working. I also will occasionally restart computer, etc. This has been a PITA.

I just got back from travelling and none of the jenky workarounds worked when I tried to get signed in to work this morning. But - THANK YOU, the extension USB suggestion worked. Whoo hoo - 4 feet of keyboard cable!

Why doesn't Apple just make a wireless keyboard that includes the numeric pad?

Anyway - thank you all for weighing in and offering the suggestion for a fix. I love that people even thought to try this solution. 🙂

Happened to me this morning too. Funny rhetorical question: what if I have no spare USB extension cable (for whatever reason)?

Apple sent me one free of charge.

After wasting half an hour trying to make my keyboard work, I contacted Apple Support and wasted another half an hour with them. They asked me to do a System Management Controller reset which didn't help at all.

Then I found a small non-Apple USB extension cord in a drawer and tried it. My keyboard instantly worked.

Shame on Apple for selling defective hardware at such a cost and not being able to fix it!

Hmmm I will try the extension, I have used it before but straight into the MP (which has never been an issue) rather than into the Cinematic Display.

It must be a software bug, as everything worked fine before Mavericks and the keyboard works fine when connected to other devices.

try plug the usb-cord not to the end - it will work, the reason is the length of native apple usb contacts

Thank you so much for saving me the trouble. I was wasting so much time on trying work-arounds. New keyboard, no problems. Thank you!

I've a similar issue

I just bought a thunderbolt display + wired keyboard and I use it with a macbook air. What happens is that after a couple of weeks, the keyboard - plugged to the USB port of the thunderbolt monitor - stops working.

It becomes not usable: many keys stop working (no reaction when pushing them), some are switched. Im sure about it because I was using it also with other monitor.

It already happened twice. And I had my 2nd keyboard changed by the assitance.

I think it depends on the display, and I want it to be changed, but I can't of course demonstrate it. From the assistance they told me they can't do anything but change the internal USB display card. But not change the entire display until Apple does not release a bug notice.

Searching around on the internet I found no notice about it. Is it a well known problem? How may I check if it is really the thunderbolt display which damages keyboards?

Thanks for the post. I was having a similar issue with my apple usb keyboard into the usb port on my thunderbolt display, with macbook pro at startup. Generally I would switch usb ports and that worked, but sometimes required unplugging my usb mouse, and switching things around.

I tried what Rustem said in his post and it worked. This may explain what the usb extension cable seems to help as well.

What he says is that the usb connector on the either the Thunderbolt display's contacts or the keyboard are slightly deeper and don't work constantly, and the further he says that the connector for the usb extender is slightly different, with deeper contacts.

To test this, he claims try plugging the keyboard's usb connector in almost, but not all the way in. This worked for me (so far).

The different connector on the usb extension cable may have been resulting in a similar adjustment.

Just want to add to the thread... I have an iMac Retina and i'm having the exact same issue here. Just tried the usb extension and *magic*, everything is back to the way it was.

It's odd though that the problem only occured three months later... out of nowhere.

I have purchased the iMac 1 year ago, but the usb keyboard was added later since I could not stand the wireless one...

If everyone here has been experiencing an issue with the USB keyboard connection on the Macs, I would also like to confirm that the problem must indeed be related to the keyboard alone as I am also experiencing this connection problem with my PC. After first purchasing this keyboard, the connection worked great, but within about a week's time, one port stopped working. I then tried another port and it would connect fine for a couple of weeks, then it stopped working on that port as well. The same scenario happened on my third and final USB port on my PC laptop which led me to this forum. I dug out a regular USB extension that I was using in my car for anyone needing a phone charger in the backseat of my car (it's not an apple USB extension) and it immediately fixed the problem with this apple keyboard! Therefore, with the use of PC hardware, this keyboard problem exists outside of Mac hardware as well and the USB extension works like a charm! Thank you for the solution!

This work-around solution was working for me for some time, but now it no longer works as reliably. That is, hit and miss, sometimes yes, sometimes no. Very frustrating.

I've had this issue with my MacBook Air for some time. I've tried all the workarounds I've found online, but none of them worked. What worked instantly for me was suggested by a help desk guy at a company I've worked for, and he said just reset the PRAM.

Here’s how to reset your PRAM:

1. Shut down your machine. Yes, all the way down, not sleep or logging out.
2. Press the power button and then press command-option-p-r. You have to make sure you get those keys pressed before the gray screen comes up or it won’t work.
3. Hold those keys down until your Mac reboots again and you here the startup chime.
4. Let go of the keys and let your Mac reboot normally.

No more problems. Hope this helps folks who haven't gotten relief from the other fixes!