You have finally got the PC into Recovery to fix something, and now the keyboard does nothing. The mouse pointer will not move either. Every option on screen is out of reach.
This is worse than an ordinary fault because you cannot get back out to fix it in the normal way.
I went looking for whether Microsoft has ever admitted this happens. It has, in writing, with a date on it, and it published three ways round it.
Why Recovery is different from Windows
The reason this happens at all.
⭐ Recovery is a small separate operating system. It loads its own tiny set of drivers. Not the ones your Windows install uses.
⛔ So a keyboard that works perfectly in Windows can be invisible in Recovery. Nothing is broken. The driver it needs simply is not loaded.
⚡ That is also why the mouse dies at the same time. Both are USB. It is USB support that is missing, not the devices.
Microsoft has documented this exact fault
Useful, because it means your problem has been written down by somebody official.
⚡ Microsoft wrote it down on its Windows 11 release health page: after the update released on 14 October 2025, "USB devices, such as keyboards and mice, do not function in the Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE)".
⛔ Microsoft states how stuck that leaves you: "This issue prevents navigation of any of the recovery options within WinRE."
⭐ And it names the tell: "Note that the USB devices continue to work normally within the Windows operating system."
⚠️ That incident was fixed by an out-of-band update six days later. But the same symptom still turns up for other reasons, which is what the rest of this page is for.
The three ways round it, from Microsoft
All three are usable by an ordinary person.
⭐ A touchscreen, if your PC has one. Microsoft's first suggestion is to use the on-screen touch keyboard to navigate Recovery.
⚡ A PS/2 keyboard, if your PC has that round purple socket. Older desktops still do, and PS/2 does not depend on USB support at all.
⚠️ Or a USB recovery drive you made earlier. Microsoft says booting from it "will take you directly to WinRE with restored USB functionality".
⛔ That third one only helps if you already made it. Which is the whole argument for making one now, while your PC still works.
The ordinary causes, when it is not that update
Four to try, and they cost nothing.
⭐ Move the keyboard to a different port. Choose a black USB 2 port over a blue USB 3 one if you have the choice.
⚡ Plug it directly into the PC. Hubs, docks and monitor ports are the commonest reason a keyboard vanishes there.
⚠️ Use a wired keyboard if you have one. A wireless keyboard with a dongle sometimes works, and a Bluetooth one almost never does, because Recovery has no Bluetooth.
⛔ And on a desktop, try the ports on the back rather than the front. Front panel ports are wired through the case and are the first to be unsupported.
Ours: how to avoid ever meeting this
A small job now that saves an evening later.
⚡ Ours, and it is cheap insurance: the recovery drive is the only one of Microsoft's three answers you can arrange in advance, and it takes one search and one USB stick.
⭐ Search for Create a recovery drive in the Start menu while your PC is working normally.
⚠️ It erases the USB stick. Use an empty one, and label it afterwards.
⛔ Keep it somewhere you will find it in a hurry. A recovery drive in a drawer you cannot remember is the same as no recovery drive.
Getting out of Recovery when nothing responds
Two moves, in this order.
⭐ Hold the power button until the PC switches off. Wait, then start it again. Recovery is not damaged by this.
⚡ If it boots back into Recovery every time, that is a different problem and it means Windows itself is not starting.
⚠️ Do not choose Reset this PC just because it is the only button you can reach. That is a large move with real consequences and there are lighter options first.
⛔ And if the machine will not start at all rather than looping, the question to answer is a different one.
What this does not affect
Worth saying, because people worry.
⚠️ Your files are untouched. A keyboard that Recovery ignores changes nothing on your drive.
⭐ Your Windows install is untouched too. You have not made anything worse by getting stuck in there.
⚡ And your keyboard is fine. It works the moment Windows loads, which is the clearest proof there is that the hardware is healthy.
Status: read against Microsoft's Windows 11 release health documentation, 27 August 2026. Microsoft supplies the incident, the wording and the three workarounds. ⛔ Recovery was not entered here.
Why does my keyboard work in Windows but not in Recovery?
Because Recovery is a separate miniature operating system that loads its own small set of drivers. If USB support is missing from that set, your keyboard and mouse both stop responding, even though the hardware is perfectly healthy. Microsoft has documented exactly this happening after one of its updates.
How do I use Windows Recovery with no keyboard?
Microsoft gives three options. Use the touch keyboard if your PC has a touchscreen, plug in a PS/2 keyboard if your PC has that socket, or boot from a USB recovery drive you made earlier, which restores USB support inside Recovery. Only the third one needs preparing in advance.
Will a wireless keyboard work in Windows Recovery?
Sometimes. A wireless keyboard with its own USB dongle often works because Recovery sees it as an ordinary USB keyboard. A Bluetooth keyboard almost never does, because Recovery has no Bluetooth support at all. If you have a wired keyboard, use that instead.
How do I get out of Recovery if nothing responds?
Hold the power button until the PC switches off, then start it again. Nothing in Recovery is lost by doing that and your files are not affected. If it boots straight back into Recovery every time, you have a separate problem, because that means Windows itself is failing to start.
The Short Version
- Recovery is a separate small system with its own drivers, not your Windows ones.
- A keyboard that works in Windows can be invisible in Recovery. Nothing is broken.
- Microsoft documented this exact fault after its October 2025 update.
- Its three answers: a touchscreen, a PS/2 keyboard, or a USB recovery drive.
- Try a different port, a USB 2 port, and the back of a desktop rather than the front.
- Plug straight into the PC. Hubs and docks are a common cause.
- Wired beats a dongle, and a dongle beats Bluetooth, which never works there.
- Make a recovery drive now, while the PC still works.
Where to Next
Move the keyboard to a USB port on the back of the PC and try again. That single change fixes a good share of these and it costs nothing.
If you have a wired keyboard in a drawer, use it. Wireless and Bluetooth are the two worst choices for Recovery.
Then get out with the power button, let Windows load, and install any pending updates before going back in.
And make a recovery drive today, while everything works. It is the only one of Microsoft's three answers you can prepare in advance.
If your keyboard came back in Recovery after some particular change, name it in the comments. This one is badly documented outside Microsoft's own incident page.
Isaac Smith is the founder and editor of PC Glance, a website that covers computers, laptops, and technology. He is a tech enthusiast and a computer geek who loves to share his insights and help his readers make smart choices when buying tech gadgets or laptops. He is always curious and updated about the latest tech trends.