USB Keyboard just stopped being recognised.

[Pringle68]

Hi
I have an iMac 2.8 i7 that is running os x 10.6.8
I have an Apple USB keyboard connected to it and everything has worked fine for several years
I booted up the iMac today and was greeted by the Bluetooth Keyboard Setup - no wireless keyboard connected message and "Check cables if you are expecting a usb keyboard."
I have tried rebooting and using different USB ports on the back of the iMac but no luck
I have tested each USB port with different USB pen drives - each port recognises these drives - so the iMac ports appear to be working for other devices
I have tested the keyboard on my MacBookPro - and it works fine
I have tried resetting the SMC (powered down, unplugged, held power button for 15 seconds, plugged back in and rebooted) and the USB keyboard is still not working.
Any advice would be much appreciated
Thanks in advance

 

[Spawn_Dooley]

Baffling indeed!

Sometimes there's just no design or answer why … strange things do happen!

You could try booting in Safe Mode to see if the keyboard is recognised. Remove all peripherals except mouse/keyboard.

Safe Mode