Mouse Freezes In Bios

I've just built a PC with the following:
Mobo: ASUS Prime B350-PLUS
CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 2600
RAM: Corsair CMK16GX42B3200C16
PSU: EVGA 750W G2
Monitor: Packard Bell Maestro 242DX

I use a wireless Microsoft mouse and keyboard and when I go into BIOS the mouse freezes almost immediately. The keyboard seems to work for some time but freezes eventually. I tested a wired mouse and keyboard and it took 10-15 seconds before the mouse froze. BIOS is 6042 ans is the latest. I have loaded Zorin Core from a USB stick and the mouse and keyboard work without problems. Why does it freeze in BIOS?

 

Some mice do but I have found that most "wireless" mice (and keyboards) don't. This is because the wireless USB dongle often needs special drivers and they are not installed until the boot drive is hit - and that is after POST (power on self-test) which is after the BIOS boots.

So, as plodr suggests, to ensure you can access and then navigate the BIOS Setup menu, it is best to have a basic, wired keyboard handy just for that purpose. In fact, I have a shelf under my desk. Why? I don't know! But I keep a basic wired keyboard and mouse connected to my computer at all time sitting on that shelf. As long as I make sure no keys are pressed, they never interfere with my primary wireless keyboard or mouse.

HOWEVER, it sure comes in handy when, for example, the batteries die in my keyboard or mouse. Then I just grab the wired version so I am able to "gracefully" finish what I am doing and shut down Windows, replace the batteries, boot up and be good to go for another 6 months.

Was the keyboard locked up too? Keyboards tend to be much more reliable in this area compared to mice. So if the keyboard locked up too, that definitely is not normal.

Again, I would try a basic, budget keyboard (nice to keep one on-hand as a spare/test keyboard anyway). Note that "all" wired keyboard are supposed to work at basic, "industry standard" levels just as all BIOS and motherboards are supposed to recognize and work with basic keyboards - WITHOUT the need for any special drivers. If not, how could we access the BIOS Setup Menu before the boot drive is touched, or install an OS on a brand new (and empty) boot drive?

This is the same with graphics solutions (and monitors) - they all are supposed to work at basic, "industry standard" levels, then enhanced features are enabled once the boot drive is hit and the installed drivers are loaded. But we have to see what we are doing in order to install the OS and those special graphics drivers.

Also as plodr suggest, check your USB ports. And check your motherboard manual. There typically is one or two ports intended to be used by the keyboard and (if two dedicated USB ports) mouse. Make sure you are using that/those ports.

 

I moved the wired M&K from the USB2 ports to the USB3.0 ports and now it works in BIOS. I then switched to the wiress and put the dongle in one of the USB 3.0 ports and it worked too. Perhaps someone can explain this because someone said that USB2 would be more reliable and USB3 a bit iffy when it comes to mice. In this case it's the other way around.

 

"Generally" that is true. But there are always exceptions.

Keyboards and mice do not need lots of bandwidth. For this reason, even many of the newest keyboards and mice still use USB 2.0 as that frees up the faster USB 3.0 ports for other devices that need faster speeds (like external storage devices).

Sadly, USB is not as "universal" as its name implies. In theory, USB devices (and ports) are supposed to be forwards and backwards compatible. They are "supposed" to work reliably regardless. They may operate at the slowest speeds supported by that device or port, but they should still work.

But "in theory" and "real world" don't always jibe. If your dongle is USB 3.0, it may simply work better in a 3.0 port.

In my old radio maintenance days, we used to call such mysteries, "FM". That was not for "frequency modulation", but rather for a certain type of magic!