Hi Haines,

On Thu, 2022-12-15 at 00:28 +1100, terryc wrote:
> On Wed, 14 Dec 2022 06:22:30 -0500
> Haines Brown <haines@???> wrote:
>
> > In the course of the night I lost keyboard input. Numlock and Caps
> > Lockkey LEDs do not turn on.  Mouse is OK. I went to replug my PS2
> > keyboard and the PS2-USB adpater separated.
> >
> > A replacement keyboard and adapter in different USB port do not
> > work.
> >
> > A dirty reboot may result in my not being able to log in, but is it
> > worth a try?
>
> YMMV, but I always try a ssh in from another system first.
> IME, big red button reboots can vary from no-problem to something
> trashed, but really depends on what is running at the time and system
> age.
>
> I think that is the reason I have acculmulated extra junk ( such as
> extra adapters and cheap USB keyboards) over time and one of my
> headless servers actually is in a location where I can easily connect
> a keyboard and monitor for such a need.
>
I ageee ssh-ing in is a good suggestion (ssh -X if you want to access
graphical tools).

If you're still able to boot into your desktop (obviously without
rebooting as you'll need your keyboard to login) you could always use
the virtual keyboard and your mouse. 
It's certainly there in a standard Cinnamon desktop (Menu>
Accessories>Virtual keyboard).

--
Marjorie