Over a year of usage, it's prevalent that your Laptop keyboard has stopped working. It could be due to dust or due to software misconfiguration. Before you go ahead and change or repair your keyboard, you should know what is causing the error. This article will discuss all the possible reasons why your keyboard not working and possible troubleshooting solutions.
Is it a Software or Hardware issue?
Before you proceed to troubleshoot your keyboard, you must find out what is causing the issue. If a keyboard has suddenly stopped working, it could be due to hardware issues such as a faulty USB port, defective keys, short circuits, or dust. However, corrupted drivers, software bugs, and incorrect keyboard layout could also be the reason why your keyboard has stopped working.
Every keyboard key is limited to a certain number of keypresses. It is also possible that you have exceeded that limit.
The best way to know whether your keyboard has a hardware or software issue is using your PC's BIOS. Reboot your PC, and while booting, press the Delete, Esc, or F12 Key, press the BIOS Boot Menu key depending on your PC. If the BIOS boot menu appears, you will know that your keyboard is still working, and the issue you are having could be due to some software misconfiguration. To ensure it's a software issue, try to navigate to the other sections of your BIOS using your keyboard.
However, if the BIOS doesn't appear, the issue is likely hardware-related. Moreover, the boot menu shortcut key may only be damaged. Unfortunately, you have to change your keyboard if only one key has been damaged.
1. Safe Mode Reboot
Restarting your PC seems to be the go-to solution for almost any issue and error for PC. If your keyboard not working, chances are it is due to a bug, and a quick reboot should resolve the issue.
Moreover, if the normal reboot doesn't fix the keyboard issue, you can reboot into safe mode to fix the problem temporarily. To turn off your PC, press the power button for 10 to 15 seconds and click on the power off option from the Start Menu.
2. Install, Reinstall and Update Keyboard Driver
System files and device drivers can be damaged or corrupted due to time. Such driver and missing device drivers could aries issue such as keyboard not working. It is also possible that you have an outdated driver installed on your PC, hence your keyboard not working.
Windows provides an excellent tool to manage device drivers, called Windows device manager. Using it, we could install, update or even reinstall the driver for the keyboard o fix the issue.
Click on the start menu and start typing for device manager; click open the device manager utility. There click on the downward arrow beside the Keyboard option to expand the devices, select the keyboard causing issues, and right-click on it. From the menu, select the Properties option.
In the General tb, click on the Uninstall button t uninstall the keyboard driver. Restart your PC, and the keyboard driver will be installed automatically. Click on the Update button if you suspect you are using an older driver for your keyboard to fix the issue.
3. Turn off Keyboard Settings
A few system settings or application settings, if you have enabled them, then could cause keyboard issues. However, Disabling conflicting keyboard settings can fix such problems.
Open up the Start Menu and search for Control Panel. Click open the Control Panel. In the control panel, type and search for keyboard settings using the search bar at the top right.
Such settings are also available in the Windows settings. To open windows settings, click on the start menu and select the settings/gear icon. There go to devices and click on the keyboard tab from the left column.
Weather in Control panel or Widnows Settings look for keyboard settings such as Turn on Sticky Keys, turn on toggle Keys, etc. and uncheck them all. Disable all the settings, restart your PC and check if your keyboard has started working or not.
4. Try Another USB Port
If you are using an external keyboard, the chances are that the USB port or the USB plug is damaged. If one USB port is injured on your PC, try plugging your keyboard into another USB port, it should work if the issue is due to the defective USB port or plug.
5. Change the Default Keyboard Layout
If the default keyboard doesn't match your keyboard layout, you would have to manually change the default keyboard layout to fix your keyboard issue.
So, click on the Start Menu and select the settings icon. In Windows, settings type for keyboard layout in the windows Settings search bar.
From the search result, select the keyboard layout option. On the next page, click on the plus icon beside the label Add a Keyboard. Select the layout that matches your keyboard and restart your PC. You can also remove the default keyboard layout to avoid any conflict.
Clear off the Dust
Due to time, dust particles accumulate in the keyboard's keys, preventing keys from functioning. However, clearing off the dust from the keys of your keyboard might fix the issue. Dust also accumulates under the keyboard's circuit, and cleaning it could be risky, however, if you intend to clean the internals of your keyboard circuit. Do so with an air blower to knock off the dust particles using air.
Conclusion
If you suddenly find out that your keyboard is not working, check whether it's a software issue o hardware. If it's a hardware issue, chances are you have to replace your current keyboard with a new one.
Try to boot to the BIOS boot menu, update or reinstall your keyboard driver using Device Manager. Lastly, you could try using the alternative USB port to plug your keyboard, or you could open your keyboard or laptop and keyboard keys and start cleaning the dust off.
