Something may be stuck under "ctrl" key

The right side of my ctrl key doesn't move when I press the key. If I press the left side, then that half goes down, but I get no response from the computer. I can only assume that there is something stuck under the key.
While this isn't exactly imperative - I use that key only as part of a hotkey combination to access other programs - I would prefer to have a fully functioning keyboard.
Can Macbook keys "lock up"; that is, have they been known to have a malfunction in the hinges beneath them?
Is there some way I can remove the key?
What are some suggestions for looking under or safely removing something stuck under there?
Thanks in advance.

It pains me even mentioning this, but take a look at this set of visuals on removing a key:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=88106
http://www.flickr.com/photos/69631394@N00
Before that, however, I'd use a blower as a less invasive way of dealing with the troublesome key. Easily available, online and on the street. Hold down the keys surrounding the Control key, and shoot quick bursts on all sides. Do it upside-down, too, while a friend holds the keyboard steady.

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Is there a hidden screw or latch under the ctrl key to release the keyboard on the HP ENVY dv6-7250?

The keyboard is damaged and I want to replace it.
I have a HP Envy dv6 Notebook PC Model # C2L44UA#ABL with S/N {Content Removed}
i believe the part number is B6R23AV WIN 8 MULTI lANGUAGE 64.1.1 dv6 for the keyboard.
I removed all the screws and separated the top surface that holds the keyboard but something under the ctrl key is holding everything together.
Is there a release mechanism in that area. If so how does it work?

Maybe this will help:
How to disassemble HP Pavilion dv6 laptop
Kind Regards,
Dragon-Fur

Stuck ctrl key

Hello
I have recently bought a Pavilion dv6-1329tx entertainment notebook, and recently I have been having problems with the keyboard. The computer is acting as though the ctrl key is continuously being held, so whenever i press a key it activates a shortcut asssociated with that key. For example pressing 'W' closes the window I'm viewing instead of typing 'W'. I have turned off sticky keys and tried pressing both ctrl buttons simultaniously. When I start the keyboard acts normally, but after a few minutes of use this problem occurs. Physically the ctrl key is fine, both of them are not stuck down so i think i may have accidently activated a shortcut that started this issue. If anyone has a solution it would be appreciated.

Hi,
pureocean wrote:
Yes, in my case, I spilled cofffe on the keyboard. After drying, ctrl key became stuck. I took out the key (plastic part), and saw the rubber cone. But I cannot figure out how it works (I heard some one said about capacitor) and the bottom area seems to be clean.
How do I fix it in this case?
threre is no capacitor. It is a switch enclosed in a membrane. Go to http://www.laptoprepair101.com/laptop/2007/03/20/key-fell-off-keyboard/. They have generic instruction on replacing keys.
Best regards,
erico
****Please click on Accept As Solution if a suggestion solves your problem. It helps others facing the same problem to find a solution easily****
2015 Microsoft MVP - Windows Experience Consumer

Tecra M10 - Stuck CTRL key issue -- perhaps to do with BIOS?

Hello and thanks for reading.
I recently switched my Tecra M10 to Windows 7 (from XP) and it soon developed the dreaded "stuck CTRL key" issue. This causes the keyboard to behave as if the CTRL key is permanently depressed. Sometimes hitting a combination of keys, or bringing up the onscreen keyboard, temporarily solves the issue, but then it returns.
It seems to be an issue many people have, with no simple solution. I've looked at every thread about it I can find, and tried many things to do with drivers etc. without any success.
So firstly, if anyone knows a remedy that works for this particular machine, I would be very grateful to learn it!
Then, there are two things I've not yet done: update BIOS and disable pinch zoom.
I was looking at the following BIOS update:
http://www.toshiba-asia.com/sg/support/drivers/details/25244
... which is version 3.00 and seems to be most recent. My own version is 1.90.
However version 3.00 is labelled "For PTMB0* ONLY". I don't know what this means or whether it applies to me. Can anyone help? Should I install this BIOS?
For the pinch zoom, I've been told that disabling it does sometimes cure the CTRL problem -- but I can't find any pinch zoom facility on the M10. I suspect it simply doesn't have one. Is that right?
Many thanks for any help you can give.

Hi
> I was looking at the following BIOS update. which is version 3.00 and seems to be most recent. My own version is 1.90.
There are different Tecra M10 models on the market.
Check the labels at the bottom of the unit. There you should find some numbers like for example PTMB0E-01K00LGR
The first 6 characters are important: for example PTMB0E
I assume your notebook belongs to European series.
In such case you should check the Toshiba EU driver page for possible BIOS update.
http://www.toshiba.eu/innovation/download_drivers_bios.jsp
However, on Toshiba EU driver page you will find also the BIOS v3.0 for all European Tecra M10 units.
Anyway, back to the CTRL button issue: guess what, you should connect an external USB keyboard and should check how the CTRL button acts.
In case the USB keyboard would work properly, the CTRL button of internal keyboard is affected and you will need to replace the internal keyboard.
PS: it could be possible that the option "sticky keys" has been enabled. To disable this function, you have to press SHIFT button 5 times in the row.

Windows thinking Ctrl key is stuck on Satellite P750

Yes, I've done some thorough googling and searching of this forum before posting. No prior topic quite resembles my problem; and the solutions don't help. Sticky keys box in the Control Panel is unchecked, not using any aides--the computer is brand new with barely anything installed and zero customization.
Using my Satellite P750 (purchased just in October 2011), every once in a while after simply using Firefox or Chrome (either one)--using nothing but the mouse pad and the left mouse button--the size of the font of the text in the browser randomly increases, and after that the computer starts thinking the Ctrl key is being held down. (Ctrl +Alt + Del does nothing, only rebooting the machine). I realize that I'm inadvertently toggling some function, but what? Looking around Control Panel, nothing seems to be close to "if user moves curser, increase font size and make the Ctrl key stuck".
Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.
Solved!
Go to Solution.

Thanks, had the same problem with brand new Toshiba Laptop.
Ours also had external mouse attached. With OS thinking CTRL key stuck, Excel went ape and began doing all manner of evil upon a very complex spreadsheet we were working on.
One note: On ours after getting to Mouse Properties, there was not an 'advance' option. Instead we had to select:
Device Settings>Settings>Pinch Zoom screenshots below

HT1171 can Apple wireless keyboard swap fn & ctrl keys under boot camp

as caption, under Win7 bootcamp, can Apple wireless keyboard swap fn & ctrl keys ?
Thanks,
Thomas

likely yes in windows you can map any key to be any key
http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/windows-vista/map-any-key-to-any-key-on-windows-x p-vista/
more
https://www.google.dk/search?client=opera&q=remap+keys+windows+7&sourceid=opera& ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8

Ctrl key seems to be stuck

Hey
I am quite desperate and hope someone can help me here.
My Macbook acts as if the ctrl key is constantly pressed.
This happened a day after I spilled a tiny bit of tea on the keyboard (first everything seemed to be fine).
Now the keyboard is strange: Letters dont work but some of the other keys do.
External Keyboard works perfectly fine.
When using the Keyboard viewer I can see that when I press of the Letter Keys the key turns grey. So basically they should work.
By pressing the shift key on the internal keyboard or the enter key on the external following happens:
sorry I cant use screenshots because we wont be able to see it right then.
I already took the ctrl key out and checked it. Everything looks clean and right. It really just was a tiny bit of non sweeted tea.
I have googled this and spend already hours and reading and trying to find a solution to this problem but failed so far.
Really hope someone can help me.
It is a late 2009 macbook with OSX 10.7.2
Thank you in advance

Hello,
my father has the same problem. Same machine. He pretends that nothing was spilled over. He has a tiny place where uses his laptop that has not even space to place a cup of beverage beside the computer.
A little more details: I tried to log out and log in as the admin user but cant give the password. Some keys provoke a chime while typing, others dont.
While rebooting, Command-Alternate-P-R doesnt seem to work. Pressing Alternate to get into the boot volume chooser does not work. Pressing Command-S to boot into single user mode works, however I cant type any command while in the shell, now fsck, no reboot, nothing. Pressing "R" makes the prompt change to something like "search backwards `´" for a very short moment. I cant reproduce this behaviour in Terminal on my own machine pressing Control-R, so I am not sure what it is.
The way I came to the conclusion that the machine behaves like the Control key being pressed all time was within Apple Mail typing Command-N to open a new Mail opened a new notice instead. I was not able to close the Window Typing Command-W. I opened the trash can using the mouse and tried to resize the window because there was so much in the trash can but I got a context menu instead when grabbing the title bar. Scrolling with two fingers zoomed the whole Screen instead.
My father allow my small nephew to install games while in vacation. He even gave him the admin password although I told him not to do so. So my first idea was that he had changed something with the input methods. But then, the strange behaviour would be gone during the boot sequence at least I guess. And I should be able to log in as another user (I always create a separate user for everyday use that has no admin rights).
I have no firewire cable at hand to reinstall in target mode and -gosh- the MacBook 2009 does not even support this essential function because it has not firewire port, it is a crippled machine. I dont have any idea who to analyze the problem further.
Please throw some wisdom from heaven.
Bye, Christian

T410s: hitting ctrl key hangs some 32bit apps under Windows 7 64bit

Hi,
Can anyone help me figure out the issue? I use a T410s with Windows 7 64bit, 2G memory. When I hit the "ctrl" key with IE32bit, MS messenger or outlook2010, it makes those applications hang. If I use IE64bit, it does not have the issue. I am not sure if it is a memory problem (it looks it is not) or it is a software/hardware conflict issue.
The following info is from the error info that messenger hangs when I press the ctrl key.
Problem signature:
Problem Event Name:   BEX
Application Name:     msnmsgr.exe
Application Version: 15.4.3502.922
Application Timestamp:        4c9b0282
Fault Module Name:    StackHash_b4ee
Fault Module Version: 0.0.0.0
Fault Module Timestamp:       00000000
Exception Offset:     0bb5406a
Exception Code:       c0000005
Exception Data:       00000008
OS Version:   6.1.7600.2.0.0.256.48
Locale ID:    1033
Additional Information 1:     b4ee
Additional Information 2:     b4ee5de6a2322745523997a782b35692
Additional Information 3:     277e
Additional Information 4:     277e19c30fbd5f6bb531ec9e027c37c3
Thanks for your help.

Did you upgrade from 32bit?
Did you swap the Fn keys with the Ctrl keys? If you did, you might want to go back to BIOS and swap it back. Or you can do a BIOS reset to be sure.
*Non Lenovo employee*
I have a Y2P (i5) ... Feel free to ping me if you want me to test some applications with your Y2P if you have the same model. I don't mind keep doing recovery on it if needed .... =)

Chromebook 14-q029wm ctrl-key

My left ctrl-key appears dead. I've only been using the laptop in earnest for maybe a month and the keyboard is spotless as-new so there's no need to blame dirt/crumbs. When I view "keyboard shortcuts" and hit the left ctrl-key nothing happens on the screen but the right ctrl-key works as expected. I have also gone into "languages & input" and tried US Keyboard, US International, US Extended and didn't help. Lastly, I have Powerwashed the unit (on stable OS) and that didn't fix either. Any suggestions would be appreciated and thanks!

Hi @gigzter9 ,
Welcome to the HP Forums!
It is a terrific place to find answers.
For you to have the best experience in the HP forum I would like to direct your attention to the HP Forums Guide Learn How to Post and More
I understand that the left ctrl-key is dead but the right one functions. You have tried different keyboards, under language and input to no avail.
When I checked the specifications for your notebook, I see it came with Chrome OS. Here is a link to Adjusting Touchpad and Keyboard Settings on Your HP Chromebook (Chrome OS).
If this has not resolved the issue, I suggest contacting HP support for assistance. As one key works and the other one doesn't , it may very well be a hardware issue.
Please call our technical support at 800-474-6836. If you live outside of the US/Canada Region, please click the link below to get the support number for your region. Phone Assist Worldwide
Sparkles1
I work on behalf of HP
Please click “Accept as Solution ” if you feel my post solved your issue, it will help others find the solution.
Click the “Kudos, Thumbs Up" on the bottom right to say “Thanks” for helping!

Problems with ctrl keys....

hello all,
i have a 2.5 tears old hp pavilion dv6000 and suddenly my ctrl keys just stopped working.
according to nod32 i have no virus...
what can i do?
please help me' it's important
thamk you all

Depending on where you find a suitable and correct
replacement keyboard for an iBook G4 (differences
exist between models, builds, etc) the cost for this
part may well be worth it; then while it is working OK
then consider selling it. Or waiting and then it may
be worth a fair bit as parts when something else goes.
A general search gives a few options and I see some
worth looking down the results list here to read...
' ibook G4 keyboard replacement ' - google search:
http://www.google.com/#hl=en&q=ibookg4+keyboard+replacement&aq=1&oq=iBook+G4ke&aqi=g10&fp=PhrPwMX9NAI
If yours is the mid-2005 12" iBook G4 (1.33GHz, 40GB HDD, Combo)
there is a download for the 'keyboard removal' sequence in .PDF in
the search results worth a look. Other good links are also there, to
include prices from some sources for keyboards. And a clean used
keyboard may also work well if reasonable cost vs. risk of failure.
Good luck & happy computing!
PS: how far off is fall where you are?
Autumn starts soon in south central AK.

If something small got stuck in your disk drive what steps do you take to remove it?

if something small got stuck in your disk drive what steps do you take to remove it?

Depending on the model of Mac I would first try to tilt the unit to see if you can get whatever you got stuck in there nearer the edge. Do not shake the Mac to move the object - you could cause damage to internal components.
The next best thing is to use a very fine pair of tweezers or pliers and try to remove the object. Sometimes a credit card or firm business card may also help you move the object nearer to the lip of the optical drive.
Be warned though - you are not supposed to stick anything into the optical drive yourself to try and remove something as you could cause further damage. Your best bet is to take it into an Apple Store and have them remove it. Just as another warning though - this would count as accidental damage and so is not covered under your Applecare if you have it. You'll have to pay out of pocket to get the object removed.
Regards,

CTRL keys broken.

I have seen reoccuring problems with laptop owners, struggling with the CTRL key on various occasions. Now, my CTRL keys both cease to work, and it was an abrupt occurance, and did not happpen after I had restarted my laptop. It was immediate, and completely unexpected. I am unable to work without the CTRL keys, being that I use various art and editorial programs, and that I am also a student who desperately requires that key to shorten the time in which I work on something. I had googled how to fix it, and used a handful of different solutions, but to no avail. I tried to search for drivers, but it did not list a keyboard driver update, or said that there was an "error" in obtaining it through a manual attempt. I've tried to uninstall the driver, reduce the amount of start up programs that may have affected it, manually went through the files, refreshed my laptop, and in the end, RESTARTED my laptop. NOTHING has helped, and I am severely stressed, aggrivated, and anxious to have this problem resolved. I need it fixed ASAP, please. I need as much help as I can get. I appreciate the time that you have taken to read this, and PLEASE get back to me as soon as you can.

Hello Joosters,
Go to System Preferences—>Keyboard & Mouse.
Click on the Keyboard tab.
Click on the Modifier Keys button.
In the sheet that drops down, click on the Caps Lock key: popup menu and select ^ Control instead.
Now use Caps Lock instead of Control until your new keyboard arrives. You'll just have to hold the shift down if you want to type strings of caps.
HTH
Archie

Application stuck under menu toolbar

An application I'm running (Filezilla FTP client) is stuck under the mac menu toolbar. I can't grab the toolbar of the application to move it or access what I need to access. I've researched this issue and other people have had the same problem, but none of their solutions have worked for me. I've tried changing the resolution of my screen, disconnecting my dual monitor, "zoom" is not available in the program I'm working with, and I've tried a multitude of expose/spaces/random key commands to no avail. Any other ideas?
Using 10.9.5

I can't see from your screenshot if there available screen space around the window. You could try dragging the window down from one of the bottom edge - making it smaller first if necessary (when the cursor is near the edge it has double arrow that indicates changing the window size), then make sure that your mouse is enough inside the window that the cursor is a normal one-arrow and drag it down. Repeat if necessary until the title bar reappears.

App stuck under Menu Bar after Unlock

Random application's Title bars are getting stuck under the Menu Bar at the top left of the screen after I unlock my Air. Attempts to drag the window to a different location results in them snapping back to the original position. The only fix is to close the application and restart.
Anyone else seeing this? Could this be an Accessibility option that's on that shouldn't be?

I ended up re installing Mavericks after the last update (10.9.1) from a bootble USB stick. The problem appears to have gone away, so maybe my original upgrade of Mavericks caused the problem???
I downloaded Mavericks again from the app store. When it had finished downloading (approx 5Gb) I exited the installer and created a bootable USB (needs to be 8GB minimum). Then booted from USB and ran the Mavericks installer. As I said problem seems to have disappeared......
I used this article http://www.macworld.com/article/2056561/how-to-make-a-bootable-mavericks-install -drive.html and used the method in Option 1 in the article to create the drive. A Synopsis of the steps are:
Format the USB using Disk Utility to Mac OS Extended with GUID partition.
Open Terminal and paste the following command press Return and enter admin password when prompted
sudo /Applications/Install\ OS\ X\ Mavericks.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/Untitled --applicationpath /Applications/Install\ OS\ X\ Mavericks.app --nointeraction
It takes a while to create and copy the installer. (Could be up to 30 mins)
Finally reboot and hold down Option key while computer boots then select the USB drive.

I can't move my application to navigate the tool bar. It is stuck under the Apple bar.

I can't move my application to navigate the tool bar. It is stuck under the Apple bar. I have a screen shot of it if I can figure out how to upload it. I can navigate and move all other applications, I have restarted computer, updated Adobe. any advice.

In that application what options are available to you under the Window menu item? Maybe something there that'll help?

Something may be stuck under "ctrl" key

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