So, folks, tell us honestly! What is the first thing that you do when an app becomes unresponsive or crashes? Yes, we know what’s on your mind. We use the Alt + F4 key combination to terminate the application. Right? It is one of the most useful keyboard shortcuts that terminates/shuts down most Windows apps.
Image source: Appuals
Most users use the Alt + F4 shortcut for closing the currently active window. Like, even if you press it right now, it will close the browser window right away and all its active tabs. And when you press the Alt + F4 key combination while on Desktop, your system pops up the “Shut Down” window on the screen.
Through all these years and time, the Alt + F4 keyboard shortcut has worked as a savior to get us out of unpleasant situations where the app won’t respond, system crashes, especially when we had no clue what to do next.
If this useful keyboard shortcut goes in vain, we’re sure it will get you frustrated. Don’t worry. We’ve got you covered. In this post, we have listed a bunch of solutions that you can use to fix the “Alt + F4 not working” issue on Windows 11.
How To Fix Alt + F4 Keyboard Shortcut Not Working
Let’s get started and learn how we can get the Alt + F4 keyboard shortcut functional again!
1.Update the Keyboard Drivers
If your device is operating on outdated/corrupt/missing keyboard drivers, you may not be able to use the Alt + F4 keyboard shortcut. To resolve this issue, we will try updating the Keyboard drivers via Device Manager to see whether it fixes the issue.
Press the Windows + R key combination to open the Run dialog box. Type “Devmgmt.msc” in the textbox and hit Enter.
Tap on “Keyboards” to view the expanded list of options. Right-click on your keyboard’s name and then select the “Update Driver” option.
Follow the on-screen instructions to fetch the latest update of keyboard drivers available for your device.
After updating the keyboard drivers, reboot your machine and then try using the Alt + F4 keyboard shortcut to check if it’s functional.
Also read: Windows 10: Shut Down Or Enable Sleep Mode With Keyboard Shortcut
2.Disable Sticky Keys
Sticky keys is an accessibility feature on Windows that allows users to easily use the keyboard shortcuts, especially useful for differently-abled individuals. When the sticky key is enabled, a key remains active for a while even after it is released. It also helps in alleviating the stress on your fingers as you won’t have to press and hold multiple keys at once.
So, yes, when the sticky keys feature is enabled on your device, some of the other keyboard shortcuts may mingle and as a result, the Alt + F4 keyboard shortcut won’t work on your device.
To manage the keyboard settings on Windows 11, follow these steps:
Tap the Windows icon placed on the Taskbar, select “Settings”. Switch to the “Accessibility” section from the left menu pane.
Scroll down through the list and then tap on “Keyboard”.
Disable the “Sticky Keys” option.
Also read: My Windows 10 Keyboard’s Typing Automatically, What To Do?
3.Run the Keyboard Troubleshooter
Open the Settings, tap on “Troubleshoot”. Tap on the “Other Troubleshooters” option.
Scroll down through the list, look for “Keyboard”. Hit on the “Run” button placed right next to it.
Follow the on-screen instructions to run the keyboard troubleshooter on your device so that Windows can automatically scan and fix the underlying issues.
4.Edit the Registry Entries
Press the Windows + R key combination to fire up the Run dialog box. Type “Regedit” in the textbox and hit Enter.
In the Registry Editor window, navigate to the following folder location:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer
In the Explorer folder, look for a file named “NoWinKeys”. If you find it, double-tap on it and then change the value data to “0”. Also, if you don’t see the NoWinKeys file in the folder, right-click anywhere on the screen, tap on New > D-WORD (32 Bit) Value. Name the new files as NoWinKeys and set the Value data field as 0.
Also read: Keyboard not Working? Making a Beep Sound? Here’s the Fix!
5.Check the Physical Connections
Image source: Playground Sessions Report
Tried the above-mentioned workarounds and still no luck in fixing the “Alt + F4 not working” issue on Windows? Well, at this point we would advise you to check the physical connections. Make sure that the keyboard is properly connected to your system. Try tapping the “Caps Lock” a few times just to see whether the lights are blinking.
Also, if you have an alternative or spare keyboard around, connect it to your computer and see if you can use the Alt + F4 shortcut on it.
Also read: Keyboard Backlight Won’t Turn ON on Windows and Mac? Here’s the Fix!
Conclusion
Here were a few simple troubleshooting methods that you can use for resolving the “Alt + F4 not working” issue on Windows 11. You can use any of the above-listed methods to fix any kind of keyboard-related issues on your system. So, before you start hitting your palm on the desk out of frustration, make sure you try these methods to fix the error.
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