Troubleshoot Surface Type Cover or Keyboard

• The Keyboard or Type Cover doesn't appear to connect and doesn't respond at all.

• The Keyboard or Type Cover appears to disconnect or stop responding randomly.

• The Keyboard or Type Cover goes back and forth between working, and not working.

Step 1: Force a restart on your Surface

Find your Surface model to see specific instructions.

If you have a Surface Pro 5 or later, Surface Book 2 or later, or any model Surface Laptop, Surface Go, or Surface Studio:

1. Press and hold the power button until your Surface shuts down and restarts.

2. You will see the Windows logo screen (about 20 seconds), then release the power button.

If you have a Surface Pro 1-4, Surface Book 1, Surface 2, Surface 3, Surface RT:

1. Press and hold the power button until the screen turns off (about 30 seconds), then release it.

2. Press and hold the volume-up button and the power button at the same time until the screen turns off (about 15 seconds), then release both.
   The screen will flash the Surface logo but continue holding the buttons down for at least 15 seconds.

3. After you release the buttons, wait 10 seconds.

4. Press and release the power button to turn your Surface back on. You should see the Surface logo.

Step 2: Confirm connectivity

Press the "Caps" and "Fn" keys on your Surface Type Cover or Keyboard several times to check and see if the LEDs lights turn on.

If the LED lights turn on, your problem may be with Windows and not the device itself. The next step is to reset your Surface. Here's how:

1. Go to Start, enter reset in the taskbar, then select Reset this PC as the Best match.

2. Select Reset this PC > Keep my files > Cloud download and follow the rest of the prompts shown on screen.

If the LEDs lights don't turn on, there might be a hardware issue. To check, do the following:

1. Turn on your Surface and wait 10 seconds.

2. Press and hold the volume-up button at the same time, press and release the power button.

3. The Microsoft logo will appear on your screen. Continue to hold the volume-up button. Release the button when the UEFI screen appears.

4. Press the keys and see if the problem is still present.

   1. If the keys are working correctly: The problem is with the software installed on the Surface. For more info on reinstalling Windows, see Creating and using a USB recovery drive for Surface.

   2. If the keys are still not working correctly: You'll need to submit a service order. Go to Step 4.

Step 4: Submit a repair request

You can use your Microsoft account to request a repair or replacement for your Type Cover. 

1. Go to Device Services and sign in with your Microsoft account.

2. Select Info & support under the device you want to submit a service request.

3. In the Device Coverage section, select Start Order and follow the instructions to complete the submission process.

Please note that your device must be registered under your Microsoft account to submit a repair request. You can register your device by going to Device Services and selecting Register Device at the top of the page.

• The Keyboard is responding slower than you're typing.

• Key entries in apps come well after you press the key on the physical Keyboard or Type Cover.

• Touchpad clicks or cursor movements are slow or lag behind your physical movement.

If your keyboard or touchpad is slow to respond, this is most likely because your Surface is having issues processing the applications and services on your device. Make sure your Surface has enough resources to perform typing or cursor functions.

See how to optimize your Surface for performance and other tips by going to What to do if Surface is running slower.

Did this work? Test your keyboard in an available app like Microsoft Sticky Notes, or Notepad.

• The key that you press physically doesn't match what shows in the app you are using.

• Pressing a number or letter results in an unexpected letter, number or symbol displaying on the screen.

• The Shift and number key combinations yield different results than expected.

Check your keyboard language setting

1. Select the Start button, then select Settings > Time & language > Language .

2. Make sure the language you're using on your keyboard (the keyboard’s layout language) matches the one you're using on your PC (the display language). For best typing results, the keyboard and display language should match.

   Example: If you are using an English US keyboard, the Display Language should be English (United States).

3. Once you confirm, select the language, select Options, and ensure the correct keyboard layout is added. To make sure your language is available for Windows, check the list of language packs.

   Here's how to add an input language and switch between languages.

Did this work? Test your keyboard in an available app like Microsoft Sticky Notes, or Notepad. If you are still having issues the next step is to check your ease of access settings.

Check your ease of access settings

If Sticky Keys, Filter Keys, or other keyboard settings are altered, they may change how your keyboard works. If it's an unintentional change, it can seem like your keyboard is not working correctly.

To check your Ease of Access options, do one of the following:

• For Windows 11: Go to Settings > Accessibility >Keyboard. (Keyboard is located under the Interaction section). To adjust the settings, toggle the setting to either on or off.

• For Windows 10: Go to Settings > Ease of Access > Keyboard . (Keyboard is located under the Interaction section.) To adjust the settings, simply toggle the setting to either on or off.

Did this work? Test your keyboard in an available app like Microsoft Sticky Notes, or Notepad. 

• The function keys don't work, or don't respond as expected when pressed.

• The media keys (i.e., Volume Up, Volume Down) don't respond as expected or at all when pressed.

• The specialty keys (i.e., Brightness, PtrScn, Home, PgUp) don't work or respond as expected.

Type Covers have shortcut keys for common tasks like searching, playing media (audio or video), and more. The keys that appear on your Type Cover vary depending on the model.

The keys on the top row of the Type Cover double as function keys when you hold down the Fn key while pressing a top-row key. The Fn key also works in combination with other keys to do certain things. For a full list of the specialty keys and what they do, see How to Use Surface Type Cover.

To unlock or disable the Fn key find your Type Cover model to see specific instructions.

For Type Cover (First Generation), Type Cover 2, Type Cover for Surface Pro 3:

1. Hold down the Fn key and press the Caps key to lock the function keys.

2. Hold down the Fn key and press the Caps key again to unlock the function keys.

For Surface 3 Type Cover, Type Cover for Surface Pro 4, Surface Go Signature Type Cover, Surface Pro Signature Type Cover, Surface Laptop, and Surface Book:

1. Press the Fn key to lock the function keys.

2. Press the Fn key again to unlock them. A light appears on the Fn keys when the keys are locked into function mode.
   

Did this work? Try the specialty keys again. Make sure you are using an app that supports their functionality.

Not all devices have a keyboard backlight feature. If your Surface Type Cover or Keyboard has this feature, there will be a  button on the keyboard. As you press it, the backlight will increase and decrease in brightness, including off.

• Pressing the fingerprint reader at the Windows sign-in screen results in an error or other message such as "Fingerprint not recognized".

• Pressing the fingerprint reader at the Windows sign-in screen has no response and appears not to be recognized.

• The fingerprint reader is not recognized during Windows Hello setup.

Troubleshoot problems with Windows Hello

If you are having problems with the fingerprint reader on your Surface Pro 4 Type Cover with Fingerprint ID, see Troubleshoot problems with Windows Hello on Surface.

The Surface Pro Type Cover with Fingerprint ID works with all Surface Pro Devices running Windows 10, except for Surface Pro (1^st Generation) and Surface Pro 2.

You can test your Fingerprint reader by logging out of Windows, go to Start  > Profile Image > Sign out. Then attempt to log back in using Windows Hello via fingerprint.

If your Type Cover or Keyboard has keys that are damaged, cracked or fallen off the keyboard, this can be one key or several keys—it's likely experiencing a hardware failure, and you'll need to submit a service order.

You can use your Microsoft account to request a repair or replacement for your Type Cover.

1. Go to Device Services and sign in with your Microsoft account.

2. Select Info & support under the device you want to submit a service request.

3. In the Device Coverage section, select Start Order and follow the instructions to complete the submission process.

Please note that your device must be registered under your Microsoft account to submit a repair request. You can register your device by going to Device Services and selecting Register Device at the top of the page.