MacBook Pro not recognizing "Enter" key on external keyboard

O

OrganLeroy

Registered
My MacBook Pro (running OS X 10.6.2) suddenly does not respond when the "Enter" key on my external Apple keyboard is pressed. All the other keys work fine. I'm using the Apple low-profile keyboard with numeric keypad--here's a link to it at the Apple Store.

The problem doesn't appear to be with the keyboard; I've plugged it into another MacBook (running the same OS), and the Enter key works fine.

I've repaired permissions and restarted the problematic MacBook Pro, but the problem remains. Any ideas?
 
Resetting PRAM and NVRAM

1. Shut down the computer.
2. Locate the following keys on the keyboard: Command, Option, P, and R. You will need to hold these keys down simultaneously in step 4.
3. Turn on the computer.
4. Press and hold the Command-Option-P-R keys. You must press this key combination before the gray screen appears.
5. Hold the keys down until the computer restarts and you hear the startup sound for the second time.
6. Release the keys.

Your computer's PRAM and the NVRAM are reset to the default values. The clock settings may be reset to a default date on some models.
 
Yes, could be something under the key - but would not explain why it works OK on a different computer.
 
DeltaMac said:
Does your Enter key work, if you log in as a different user? Create a new user just for this test.
Click to expand...

That didn't work, but here's an odd thing: I tried changing my startup disk to my backup external drive, which was last cloned from the MacBook Pro's internal hard drive a week ago. The Enter key works fine when starting from that external drive.

When I switch back to the internal hard drive as the startup disk, the Enter key stops working. I haven't done any software upgrades or installs in the interim. Very strange.
 
There was a software update when that keyboard came out (I have one too).

Before I applied the update the F17 - F19 keys did not work. You could try running that update again and see what happens. Look for it on the Apple downloads site.
 
Go to your hard drive/Library (not your user/Library)
Find the Preferences folder, and delete the files:
com.Apple.BezelServices.plist
com.apple.HIToolbox.com
com.apple.keyboardtype.plist
Then, restart.
 
DeltaMac said:
Go to your hard drive/Library (not your user/Library)
Find the Preferences folder, and delete the files:
com.Apple.BezelServices.plist
com.apple.HIToolbox.com
com.apple.keyboardtype.plist
Then, restart.
Click to expand...

Well, that worked, but only once. After restarting a second time (due to Software Update doing its thing), the Enter key is dead again. I tried re-deleting those preference files, but the Enter key stays dead even after another restart.
 
Last edited:
Can anyone else offer a solution for this? I never realized how much I used my Enter key until it became disabled.

As stated before, the problem doesn't seem to be the keyboard, as the Enter key works fine when connected to a different MacBook. Thanks!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top