If you make much use of Windows Remote Desktop, then this has happened to you. You have a remote session open and for no apparent reason your keyboard starts doing things when you type that are much more radical than merely laying down letters in a text field: explorer windows open, programs minimize, the remote session locks. It’s like little devils were in charge of your keystrokes. Or, more accurately, it’s like someone was holding down the windows key as you type (um, yeah, that’s the key with the four wavy squares on it).
The windows key shortcuts are great. I love them. I use them all the time. Windows-m to minimize all open windows. Windows-l to lock my screen. Windows-o… well, that one won’t do anything. It’ll just type an o. This of course made it rather difficult to diagnose the problem. Type certain words and nothing strange happens (the word just gets typed); type certain other words and you are taken to places you didn’t know Windows could go. So of course, if the windows lock is engaged trying to get things done can be a real challenge. The only way that I have found in the past to get this lock unlocked was to terminate my remote session and reconnect. Upon reconnection the keyboard behaves normally. But what a pain that is.
Now once I figured out it was the windows key causing all this trouble I saw two options: get a different OS (Mac or Linux, I’m easy) or use the windows key to solve its own problem.
The Mac and Linux boxes are doing just fine, but they won’t let me use them at work. Seems everyone we support uses Windows for some reason. Ok. Plan B.
Turns out it’s really simple to fix.
First, put the remote session in focus (say, mouse click on that particular remote desktop’s desktop)–this will also work for nested remote sessions (RDP’s within RDP’s) you’ll just have to choose the correct level. Second, press the windows key (the Start menu should fly out). Third, press the windows key again (and the Start menu should go away). Fourth, get back to business as usual.
No more crazy keyboard. Man, life just keeps getting better.
