No backlit keyboard in Win10 BootCamp on MacBook Pro

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Level 1

8 points

No backlit keyboard in Win10 BootCamp on MacBook Pro

I have seen posts on this, but I so far have been unable to solve this issue:

The backlit keyboard on my MacBook Pro works perfectly in iOS, but does nothing (i.e. zero lighting) in BootCamp running Win10.

MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2017)

Processor: 3.1 GHz Intel Core i7

Memory: 16 GB 2133 MHz LPDDR3

iOS: Mojave 10.14 (18A391)

BootCamp: Windows 10

Things checked:

I have updated all drivers in both iOS and Windows.
I have updated all software available to me via the "Apple Software" updater in Windows
I see no "unknown" or "disabled" devices in the Win Device Manager
The backlighting works perfectly in iOS
The backlighting does nothing in Windows (the backlighting intensity buttons are visible on the Touch Bar in Win10, but have no effect)

Anyone have any other ideas?

I have seen posts suggesting reseting the SMC, but honestly this seems silly because the backlights work perfectly in iOS, so seems not to be a SMC issue.

Other posts suggest updating drivers... but what and how? I have installed all updates offered to me.

Thanks!

MacBook Pro with Touch Bar

Posted on Dec 7, 2018 10:22 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

Loner T

Level 9

59,513 points

Dec 9, 2018 2:53 PM in response to Remusforte

If you 'Reset your PC', then BC drivers are also removed. One option you have is to re-install BC drivers. See If some Mac features don't work when running Windows in Boot Camp - Apple Support as reference.

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Answer 2

Remusforte Author

Level 1

8 points

Dec 11, 2018 5:07 AM in response to Loner T

Loner T - You are a genius! :-)

I did in fact have to "Recover" Windows in this MacBook Pro in BootCamp a while ago (due to an amazingly annoying issue with a Windows Fall Creators Update last year). I was unaware (though it now makes sense) that in the process, the core Apple BC drivers were removed.

The procedure you posted above worked perfectly!!! :-)

My backlit keys are now functioning properly in BootCamp! And who knows what else will be happier now!

Thanks for the patient and persistent help! :-)

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Answer 3

Remusforte Author

Level 1

8 points

Dec 9, 2018 4:40 AM in response to Loner T

Thanks for your reply. No, that does not work. As soon as I hit the "Fn" button, the Touch Bar switches to the actual Function keys, as illustrated below...

Before pressing "Fn":

After pressing "Fn":

So the Backlit key control button is gone, and those F-buttons do nothing.

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Answer 4

Remusforte Author

Level 1

8 points

Dec 9, 2018 11:19 AM in response to Loner T

Excellent question re: BootCamp Control Panel.

Simple answer is.... there *is no* BootCamp control panel in this install! That itself might be a clue as to the underlying cause. I know what it looks like, and I recall seeing it in the task bar area before, but not now. Odd.

I'm not sure why it is gone nor how to bring it back. I have loaded/installed all of the Apple software updates, and I have updated everything available to me in Windows (to Highwayghost: yes, my Win10 is fully updated; I just rechecked for any remaining updates, and there are none pending).

Any clue how to dig out that control panel and get it back in its rightful place (short of a complete re-install of bootcamp)? I suspect if that happens, this problem goes away.

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Answer 5

Remusforte Author

Level 1

8 points

Dec 9, 2018 1:32 PM in response to Loner T

Another excellent suggestion and this line of questioning is definitely uncovering a real problem:

AppleControlPanel.exe is *not* a hit in Windows Explorer. As far as I can tell, this exe is nowhere in my Win10 system.

The only "near hit" I get is the Apple Software Update program.

So... how is it possible that a BootCamp install all of a sudden doesn't have a core control panel like this? Pretty odd.

I installed Win10 on this machine myself via the normal Apple BootCamp process when I bought the MacBook Pro ~18 months ago. And I certainly did not (knowingly) delete any fundamental software elements like this one.

Any idea if this control panel can be downloaded and installed independently? Or is this a fundamental BootCamp install issue I am looking at?

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Answer 6

Loner T

Level 9

59,513 points

Dec 7, 2018 6:47 PM in response to Remusforte

If the Touch Bar is lit, but the Keys do not work, do you have a Keyboard tab in the Bootcamp Control Panel. If yes, can you try Fn+TouchBar keys and test?

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Answer 7

Loner T

Level 9

59,513 points

Dec 9, 2018 7:23 AM in response to Remusforte

Do you have a Keyboard tab in Bootcamp control panel?

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Answer 8

Dec 9, 2018 9:07 AM in response to Remusforte

Do you have Windows updated to the latest version as I had the same problem but it was solved when I had upgraded to the new windows which came out a couple of days ago.

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