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MacBook Pro 2015 Keyboard & track pad not working!

back In October of 2019, I bought a refurbished 2015 MacBook Pro from Amazon. It had no problems until a month or 2 went by.

i have installed things like mods for games I play such as Stardew Valley and the Sims 4.

but at first, the problem would occur sometimes and just the keyboard would stop responding besides the power button. It started getting worse.


the problem got so bad where I could barely use it!! The keyboard & trackpad would sometimes only work if I help my MacBook at a certain angle, such as on its side. Or not even work at all.


but I took a break from my MacBook for a month. And not even tilting or shaking works! I had to get a usb mouse & copy and paste from my phone.

& keyboard resets don’t even work.

like the smc, not too sure what they are called.


im also a student & content creator...

Im don’t want to waste another $700-$1000 dollars on a new mac!!!

MacBook Pro 13", macOS 10.15

Posted on Feb 17, 2020 11:06 AM

Reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Feb 17, 2020 11:39 AM

We have no way of helping without a visual inspection of the machine. The following may help if it's a configuration or software issue.


A Troubleshooting Procedure that may Fix Problems with macOS El Capitan or Later


You should try each, one at a time, then test to see if the problem is fixed before going on to the next.


    Be sure to backup your files before proceeding if possible.


  1. Shutdown the computer, wait 30 seconds, restart the computer.
  2. Disconnect all third-party peripherals.
  3. Resetting your Mac's PRAM and NVRAM
  4. Reset the System Management Controller (SMC)
  5. Reset your Startup Disk and Sound preferences, if needed, after resetting the PRAM.
  6. Test in safe mode to see if the problem persists, then restart normally.  Use safe mode to isolate issues with your Mac and Playing Safe - what does Safe mode do?
  7. Repair the disk by booting from the Recovery HD. Immediately after the chime hold down the Command and R keys until the Utility Menu appears. Choose Disk Utility and click on the Continue button. Select the indented (usually, Macintosh HD) volume entry from the side list.  Click on the First Aid button in the toolbar. Wait for the Done button to appear. Quit Disk Utility and return to the Utility Menu. Restart the computer from the Apple Menu.
  8. Repair permissions on the Home folderResolve issues caused by changing the permissions of items in your home folder.
  9. Create a New User Account Open Users & Groups preferences. Click on the lock icon and enter your Admin password when prompted. On the left under Current User click on the Add [+] button under Login Options. Setup a new Admin user account. Upon completion log out of your current account then log into the new account. If your problems cease, then consider switching to the new account and transferring your files to it - Transferring files from one User Account to another.
  10. Reinstall OS X by booting from the Recovery HD using the Command and R keys. When the Utility Menu appears select Install OS X then click on the Continue button.
  11. Erase and Install OS X Restart the computer. Immediately after the chime hold down the Command and R keys until the Apple logo appears. When the Utility Menu appears:


     1. Select Disk Utility from the Utility Menu and click on the Continue button.

     2. When Disk Utility loads select the drive (out-dented entry) from the Device list.

     3. Click on the Erase button in Disk Utility's toolbar. A panel will drop down.

     4. Set the Format type to APFS (for SSDs only) or Mac OS Extended (Journaled.)

     5. Click on the Apply button, then wait for the Done button to activate and click on it.

     6. Quit Disk Utility and return to the Utility Menu.

     7. Select Install OS X and click on the Continue button.


Similar questions

4 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Feb 17, 2020 11:39 AM in response to aesmour

We have no way of helping without a visual inspection of the machine. The following may help if it's a configuration or software issue.


A Troubleshooting Procedure that may Fix Problems with macOS El Capitan or Later


You should try each, one at a time, then test to see if the problem is fixed before going on to the next.


    Be sure to backup your files before proceeding if possible.


  1. Shutdown the computer, wait 30 seconds, restart the computer.
  2. Disconnect all third-party peripherals.
  3. Resetting your Mac's PRAM and NVRAM
  4. Reset the System Management Controller (SMC)
  5. Reset your Startup Disk and Sound preferences, if needed, after resetting the PRAM.
  6. Test in safe mode to see if the problem persists, then restart normally.  Use safe mode to isolate issues with your Mac and Playing Safe - what does Safe mode do?
  7. Repair the disk by booting from the Recovery HD. Immediately after the chime hold down the Command and R keys until the Utility Menu appears. Choose Disk Utility and click on the Continue button. Select the indented (usually, Macintosh HD) volume entry from the side list.  Click on the First Aid button in the toolbar. Wait for the Done button to appear. Quit Disk Utility and return to the Utility Menu. Restart the computer from the Apple Menu.
  8. Repair permissions on the Home folderResolve issues caused by changing the permissions of items in your home folder.
  9. Create a New User Account Open Users & Groups preferences. Click on the lock icon and enter your Admin password when prompted. On the left under Current User click on the Add [+] button under Login Options. Setup a new Admin user account. Upon completion log out of your current account then log into the new account. If your problems cease, then consider switching to the new account and transferring your files to it - Transferring files from one User Account to another.
  10. Reinstall OS X by booting from the Recovery HD using the Command and R keys. When the Utility Menu appears select Install OS X then click on the Continue button.
  11. Erase and Install OS X Restart the computer. Immediately after the chime hold down the Command and R keys until the Apple logo appears. When the Utility Menu appears:


     1. Select Disk Utility from the Utility Menu and click on the Continue button.

     2. When Disk Utility loads select the drive (out-dented entry) from the Device list.

     3. Click on the Erase button in Disk Utility's toolbar. A panel will drop down.

     4. Set the Format type to APFS (for SSDs only) or Mac OS Extended (Journaled.)

     5. Click on the Apply button, then wait for the Done button to activate and click on it.

     6. Quit Disk Utility and return to the Utility Menu.

     7. Select Install OS X and click on the Continue button.


Feb 17, 2020 6:32 PM in response to aesmour

I've been finding that the Trackpad & Keyboard on the 2015 MBPros stop working intermittently. Since it has been an intermittent issue with some of our organization's MBPro 2015s it is hard to be certain what the ultimate solution is. I've replaced the Trackpad cables on several of our laptops and so far no one has complained about the Trackpad or Keyboard not working, but it has only been a couple of months. At any rate the Trackpad Cable is the easiest and least expensive part to replace so it is a good first step (labor will cost more than the actual part).

MacBook Pro 2015 Keyboard & track pad not working!

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