Macbook thinks control key pressed ONLY when connected to external display!

Question

Level 1

4 points

Hi, i've been trouble shooting this problem all day and here's what I've got:

on mouse and trackpad, when I try and click anywhere on screen, the contextual menu comes up. I can't do anything!
The reason? My computer thinks i'm pressing the control key
No, I don't have a bluetooth keyboard connected somewhere with the control button pressed down!

I have isolated the problem:

Help! Restarting doesn't work. It's a work computer that uses jamf so i can't reset from new.

Posted on Jun 12, 2022 3:01 AM

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Answer 1

Community Specialist

Hello dlcgirl,

Welcome to Apple Support Communities!

When you press on the control keys on your keyboard, do they both feel normal and move freely when pressed?

Or does one feel like it's stuck or having an issue?

Try the steps here:

"If other keys don’t work

You may have accidentally set an option that changes how your keyboard operates.

Choose Apple menu > System Preferences, click Accessibility , click Keyboard, then click Hardware. Make sure Slow Keys is turned off. If Slow Keys is on, you must press and hold a key longer than usual before it’s recognized.
Choose Apple menu > System Preferences, click Accessibility, click Pointer Control, then click Alternate Control Methods. Make sure Mouse Keys is off.
Choose Apple menu > System Preferences, click Keyboard , then click Input Sources. Select “Show Input menu in menu bar.” Open the Input menu, then make sure the correct keyboard layout is selected."

We hope this helps.

Cheers!

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