Some keys not working intermittently r t y u i o

For anyone having the TYUIO key issue: I'd been having this issue intermittently for a few weeks - insanely frustrating. Read all the forums I could find and tried many of the suggestions - blow out dust from keys, reset PRAM, SMC, Accessibility Mouse Keys, British Keyboard source, etc all with limited success that I was chalking up to coincidence and placebo. Mashing the keys was the only reliable temporary fix.

Eventually I took off the back casing and noticed the center fan had more dust collected on it than the other fan, suggesting it may not be running as frequently as the other fan which is definitely a problem. Powered on the laptop with the case removed and confirmed that fan wasn't spinning, and furthermore the metal of the vent was getting way hotter than the other fan which was running. I removed the non-operational fan, cleaned out the dust from vents, and reseated it and made sure the connector was secure to the logic board. Powered the computer back on this time with the center fan working properly and surprise, the keys work without issue!

The center fan is seated directly under the TYUIO keys. My hunch is that when that fan isn't working, that area heats up to an abnormally hot temperature and affects the key performance. This would also explain why the key reliability is so intermittent, as their reliability changes as the temperature of the logic board increases and decreases with regular use. Could be coincidence, but seems like a rational explanation and a reasonably easy fix. If you have to replace a broken fan, or just reseat the connector like in my case, way cheaper and easer than replacing an entire keyboard or logic board or upper case assembly.

I just resolved this same intermittent keys not working issue after having it go on for the past few weeks.

The computer is a MacBook Pro mid-2012.

With a Bluetooth keyboard it worked normally, even if the built in keyboard didn't.

I noticed I could sometimes fix the issue (for a short time) when I was resting my right palm on the case next to the trackpad or simply holding down keys that didn't work and pressing down in this area in places until they started working again, so I assumed then it had something to do with clearances. It didn't.

Since the problem was intermittent, and started shortly after I installed a new hard drive, at first I thought I'd done something with the hard drive installation, so I took it out and reinstalled (even though I've installed a few in the past and never had issues). The problem returned anyway, so even though pressing on the case over the new hard drive could sometimes get the keys working again (for a short time) this was all probably a coincidence and had nothing to do with changing the drive.

I read a lot of comments online about people removing key caps and scissor mechanisms and that the E key, even if it worked fine, was the culprit, causing issues with the other keys that followed it.

I'm not sure if that's the case, but I started prying the keycaps off for the E key and all the affected keys as I moved to the right: R, T, Y, U, I, O.

I blew everything out with compressed air as best I could, and also used tweezers to pull out any dust or fine dog hair I could see (I babysit a corgi, so there's often fine hair about).

I only had to fully remove the key cap and white plastic scissor mechanism under the E key to fix the problem, but I blew out/cleaned out the other keys while I was at it anyway.

If the problem returns, I'll try removing their scissor mechanisms and cleaning as best I can too.

That was the fix in my case after trying many things. Start with the E key and do a cleaning as best you can with the scissor mechanism fully removed, and see if it helps you.

You may have a different mechanism than the one I have in this video, but the idea is the same. It's debris trapped under the key cap that isn't blown out with compressed air that's causing the problem, and it's not necessarily the keys with the issue that cause it, but the ones "wired" in just before the issue starts.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kh88cn_rtLo

Good luck.

i solved this easily - removed the cover, on the left side (under letter "P") you can see black rubber on the "moving" part (same as on the opposite side, between battery and motherboard, but the left side seemed you can push it little bit into case) - i put a coin there and a tape (on the rubber) and it works. It looks that this part is moving and when there is no space between case and this part, it stops moving and works. Thats also why sometimes keys worked when bending the case.

My opinion is that problem occured thaks to late replacement of battery, which bended the case little bit and made some space which causes the problem.

I have had the same problem for about 9-12 months (r t y u i o keys not working when pressed). I'm using a 13" Mid-2012 Macbook Pro (10.13). I seem to have found a solution.

To solve:

- Open System Preferences

- Open Keyboard

1. On 'keyboard' tab, uncheck all boxes (e.g. adjust keyboard brightness in low light).
2. On 'text' tab, remove any 'replace' / 'with' phrases (e.g. mine had 'omw' with 'on my way!')
3. On 'shortcuts' tab, unselect as much as possible (I unchecked every box except for show spotlight search, the 4 check boxes under 'screen shots', and turn dock hiding on and off).
4. On 'input sources' tab, remove alternate keyboards (on the left, I removed American and kept Canadian English).
5. On 'dication' tab, select a language (not automatically detect).

I will edit this post if the keys start to fail again. Hope this works 🙂

Here's the problem and the solution (on my 2012 MacBook Pro)

I had this issue and found that pressing down hard on the E key before the problem keys or the lower case to the right of the trackpad got it working again for a bit sometimes. It also worked fine using a USB keyboard.

took it to a repair place and they got it working for a couple weeks but then the problem returned.

What the real issue turned out to be was the battery was swollen after two years.

If you have this problem, remove the battery and run the computer from the power cord only and see if the problem goes away. In my case it did, so I ordered a new battery and installed it, and with a new (unswollen) battery, the problem didn't return and the computer works just fine.

I didn't change the keyboard or the top case, just the battery.

No more issue.

My Computer is a Macbook Pro 2012 NON-Retina with a 1tb Hard Drive and 16 Gigs of ram.

I have followed many of the suggestions above. I did check the fans and removed them and cleaned the ducts and fins. They were not bad at for a 6 year old machine. I also cleaned the underside of the keypad and pushed with a plastic computer tool. Put it all together and no fix. I have tried the Option 5 times, I have cleaned the whole row with high end rubbing alcohol until no residue was visible. Still no luck. The option 5 times is an odd deal, it works sometimes and then fails.

My story started when my "e" would not register. it was the Only issue I had and progressed to th rtyuio. I will continue to try and figure this out and hope anyone finding this thread will add their suggestions.

the options below work for sporadic times. The longest success was zapping the pram. Now that doesn't hold up. Option 5 times worked briefly

shift-capslock-"letter" worked briefly

pushing the shift key 5 times worked briefly

I have tried installing the OS sierra from Restore and that didn't work.

I have tried other user accounts and they as well are all affected.

I have cleaned the whole row of all dirt and grime.

I have cleaned the fans and underneath the fans inside the machine.

Why does it work sometimes and then fail?

Try this, I just did and it worked.

Hit the SHIFT - CAPSLOCK - and the LETTER not working.

As I typed that it failed but now is working. Weird and frustrating.

"It does not seem to be hardware related, but seems to be associated with the software and auto correction or something like that. "

So see if you can go to an earlier OS or Time Machine backup prior to the update.

Otherwise here's an analysis I did of a keyboard failure of those exact keys.

Here's a picture of the traces on the upper membrane which is why it's a mirror image.

You can see how all the keys are interconnected such that a failure of the "E, R, T, Y" trace would cause the entire set of keys to go down.

The interconnecting trace is about .5 mm wide so the tiniest anything will cause problems.

Here's a picture of corrosion on a trace that was causing an intermittent problem:

and here's a very enlarged of the contractor area of an "S" key that was driving me nuts. It would automatically add an "s" at random times. Sometimes it would just start typing "sssssss" while the curser was just parked on a line.

The tiny hair was what was causing the problem. It would take closer examination to determine if it was a metal fragment or an ordinary hair. (We have a cat.)

I would need a microscope stage and a nano probe to determine if it was resistive (conductive) or not.

" keys from E all the way to O (ERTYUIO) stop working every now and then"

Here's how the contact trace is arranged for those keys:

They're backwards since you're looking at them from the bottom. So it's all one trace.

" it seems like they're working less and less."

If there's a tiny fracture in the trace, over time and use it will get worse.

" I'd have to press E first really hard and then press Y,"

My read on that is that the fracture is in the area of the "E" key. When you press hard on the "E" key it causes the fracture to move and then the downstream keys will work.

The keyboard itself can be replaced. Their cost is around $30 on eBay. Make sure to get a new one. The replacement procedure is very difficult however. Everything has to come out and there are around 79 screws holding the keyboard in.

Apples procedure is to replace the entire top case and that's expensive.

Hi there.

I have unibody MacBook Pro (15-inch, Mid 2009) OSx Yosemite v10.10.2 and I found temporary (hope it will be permanent) solution to this problem. I also had problems with RTYUI keys. Tried everything without luck (incl. resetting PRAM, SMC). In safe mode I had the same behavior. For a minute I thought I need a new keyboard because of the hardware problem, technically a new uppercase because it's not that simple task to switch such keyboards... Also, after rebooting keys I had intermittent behavior of the RTYUIO keys – couldn't login properly. After the successful attempt of a login I enabled automatic login option just in case and started testing...

So I discovered that following manipulations solve the problem. Something makes Mouse Keys work improperly.

Go to the System Preference -> Accessibility -> Mouse&Trackpad -> Here, put and remove the check from the 'Enable Mouse Keys'. Then, on the same window go to the 'Options'. There, do the same (put and remove check) on option called 'Press the Option key five times to toggle Mouse Keys'.

After I did that, my problem with RTYUI sporadically working keys disappeared. No reboot required. I hope this problem gone forever. Apple should do smth about it.

I have a MacBook Pro 13-inch mid-2012. Purchased in May 2014 (it's not even 4 years old!)

Your solution worked perfectly! Thank you! Nothing else worked, or sounded way too complicated (I'm not a tekkie). The other day I spent an agonising hour and a quarter at the Apple store while they ran all sorts of tests, cleaned my keyboard, and finally told me that my rtyuio keys had probably worn out because I used them more than the other keys and that either I needed to buy a new Mac ($$$$), get a new keyboard installed ($$$) or buy an external USB keyboard ($$) and try to get by with that until I can afford to buy a new computer.

Just to double check, it works fine w/ a USB keyboard?

I have been having the same problem. I have found a short-term fix by rebooting in Safe Mode, then resetting the PRAM, and then it works for about a day. But if I keep it in Safe Mode it seems to work fine.

So my follow-up question is: should I try to run it in Single User mode and do an FSCK reboot thingy?

I have the same problem and realized that it mostly occurs when the surface on which the macbook air is placed is not perfectly even. quite odd as on the same surface my old macbook from 2009 has no issues..probably has something to do with the thin body?

anyway, i'm glad that I found the fix - just move it to more even surface.

Also, others have noted similar thing on this forum

http://www.mac-forums.com/forums/apple-notebooks/307482-backspace-keys-not-worki ng-2013-macbook-air.html