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When I'm using remote desktop at work from one specific PC it has a quirk which is really quite irritating.

I'll be typing away and suddenly the Windows key will be pressed, things start minimising, explorer launches, workstation gets locked (but it locks the remote workstation, so I have that wallpaper in the background, rather than the wallpaper from the local machine as I would expect).

I've swapped keyboards, even though it didn't seem to be related to hardware and it made no difference. Done some internet digging and found someone saying it's related to using windows-l to lock the workstation. I've tried to stop myself using that shortcut to see if it helps and have failed miserably :D It's happening to at least one other user remote desktopping from the same machine to a different PC. Reinstalling isn't really an option (I don't admin the PC or I would have tried it, grr), although I could probably get it done if it would definitely resolve the problem.

Any ideas?

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11 Answers 11

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There's a question about a similar problem on technet (subject: Windows Key "stuck"). Details below:

If you are using Win Key + L to lock your desktop, this is a known issue. We have completed work on a fix that should prevent the problem in the future; to my knowledge it is due to be released with Vista SP1.

The bug arises most frequently when you use Win+L to lock your desktop while the Remote Desktop window has focus. It is caused by a synchronization issue between client and server that only arises on a subset of machines, possibly due to a driver or 3rd party software conflict that messes up the timing of the Remote Desktop client. There are a few ways to avoid this:

  1. Don't use Win+L to lock your local desktop. Either lock your machine through the start menu or, if your machine is configured for it, Ctrl-Alt-Del and select Lock Desktop.

  2. Make sure a different window has focus before locking your desktop.

If you have already encountered the problem, the "workaround" is much as you described:

  1. Remove focus from the Remote Desktop window, by selecting another window on your machine, or minimizing and clicking the desktop of the local machine

  2. Strike the Ctrl key 6-12 times. You mentioned the win key which probably works as well, but if you have somehow encountered this error on a machine that doesn't have a Win key, Ctrl should work as well.

  3. Go back to the Remote Desktop window; the problem should be resolved.

Apparently there is a fix in Windows XP Sp3.

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  • 3
    I got the person that admins the machine to install SP3 and it hasn't done it since, thanks!
    – wikiti
    Aug 7, 2009 at 22:31
  • I'm still having this problem on XP SP3. I'm unsure if this problem is caused by Win+L because I do use it occassionally but I haven't noticed a direct correlation.
    – HK1
    May 16, 2011 at 15:11
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    I found that by clicking the windows button on the remote machine (not the local machine) 6-12 times fixes the problem. I'm using windows XP client, and windows 2003 server btw.
    – Tom
    Jun 25, 2011 at 16:17
  • 8
    This is not fixed as of 2011/10/19 Windows 7 with all updates.
    – Triynko
    Oct 19, 2011 at 16:23
  • 2
    Using updated Windows 7, June 2012. Getting this issue, while remoting into Win7 and Server 2008R2 machines. And I don't even use Win-L to lock
    – askvictor
    Jun 15, 2012 at 1:30
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Try this workaround:

  1. Open 'On Screen' keyboard from the Accessories/Accessibility menu
  2. Press the 'On Screen' Windows Key
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  • I understand this answer to be a way to respond to the problem rather than preventing it.
    – Travis
    Jul 16, 2009 at 15:48
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    but at least this solution does work to resolve the problem after it happens without having to reboot one or both of the machines.
    – HK1
    Jun 1, 2011 at 19:37
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I think I found this happened to me if I locked my computer (using Flag+L) whilst the RDP session had focus. I think RDP stopped the remote computer locking as well in response to this key combination, but "remembered" that the Flag key was pressed, almost as though the key was being held down.

I found a really quick fix was to ensure the RDP session had focus and just hit the Flag key on my keyboard when things started going crazy. This usually fixed it for me.

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  • What's the syntax to get the button-borders like that?
    – Stijn Sanders
    Jul 16, 2009 at 21:45
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    The <kbd> HTML tag.
    – alastairs
    Jul 17, 2009 at 9:05
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There is a common issue when using RDP connections and pressing key combinations that invoke special functionality in Windows.

For example, if you press Win+E to open a new Windows Explorer window. The event of pressing down your Win key will be sent through the RDP tunnel. But when you also hit the E, the event is captured by your own desktop and processed accordingly.

That means that the up or release event is never sent through the tunnel, so it will behave as if the key is stuck.

To avoid this from happening, it can be beneficial to simply send all key combinations through to the other computer.

enter image description here

The same flag can also be found in various wrapper applications, like mRemoteNG:

enter image description here

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I just had this issue with a machine I was rdp'ing into and various restarts didn't make a difference.

A google search revealed the following fix:

  1. Close the RD window
  2. Open new RD but make sure the "Apply Windows key Combinations" is set on the remote computer.
  3. Now press Ctrl+Alt+End and lock the remote computer.
  4. Log in again and it should work.

I tried this and it worked perfectly.

This fix was found at neowin.net (Subject: Remote Desktop Issue, Sticky Keys Stuck On?)

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This is a Windows Known Compatibility Error, and it will occur each time you Windows-Key Lock your machine. The quickest solution to resolve these crazy function keys being locked is – as @Barfoon recommended – Start → Run → osk (it's the on-screen keyboard utility).

Click the Windows key, and then click it again to disable it.

This resets the error and keys function as normal once again.

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One trick I have found to fixing this issue is going to Start --> Run --> osk (its the on-screen keyboard utility), clicking the windows key, and then clicking it again to disable it.

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You can simply go to your Remote Desktop login screen.

ANd press flag+l key

this will lock your current machine. Now go and check it on remote desktop.

My issue got resovled this way.

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I had this happen to me recently. A quick reboot of the machine solved the problem. That might not be possible in your case, but have you tried it? I haven't had it happen since the reboot.

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  • I can cure it temporarily by pressing both windows keys a few times, but it's been happening on and off for weeks.
    – wikiti
    Jul 16, 2009 at 13:28
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I was connected to RDP and was working on my local desktop,did Windows Key + D is minimize the window. Later when using RDP when i hit D it was minimizing the windows. Went through lot of procedure and did not worked. With RDP highlighted did Windows key + D and it got resolved.

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There seem to be many ways this problem can manifest itself. In my case I was using my own computer to access my work computer via RemoteApp so there were three computers involved and the Windows key was "stuck" in the "intermediate" RDP session of the Remote Desktop Services server.

Trying many proposed solutions on my own as well as on my work computer including restarting both computers did not resolve the issue. Pressing L without any modifiers in my RDP session on my work computer would send me to the lock screen of the RDP session on the Remote Desktop Services server.

I finally solved the problem by performing the following steps while at the unexpected "intermediate" lock screen:

  1. Click the accessibility menu in the lower, left corner to bring up the on-screen keyboard

  2. Click Windows followed by L on the on-screen keyboard

  3. Unlock the "intermediate" RDP session by entering the password

I tried to use the on-screen keyboard in many other ways on the "intermediate" RDP session but my issue was not resolved until I performed the procedure described above.

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