Is the Windows key not working on your PC? In this article, you will see how to fix Start Menu and Windows key not working on Windows 10 and 11.

Windows Key Not Working

There could be a few reasons why your Windows key isn’t working on your PC, and we’ll go over a few of them in this article. If you’re not able to access the Windows key, it might be due to a problem with the keyboard or hardware, or a software issue. In some cases, the Windows key may just need to be reinstalled. We will cover all of these options and more in this article, so make sure to check it out!

1. Check if the Windows key is Locked:

The most common reason for the Windows Key not working is it gets locked by mistake. There is a button to lock the Windows key on most modern keyboards, especially on laptops, but most users are not aware of this key. It is usually in a combination with another key. Find the key combinations for your keyboard and enable the Windows key. Mostly, it is FN + Windows Key. You can try FN + F6 and FN + F12. Try to locate the small lock icon on any of the keys. If you find it, use the combination to get the FN key and enable the Windows key.

2. Gaming Mode in the Keyboard:

Some keyboards designed for gaming come with a gaming mode key. When activated, it can disable specific keys such as the Windows button. If you are on a game and press the Windows key by mistake, the game gets minimized and you lose the play. If you have such a keyboard, you need to identify the gaming mode key and disable it. Usually, it is located on F2 or F3 and has a small joystick icon. Use the key to disable the game mode and check if the Windows key is working or not. If not, follow the next fixes.

3. Update Keyboard Driver:

Sometimes a faulty driver also causes this issue, so you should update the keyboard driver on Windows 11 and 10, click on Start, and type Device Manager. Open it, then expand keyboards, right-click on your keyboard and select Update Driver. Then choose Search Automatically for drivers.

You can also download the driver from the manufacturer’s website and provide the driver’s location using the Browse My Computer for Driver’s option. If there are several keyboards here, update them all. Restart your PC and check the Windows Key.

4. Performance SFC Scan:

Sometimes an error in the system file could also cause an issue with the Windows key. To fix it, so run the system file checker instructions for Windows 10 and 11 are the same.

• Click on Start

• Type Task Manager and open it

• Now click on the File menu

• Select Run New Task

If you have the latest Task Manager on Windows 11, just click on Run New Task. Type CMD and select Create this task with administrative privileges. Click Okay. Now type ‘SFC /ScanNow’ and Hit Enter. Wait until the process gets completed, restart the PC and now check if the Windows key is working or not. If not, run the command prompt as Administrator. Copy the command ‘Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth’ and paste it. This command will check the health of your disk image and restore its health.

5. Create a New User Account:

If these fixes don’t work, the only option left for you is to create a new user account on windows 11.

• Open Settings
• Go to the Accounts
• Go to Other Users
• Click on Add Account

Now click on I don’t have a person’s sign-in information. Now click on Add a User without a Microsoft Account. Now enter your username and password, then. Select the security questions and answers. Now sign out and sign in with the newly created account. If you are on Windows 10

• Go To Settings
• Accounts
• Family Other Users

Then click on Add someone else to this PC. Now click on I Don’t Have a person’s sign-in information. Now click on Add a user without a Microsoft Account. Enter your username and password. Now complete the process.

Start Menu on Windows Not Working

Starting to experience issues with the start menu not working on your Windows 11 computer? Don’t worry, we have got you covered. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the steps necessary to fix start menu problems on Windows 11. We’ll also provide a few tips to help you work around common issues when starting up your computer. So don’t wait – check out our guide and get started fixing start menu problems on Windows 11 today!

1. Restart Windows Explorer:

Sometimes, due to some conflict, the windows explorer process stops working correctly. The Start menu is also associated with Windows Explorer, so restarting the Windows Explorer process could help. Since you cannot access the Start menu, you cannot right-click on it to open the Task Manager.

• Press Control + Alt + Delete button
• Select Task Manager
• Locate Windows Explorer
• Select it and click on Restart

2. Start your PC in Safe Mode:

Sometimes booting in Safe Mode and then in Normal Mode fixes the Start menu issue. To boot in Safe Mode, open the Task Manager, click on the File menu and select Run New Task. If you are on a new interface. Just click on the button. Now type ‘MSConfig’ and press enter. Now go to the Boot tab, then select Safe Boot. Click on Apply and Okay. Now restart the PC in Safe Mode. Now open the ‘MSConfig’ again, untick the Safe boot box and restart the PC.

3. Install Latest Updates:

If you have installed the latest updates and start facing the start menu problem, then you need to uninstall that update or you can try updating to the latest update if it is available. To uninstall the update, open the Task Manager, click on the File menu and select Run New Task. If you are on a new interface just click on the button.

Now type MS-Settings: and hit Enter. Then go to Windows Update. Click on Update History, then go to Uninstall Update. Now click on Uninstall button against the recently installed update. Then follow the instructions to uninstall the update. If you haven’t installed an update recently, you can install the latest update.

4. Run DISM and SFC Scan:

Sometimes the Start menu stops working due to corruption in the system files. Running the DISM and SFC scan could fix the issue. Press Ctrl + Alt + Delete, Open the Task Manager, click on the File menu and select Run New Task. If you are on a new interface just click on the button. Now type CMD and click the box of Create this task with Administrator privileges. Click OK. Now type this command ‘SFC /ScanNow’ then press enter. It will again take some time. Now type ‘DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth’ you have to be a little patient. It will fix the issues with system files. Now check if the Start menu is working.

5. Rebuild Search Index:

Windows Search and Start menu are closely integrated, so if the Windows search has any issue, it could also stop working. So building the Windows Search index could help you.

-Press Ctrl + Alt + Delete buttons
-Open the Task Manager
-Click on the File menu
-Select Run New Task.

If you are on the New Task Manager interface, just click on the Run New Task button. Type ‘Control /Name Microsoft.IndexingOptions’ you will see the Indexing Options dialog. Click on Modify. Click on Show All Locations. Now uncheck all the locations. Click OK. Now click on the Advanced button, then click on Rebuild. The process is going to take some time. Once the process completes, restart the PC and check if the Start menu is working or not.

6. Reset All Apps:

If none of the options are working, you can reset all the apps. It could fix the Start menu. However, resetting all the apps will delete the saved data in those apps. So if you don’t have anything important in inbuilt apps, you can reset it. Press Ctrl + Alt + Delete buttons, Open the Task Manager, click on the File menu and select Run New Task. If you are on the New Task Manager interface, just click on the Run New Task button. Type ‘powershell’ and select Create this task with administrative privileges. Copy this command ‘Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register “$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml”}’ Paste it here. Now press Enter. If you see some errors in red, just ignore them.

7. How to Create a New User Account in Windows:

If none of the above methods work, you can create a new user account and start working on that hopefully, that will resolve the issue. Open ‘powershell’ as Administrator. Type ‘Net User UserName Password /Add’ and press Enter. Now restart the PC and log in with the new user.