If you’re anyone like me, your laptop is one of your most important devices. You take it everywhere with you and are constantly on it. Well, in that case, keeping your keyboard locked is one of the important steps you can take to avoid unwanted circumstances, such as someone stealing your data or damaging your ongoing work.
This is even more so the case if your work involves typing or data entry because, in that situation, you definitely don’t want someone else messing with your keyboard while you’re working. Additionally, if you have small kids or a pet in your house, keyboard locking can be the answer to someone pressing some unwanted keys without being aware of it.
You might be wondering, what is a Keyboard lock? And is a keyboard locking safe? Well, Keyboard locking is a process that helps you temporarily disable your laptop keys. So it helps avoid accidental changes by your small kids or pets. Also, it is completely safe and does not harm your laptop’s functions or software.
This article will help you learn how to lock a laptop keyboard using some inbuilt functions, a combination of some keys, and by downloading an app.
How to Lock Your Windows Laptop Keyboard
You can easily lock your Windows laptop keyboard with some combination of keys or by simply putting your laptop in sleep mode. Here’s how you can do it:
- Use Keyboard Shortcut Keys
One of the most straightforward ways is using the Win+L keyboard key. This will lock your keyboard the moment you press them. Hit enter when you get back to work again to disable the temporary lock.
Another way is by using the Ctrl+Alt+Delete keyboard key. This will prompt a set of options; select the Lock or Sign out option from them to temporarily save the laptop from being manipulated.
- Use the Start Button
Go and click on the start button by navigating to the bottom left corner of your screen. On it, press the power button; once you press the power button, you’ll see the Sleep, Shutdown, and Restart options there. Select sleep, and it will lock your laptop until you press any key and re-enter the password.
- Use a Screen Saver
You can also configure the screen saver settings to lock your keyboard. Simply go to the “control panel” and click on “Appearance and Personalization.” Select “Screen Saver” and further select “screen saver settings” within it. Check the “On resume, password protect” check box in the settings. This will help you to activate your screen saver and lock your keyboard at the same time.
How to Lock Your MacBook Keyboard
You can easily lock your Macbook keyboard with some combination of keys or simply put the laptop in sleep mode. Here’s how you can do it:
- By Simply Closing the Lid
You can simply put down the lid of your MacBook. It will automatically go into sleep mode and lock your keyboard. Open the lid and enter a password whenever you want to unlock the laptop keyboard to access your work again.
- By Sleep Mode
You can simply put your laptop on sleep mode by selecting the “Sleep” option from the apple logo menu, which is at the upper left corner of the screen.
You can also use combinations of some keys to switch your MacBook to sleep mode. Press the Control+Shift+Power button or press the Command+Option+Power button, and you are done. Your Macbook will automatically go into sleep mode once you press these keys. You can then press any key and enter a password to access your work again.
How to Lock your Keyboard by Downloading Keyboard Locker
- First of all, download the Keyboard Locker. You can then find the Keyboard Locker folder in your downloads. Unzip that folder and extract files.
- There are two important files, “KeyboardLocker.exe” and “KeyboardLocker.ahk”; KeyboardLocker.exe is an AutoHotKey script that is already compiled to make it useful as a standalone app. So there is no need to download AutoHotKey to use it.
- Now double-click on the “KeyboardLocker.exe” to execute the program on your laptop.
- A little keyboard symbol will appear in your notification area once you successfully launch your keyboard locker. You are all set to use it. Press Ctrl+Alt+L to lock your laptop’s keyboard. The keyboard icon will change and have a red mark on it to assure you that you have successfully locked your keyboard.
- When you want to unlock a laptop keyboard, open Word and simply type ”unlock.” The keyboard icon will change back to normal to assure you that you have successfully unlocked your keyboard.
Hope this article helps you to lock your Windows laptop keyboard as well as your MacBook keyboard. You can choose any method to lock the keyboard that suits you best. Keep in mind, though, that downloading a keyboard locker program helps you to lock your keyboard and keep the screen open at the same time.
