How to Turn On or Off Shift Lock on the Touch Keyboard in Windows 11
Want to switch between uppercase and lowercase on Windows 11’s touch keyboard? Here’s how to manage Shift Lock.
Shift Lock is a feature on the on-screen keyboard that functions like a physical keyboard’s Caps Lock, letting you lock the Shift key for continuous uppercase letters.
You can toggle this setting via the touch keyboard’s options menu, accessible directly from the keyboard itself when it’s active.
This is especially helpful if you often type on devices like the Surface Pro or other Windows 11 tablets and want to manage capitalization without a fuss.
Double-tap the Shift key on the touch keyboard to toggle Shift Lock on or off. This locks the Shift key for continuous uppercase typing. The Shift key will show a lock icon when active.
What is Shift Lock on the Touch Keyboard?
Shift Lock on the Windows 11 touch keyboard is a simple setting that lets you type in all capital letters without holding down the Shift key.
When Shift Lock is on, the Shift key will look different — usually with a small lock icon, so you know it’s active.
Note: Shift Lock is only available on the regular touch keyboard layouts, not on the traditional keyboard layout.
How to Turn On or Off Shift Lock
You can use the touch keyboard easily to turn Shift Lock on or off by double tapping the Shift key. But if you want to completely disable the Shift Lock feature (so you can’t turn it on by accident), you can change a setting in Windows.
Disable Shift Lock using Registry Editor
You can turn off the Shift Lock feature on your Windows 11 touch keyboard for good by making a small adjustment in the Registry Editor.
- Press Win + R on your keyboard to open the Run box.
- Type
regeditand press Enter. If asked for permission, click Yes. - In Registry Editor, use the left sidebar to go to this folder:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\TabletTip\1.7 - Look for a value named
EnableShiftLockon the right side. - If it doesn’t exist, right-click on the right side, choose New > DWORD (32-bit) Value, and name it
EnableShiftLock. - Double-click
EnableShiftLockand set the value data to:- 1 to enable Shift Lock (this is the default)
- 0 to disable Shift Lock
- Click OK, then close Registry Editor.
- You might need to restart your PC or sign out and back in for the change to take effect.
Here is what the registry file looks like if you want to create a file to do this:
Enable Shift Lock (default)
reg add "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\TabletTip\1.7" /v EnableShiftLock /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /fDisable Shift Lock
reg add "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\TabletTip\1.7" /v EnableShiftLock /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /fQuick Summary
- Turn Shift Lock on/off quickly: Double tap the Shift key on the touch keyboard.
- Disable Shift Lock completely: Change the
EnableShiftLockvalue in the Registry Editor to 0.
To quickly turn Shift Lock on or off in Windows 11, just double-tap the Shift key on your touch keyboard.
Why is my Shift key locked?
(1) Something inside the keyboard causing it to stick. (2) The keyboard is faulty. (3) Because of a new update/program installed. (4) User-initiated, (seemingly random).
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About the Author
Richard
Tech Writer, IT Professional
Richard, a writer for Geek Rewind, is a tech enthusiast who loves breaking down complex IT topics into simple, easy-to-understand ideas. With years of hands-on experience in system administration and enterprise IT operations, he’s developed a knack for offering practical tips and solutions. Richard aims to make technology more accessible and actionable. He's deeply committed to the Geek Rewind community, always ready to answer questions and engage in discussions.
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