[SOLVED] Super key does not work anymore

Desktop Environments Cinnamon
1

Hitting the Super key used to open the main menu.
Super+1, Super+2, Super+ etc. launched/activated the app in the relevant position in the dock.
This does not work anymore.

Note: I did update EOS before posting here. In fact, it seems to have occurred after an update.

Laptop info

System:
Kernel: 6.12.20-1-lts arch: x86_64 bits: 64 compiler: gcc v: 14.2.1 clocksource: tsc
Desktop: Cinnamon v: 6.4.8 tk: GTK v: 3.24.49 wm: Muffin v: 6.4.1 with: albert vt: 7
dm: LightDM v: 1.32.0 Distro: EndeavourOS base: Arch Linux
Machine:
Type: Laptop System: TongFang product: GX5MRXL v: Standard serial:
Mobo: TongFang model: GX5MRXL v: Standard serial: part-nu: 0001
uuid: UEFI: American Megatrends LLC. v: N.1.10PCS05 date: 10/24/2024
Battery:
ID-1: BAT0 charge: 77.3 Wh (86.0%) condition: 89.9/99.2 Wh (90.6%) volts: 17.7 min: 15.5
model: standard type: Li-ion serial: status: charging cycles: 77
CPU:
Info: 14-core (4-mt/10-st) model: Intel Core Ultra 5 125H bits: 64 type: MST AMCP smt: enabled
arch: Meteor Lake rev: 4 cache: L1: 1.4 MiB L2: 14 MiB L3: 18 MiB
Speed (MHz): avg: 1972 min/max: 400/4500:3600:2500 cores: 1: 1972 2: 1972 3: 1972 4: 1972
5: 1972 6: 1972 7: 1972 8: 1972 9: 1972 10: 1972 11: 1972 12: 1972 13: 1972 14: 1972 15: 1972
16: 1972 17: 1972 18: 1972 bogomips: 107856
Flags: avx avx2 ht lm nx pae sse sse2 sse3 sse4_1 sse4_2 ssse3 vmx
Graphics:
Device-1: Intel Meteor Lake-P [Intel Arc Graphics] vendor: AIstone Global driver: i915 v: kernel
arch: Xe-LPG ports: active: eDP-1 empty: DP-1, DP-2, DP-3, DP-4, HDMI-A-1 bus-ID: 00:02.0
chip-ID: 8086:7d55 class-ID: 0300
Device-2: Kingcome FHD WebCam driver: uvcvideo type: USB rev: 2.0 speed: 480 Mb/s lanes: 1
bus-ID: 3-3:2 chip-ID: 2b7e:c858 class-ID: fe01 serial:
Display: x11 server: X.Org v: 21.1.16 with: Xwayland v: 24.1.6 driver: X: loaded: modesetting
alternate: fbdev,intel,vesa dri: iris gpu: i915 display-ID: :0 screens: 1
Screen-1: 0 s-res: 2560x1600 s-dpi: 96 s-size: 677x423mm (26.65x16.65") s-diag: 798mm (31.43")
Monitor-1: eDP-1 model: BOE Display 0x0c85 res: N/A dpi: 198 size: 329x206mm (12.95x8.11")
diag: 388mm (15.3") modes: 2560x1600
API: EGL v: 1.5 hw: drv: intel iris platforms: device: 0 drv: iris device: 1 drv: swrast gbm:
drv: iris surfaceless: drv: iris x11: drv: iris inactive: wayland
API: OpenGL v: 4.6 compat-v: 4.5 vendor: intel mesa v: 25.0.2-arch1.2 glx-v: 1.4
direct-render: yes renderer: Mesa Intel Arc Graphics (MTL) device-ID: 8086:7d55
Info: Tools: api: eglinfo,glxinfo x11: xdpyinfo, xprop, xrandr
Audio:
Device-1: Intel Meteor Lake-P HD Audio vendor: AIstone Global driver: snd_hda_intel v: kernel
bus-ID: 00:1f.3 chip-ID: 8086:7e28 class-ID: 0403
API: ALSA v: k6.12.20-1-lts status: kernel-api
Server-1: PipeWire v: 1.4.1 status: active with: 1: pipewire-pulse status: active
2: wireplumber status: active 3: pipewire-alsa type: plugin 4: pw-jack type: plugin
Network:
Device-1: Intel Meteor Lake PCH CNVi WiFi driver: iwlwifi v: kernel bus-ID: 00:14.3
chip-ID: 8086:7e40 class-ID: 0280
IF: wlan0 state: up mac:
Device-2: Motorcomm Micro. YT6801 Gigabit Ethernet vendor: AIstone Global driver: N/A pcie:
speed: 2.5 GT/s lanes: 1 port: 3000 bus-ID: 2d:00.0 chip-ID: 1f0a:6801 class-ID: 0200
IF-ID-1: virbr0 state: down mac:
Bluetooth:
Device-1: Intel AX211 Bluetooth driver: btusb v: 0.8 type: USB rev: 2.0 speed: 12 Mb/s lanes: 1
bus-ID: 3-10:4 chip-ID: 8087:0033 class-ID: e001
Report: btmgmt ID: hci0 rfk-id: 0 state: down bt-service: disabled rfk-block: hardware: no
software: no address: N/A
Drives:
Local Storage: total: 476.95 GiB used: 43.18 GiB (9.1%)
ID-1: /dev/nvme0n1 vendor: Samsung model: MZVL2256HCHQ-00B00 size: 238.47 GiB speed: 63.2 Gb/s
lanes: 4 tech: SSD serial: fw-rev: GXA7801Q temp: 32.9 C scheme: GPT
ID-2: /dev/nvme1n1 vendor: Samsung model: MZVL2256HCHQ-00B00 size: 238.47 GiB speed: 63.2 Gb/s
lanes: 4 tech: SSD serial: fw-rev: GXA7801Q temp: 31.9 C scheme: GPT
Partition:
ID-1: / size: 232.68 GiB used: 42.95 GiB (18.5%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/nvme0n1p2
Swap:
ID-1: swap-1 type: file size: 512 MiB used: 0 KiB (0.0%) priority: -2 file: /swapfile
USB:
Hub-1: 1-0:1 info: hi-speed hub with single TT ports: 1 rev: 2.0 speed: 480 Mb/s lanes: 1
chip-ID: 1d6b:0002 class-ID: 0900
Hub-2: 2-0:1 info: super-speed hub ports: 4 rev: 3.1 speed: 20 Gb/s lanes: 2 chip-ID: 1d6b:0003
class-ID: 0900
Hub-3: 3-0:1 info: hi-speed hub with single TT ports: 12 rev: 2.0 speed: 480 Mb/s lanes: 1
chip-ID: 1d6b:0002 class-ID: 0900
Device-1: 3-3:2 info: Kingcome FHD WebCam type: video driver: uvcvideo interfaces: 5 rev: 2.0
speed: 480 Mb/s lanes: 1 power: 500mA chip-ID: 2b7e:c858 class-ID: fe01 serial:
Hub-4: 3-5:3 info: Genesys Logic Hub ports: 2 rev: 2.1 speed: 480 Mb/s lanes: 1
chip-ID: 05e3:0610 class-ID: 0900
Device-1: 3-10:4 info: Intel AX211 Bluetooth type: bluetooth driver: btusb interfaces: 2
rev: 2.0 speed: 12 Mb/s lanes: 1 power: 100mA chip-ID: 8087:0033 class-ID: e001
Hub-5: 4-0:1 info: super-speed hub ports: 2 rev: 3.1 speed: 20 Gb/s lanes: 2 chip-ID: 1d6b:0003
class-ID: 0900
Hub-6: 4-2:2 info: Genesys Logic GL3523 Hub ports: 2 rev: 3.2 speed: 5 Gb/s lanes: 1
chip-ID: 05e3:0620 class-ID: 0900
Sensors:
System Temperatures: cpu: 42.8 C mobo: N/A
Fan Speeds (rpm): N/A
Repos:
Packages: 1025 pm: pacman pkgs: 1005 pm: flatpak pkgs: 20
Active pacman repo servers in: /etc/pacman.conf
1: https: //mega.nz/linux/repo/Arch_Extra/$arch
Active pacman repo servers in: /etc/pacman.d/endeavouros-mirrorlist
1: https: //mirror.moson.org/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
2: https: //mirror.rznet.fr/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
3: https: //mirror.alpix.eu/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
4: https: //distrohub.kyiv.ua/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
5: https: //mirrors.c0urier.net/linux/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
6: https: //fosszone.csd.auth.gr/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
7: https: //md.mirrors.hacktegic.com/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
8: https: //repo.c48.uk/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
9: https: //mirror.accum.se/mirror/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
10: https: //ftp.rz.tu-bs.de/pub/mirror/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
11: https: //ftp.belnet.be/mirror/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
12: https: //mirror.leitecastro.com/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
13: https: //mirror.nag.albony.in/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
14: https: //mirrors.gigenet.com/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
15: https: //mirrors.urbanwave.co.za/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
16: https: //mirrors.nxtgen.com/endeavouros-mirror/repo/$repo/$arch
17: https: //mirror.funami.tech/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
18: https: //mirrors.jlu.edu.cn/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
19: https: //mirror.archlinux.tw/EndeavourOS/repo/$repo/$arch
20: https: //mirrors.tuna.tsinghua.edu.cn/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
21: https: //www.miraa.jp/endeavouros/repo/$repo/$arch
Active pacman repo servers in: /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist
1: https: //mirror.ubrco.de/archlinux/$repo/os/$arch
2: https: //berlin.mirror.pkgbuild.com/$repo/os/$arch
3: https: //mirror.moson.org/arch/$repo/os/$arch
4: https: //archlinux.thaller.ws/$repo/os/$arch
5: https: //mirror.23m.com/archlinux/$repo/os/$arch
6: https: //mirror.kumi.systems/archlinux/$repo/os/$arch
7: https: //arch.phinau.de/$repo/os/$arch
8: https: //de.arch.mirror.kescher.at/$repo/os/$arch
9: https: //de.arch.niranjan.co/$repo/os/$arch
10: https: //mirror.lcarilla.de/archlinux/$repo/os/$arch
11: https: //mirror.pseudoform.org/$repo/os/$arch
12: https: //mirror.dogado.de/archlinux/$repo/os/$arch
13: https: //de-nue.soulharsh007.dev/archlinux/$repo/os/$arch
14: https: //arch.jensgutermuth.de/$repo/os/$arch
15: https: //packages.oth-regensburg.de/archlinux/$repo/os/$arch
16: https: //mirror.hugo-betrugo.de/archlinux/$repo/os/$arch
17: https: //pkg.fef.moe/archlinux/$repo/os/$arch
18: https: //mirrors.niyawe.de/archlinux/$repo/os/$arch
19: https: //de.mirrors.cicku.me/archlinux/$repo/os/$arch
20: https: //dist-mirror.fem.tu-ilmenau.de/archlinux/$repo/os/$arch
Info:
Memory: total: 32 GiB note: est. available: 30.91 GiB used: 5.39 GiB (17.4%)
Processes: 406 Power: uptime: 1h 13m states: freeze,mem,disk suspend: s2idle wakeups: 1
hibernate: platform Init: systemd v: 257 default: graphical
Compilers: gcc: 14.2.1 Client: Cinnamon v: 6.4.8 inxi: 3.3.37

2

If it just occured, and you can still use it with other combos - Maybe it’s a new Cinnamon setting. . . or bug.

1 Like
3

On another laptop I use LMDE with the Cinnamon DE, also updated earlier today and the Super key still works.

4

Sounds like a kernel issue then. LMDE and normal Cinnamon are based on two different kernel platforms. Cinnamon here is based on whatever is current, where LMDE is based on Debian, thus the name.

That could very much make sense.

1 Like
5

So, what can I do?

6

If it’s not a new setting you need to look into and it is in fact a kernel issue (this I cannot prove 100%), you can try the lts kernel - this will in fact verify if it is or not.

If it is a kernel issue - you can use a different kernel where it is still working. Wait until it is working again. Or become a kernel developer and fix the issue.

You can log kernel issues with the linux foundation I believe.

1 Like
7

I have been using the LTS kernel from the beginning, as per Dalto’s “How to run a stress-free EOS”.

I know as per Dalto’s post you should not run more than 1 DE, which I understand. But would it be risky to install another DE and delete the Cinnamon DE? I have had misgivings about Cinnamon for a while and have wanted to get rid of it and use another one. What do you think?

8

Try the latest kernel and see if it’s been fixed then? Most people are opposite.

I would also agree with him that you should not run more than one at a time so that config files do not get intertwined.

It’s easier to reinstall completely than to eradicate an old DE replaced by a new one. Although it’s not that hard or impossible. I’ve done it. it’s really up to you. If you don’t love Cinnamon and wanted to change anyway, maybe this is a good reason to try something else?

The best part of linux is you can do whatever you want. I’ve gone from cinnamon, to xfce+i3, to kde and now I’m on gnome after all these years. I’m too lazy/stuck/comfortable at this point, I feel like I’ll be in gnome for a while. Run whatever you like. Try them all and give whatever you feel is the closest starting point to how you want a computer to be the next shot. If you don’t like it, switch it up again? Why not?

1 Like
9

Check that you have not enabled the “lock” feature for this key.

I did a quick search and did not find a manual for this model, but I did find this topic which mentions this feature: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/forums/threads/gamingcenteru-tongfang-chassis-mini-guide.76032/

Other Settings:

Windows Key Lock - this enables / disables the keyboard Windows key - quite useful if you accidentally keep pressing it in full screen games. Can also be toggled by pressing Fn + F2.

In your case the binding may be something other than Fn+F2, so try other combinations as well (Fn with other F-keys for example, or sometimes it is Fn+Esc).

1 Like
10

Like I said, I would not run another DE alongside Cinnamon. As soon as I have the new DE installed I will ditch Cinnamon. And if I don’t like the new one, I try another and ditch the new one, etc.

I have notied in Discovery a page for installing another DE and how to uninstall a DE, so I’ll follow that. Thanks for your thoughts.

11

THAT was the issue. After doing Fn+F2, Super with the combos now works as per normal again.
Thanks for providing the solution.

12

I totally forgot about this setting. I hit it once on a keyboard I had and I was losing my mind thinking I broke it.

1 Like
13

Was facing a similar issue, super key worked normally but I was trying out a 2 monitor set up and super key + P did nothing, strangely enough it worked fine on a live usb but not on my installation. Gonna try the solution suggested here.

14

it seems my problem is for some reason my keyboard doesnt register another key after super key.

15

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