Not able to type in textfield in iphone simulator using Mac Keyboard?

Question

I'm working on a basic iOS app which supports both portrait and landscape modes. When the iPhone simulator keyboard is open in landscape and I'm switching the app to portrait mode I'm unable to type anything in any text field using my Mac physical keyboard.

Has anyone experienced this before? Is it a known bug?

Can you give more information such as the version of XCode and the iOS SDK that you are using please? — brimble2010, Sep 24 '13 at 11:05
I have the exact same issue. I also sometimes get a long serious of invalid context warnings in the console. — bilobatum, Oct 04 '13 at 03:03

score 94 · Answer 1 · edited May 03 '18 at 11:22

94

Found a great solution that worked for me.
Open simulator, then find menu Hardware -> Keyboard has three options:

iOS uses same layout as OS X : This option disables the Mac keyboard
Connect Hardware Keyboard : This option enables Mac keyboard but the keyboard will not show up.
Toggle Software keyboard : This option will allow you type using your Mac keypad and will show the iOS on screen keyboard as well.

edited May 03 '18 at 11:22

Seto

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answered Sep 26 '14 at 10:04

iosCurator

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this worked as in 2020...Couldn't type on simulator, after switching to Hardrware keyboard it works – John Apr 28 '20 at 03:41
The options path now is `I/O` >> `Keyboard` – Imran Zahoor Nov 11 '21 at 13:00

score 53 · Answer 2 · edited Apr 01 '19 at 15:42

53

In Xcode 9 I faced the same problem with the iPhone 8+ simulator. I was able to solve it this way:

Open ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.iphonesimulator.plist file
Find the problematic simulator identifier (shown in the Devices and Simulator window)
Set CaptureKeyboardInput value to YES
Restart the Simulator

edited Apr 01 '19 at 15:42

Paulo Mattos

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answered Dec 07 '17 at 13:19

Mahbub Morshed

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Thanks. This is the only thing to work for me in Xcode 9. Had tried the various combinations inside the hardware menu to no avail. Went through and manually added it to all my sims. Did not destroy and recreate a sim yet to see if that also solved it. Not the first time apple has screwed up the sims, probably wont be the last either. :) – StephenFeather Dec 17 '17 at 13:27
@StephenFeather You are welcome. Glad that I could help. :) – Mahbub Morshed Dec 30 '17 at 02:06
2

You deserve a medal. – Oliver Pearmain Jan 24 '18 at 14:35
2

This is the only fix that helped me. Thank you! – gokeji Apr 10 '18 at 15:57
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what an answer bro, hats off you – Berlin May 30 '18 at 09:44
1

Yep, this is the answer for me. Thanks a lot – WitaloBenicio Jun 26 '18 at 12:48
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I didn't see `CaptureKeyboardInput`, so I added it and set the value to YES. Restarted the simulator and everything just worked fine! – Aweda Nov 06 '19 at 05:50
In step one, Spok means: 1). Open FINDER (smiley face icon, your Macbook's file system). 2). Type COMMAND + SHIFT + G to search/Go. 3). Type /Library/Preferences 4). Press ENTER to find the files he's talking about. – John Pitts Aug 08 '21 at 00:37
I dont know my simulator previous can take input and suddenly becomes like this. Thanks for the solution. It works. – NeihPaine330 Dec 22 '21 at 11:00

score 51 · Answer 3 · answered Jan 12 '15 at 13:11

51

From Simulator menu >> Hardware >> Keyboard >> Connect Hardware keyboard

OR

just press ⌘ + ⌂ + K

answered Jan 12 '15 at 13:11

Meseery

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this worked for me, but just after I restarted the simulator – marcomoreira92 Apr 17 '18 at 13:19
Command + Home Plate in Baseball key??? + K – John Pitts Aug 02 '22 at 18:53

score 44 · Answer 4 · answered Nov 29 '13 at 16:32

44

Before you start typing (when the on-screen keyboard shows up), press just the command key by itself and then release it. This should re-enable the keyboard in the simulator.

answered Nov 29 '13 at 16:32

Eugene Osovetsky

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This answer is visible in a Google search for the problem. Well done, Eugene. How did you figure it out? Much better than the other "solutions" I've tried. – Nuthatch Feb 15 '14 at 17:53
22

Typing CMD+Shift+K twice while the keyboard is appearing, solved the matter for me. – Chanchal Raj Apr 16 '15 at 10:35
4

Doesn't work in simulator from Xcode 9. Nothing happens. – Hedylove Oct 21 '17 at 17:24
Worked for me once. Then keyboard stopped working for me again not too long after and now this doesn't work. (Simulator v10.0, Xcode 9.2) – Ryan H. Jan 08 '18 at 15:35

score 35 · Answer 5 · answered Sep 24 '14 at 07:57

35

Launch iOS Simulator and enable Hardware > Keyboard > Connect Hardware Keyboard.

(You might have accidentally disabled it by pressing CMD + SHIFT + K - same shortcut as Clean in Xcode)

answered Sep 24 '14 at 07:57

Attila H

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score 21 · Answer 6 · answered Apr 21 '14 at 03:29

21

None of these suggestions worked for me. I closed the iOS Simulator app and restarted it. That fixed it for me.

answered Apr 21 '14 at 03:29

PeqNP

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Goofy. Worked for me. – KeithTheBiped Feb 05 '18 at 22:19
If you've tried toggling the keyboard with shift-command-k then try this next. – KeithTheBiped Feb 06 '18 at 04:15
@KeithTheBiped i tried shift-command-k with no luck before end up with restart ios simulator. – Bukhari May 24 '18 at 09:02

clopez · Answer 7 · 2014-06-27T15:22:54.103

19

On the Simulator try to change the device. Then run your app again on the original device. That worked for me.

If the first step alone doesn't work uncheck the option: iOS Uses same keyboard layout as OS X and then change the device.

I figured it out doing random stuff until it worked. Monkey fixing.

edited Jun 27 '14 at 15:22

answered Dec 18 '13 at 02:19

clopez

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I didn't have to do the first step, but the second step worked. Thanks! – rob5408 Jun 04 '14 at 16:04
I love how just about every answer to this question is completely different. Silly iOS simulator. Yours worked for me - I randomed it into submission :) – Darragh Enright Apr 16 '15 at 15:40
This worked for me, except I didn't need to bring up another simulator. I simply closed the window for the simulator (you can have multiple simulator windows up now, and close them individually too) and then re-ran app from Xcode to bring it back up. Definitely something flaky with the simulator. It's been problematic for a long time now :( – Ryan H. Jan 08 '18 at 15:49

score 17 · Answer 8 · answered Nov 02 '18 at 10:52

i think it is only because of a problem that you did not selected 'connect hardware keyboard option, on the simulator menu bar named 'Hardware'

Please follow the steps

Goto : Hardware -> Keyboard -> Connect Hardware Keyboard

Hope it will help you with the problem , Thank you.

score 11 · Answer 9 · answered Oct 05 '13 at 18:29

I am seeing the same problem. I believe the issue is related to the command key being "stuck" in the simulator if you rotate the device in the simulator using Command-LeftArrow and Command-RightArrow short cuts.

While we wait for Apple to fix, one way around this is to rotate the device by selecting the menu option instead of the keyboard shortcut. This rotates the device, and seems to leave the keyboard in a working state.

score 9 · Answer 10 · answered May 30 '18 at 10:56

9

Repeating below command twice worked for me!!

CMD+Shift+K

answered May 30 '18 at 10:56

Dhaval H. Nena

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score 9 · Answer 11 · answered Sep 15 '20 at 15:16

9

CMD + SHIFT + K

I have pressed this command 2 times to toggle and then it started working

answered Sep 15 '20 at 15:16

Tarun Seera

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score 5 · Answer 12 · edited Apr 04 '18 at 01:58

5

I have just installed a new version of Xcode (5.0) and the keyboard in iOS Simulator didn't work on first launch. Just restarting the Simulator helped.

edited Apr 04 '18 at 01:58

pkamb

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answered Feb 26 '14 at 12:04

strah

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Muhammad Zeshan Mazhar · Answer 13 · 2017-02-07T07:59:21.250

5

Its not a problem just Do these easy steps.

Open Simulator
Going To Top And you See Option Hardware click on this.
When you click on Hardware some option appear and one option is Keyboard.
Click on the Keyboard option and you see three option appear.
If you want to use your mac button keyboard simple select 2nd option Connect Hardware Keyboard.
If your want to use mobile tapping keyboard select 3rd option.
1st option is for those who select their keyboard through code.

Enjoy that all work.

edited Feb 07 '17 at 07:59

answered Feb 06 '17 at 10:10

Muhammad Zeshan Mazhar

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If it doesn't work. Kill(close and start) the simulator and repeat these steps again. Hope it will work. – FARAZ Aug 30 '17 at 11:33

score 5 · Answer 14 · answered Feb 27 '20 at 13:31

5

I just quit my simulator and it worked for me.

answered Feb 27 '20 at 13:31

Vikash Sinha

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Lol! Perfect. Brilliant. I'm trying this and that. Finally I see your post, restart it and whalla! – clearlight Apr 15 '22 at 19:55

score 4 · Answer 15 · answered Sep 29 '14 at 11:46

4

For me, Select Simulator, Select Hardware -> Keyboard -> Connect hardware Keyboard.

It worked for me.

answered Sep 29 '14 at 11:46

Muhammad Asad

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Mostafa ElShazly · Answer 16 · 2021-10-09T16:29:16.463

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XCode 12/13: In the simulator window, from the top pane, I/O>Input>Send Keyboard Input to Device

or alt-command-k

edited Oct 09 '21 at 16:29

answered Nov 03 '20 at 13:07

Mostafa ElShazly

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score 3 · Answer 17 · answered Sep 24 '13 at 10:50

I just tried what you just said and it's true, it doesn't work if I move it to landscape and then to portrait again. It doesn't have any logic because my app is not even changing, and it works fine in the device, so it's a bug in the simulator.

You can report it to Apple using this:

https://developer.apple.com/bug-reporting/

score 3 · Answer 18 · answered May 24 '19 at 09:39

3

I had problem with iPhone6 simulator i changed it to iPhone7.On iPhone7 i am able to continue my work.

answered May 24 '19 at 09:39

Ashok R

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score 2 · Answer 19 · answered Feb 13 '18 at 22:44

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The solution that really work for me, was deleted the simulator and create new one. This bug I think that commonly occur when all shortcuts does not work from your keyboard to simulator.

answered Feb 13 '18 at 22:44

kakashy

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score 2 · Answer 20 · answered May 31 '18 at 10:20

2

Quit simulator and run following command in terminal:

rm ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.iphonesimulator.plist

answered May 31 '18 at 10:20

Rohan Sanap

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perfect this answer! – Farid Blaster Nov 27 '19 at 04:20

score 1 · Answer 21 · answered May 04 '18 at 19:16

If your Mac keyboard is still disconnected after having all the options and settings correct, one cause is from rotating the device.

If you CMD + ← or → to rotate device early when the simulator is starting up, the Mac keyboard will absolutely not work no matter what; changing menu settings does nothing! It might help to use the Mac keyboard to input inside the device before you rotate device.

Turning off "Send Menu Shortcuts to Device" and restarting the Simulator helps sometimes. I'll update if I get reliable, recreateable behavior.

I find the Mac keyboard works about half the time I run and quit Simulator. 50% ain't bad after all these years!?

score 1 · Answer 22 · answered Sep 22 '18 at 08:37

1

I just restart the simulator and It worked for me.

answered Sep 22 '18 at 08:37

Ved Rauniyar

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score 1 · Answer 23 · answered Sep 27 '18 at 05:58

1

Just use CMD+SHIFT+K and the keyboard will activate on it's own.

answered Sep 27 '18 at 05:58

Uchenna Nnodim

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score 0 · Answer 24 · answered Nov 26 '14 at 19:09

0

I met this problem whenever I rotate the simulator. Following the suggestions to change Hardware options does not work for me, neither reboot iOS Simulator.

I found a trick that click the editing area after rotation makes Mac keyboard end up work.

answered Nov 26 '14 at 19:09

Azules

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score 0 · Answer 25 · answered Apr 10 '18 at 05:37

0

After doing so many stuffs, just a restart of my machine and enabling the below worked.

Enabling this in simulator: Hardware -> Keyboard -> Connect Hardware Keyboard

answered Apr 10 '18 at 05:37

Easwaramoorthy Kanagaraj

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score 0 · Answer 26 · answered May 03 '18 at 08:03

0

For Version 10.0 (SimulatorApp-851.2 CoreSimulator-518.19) with Xcode 9.3, nothing worked for me. I reset the simulator by Hardware -> Erase All Content and Settings -> Erase. Cleaned the project and run on simulator. Keyboard connection is back.

answered May 03 '18 at 08:03

Alvin George

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score 0 · Answer 27 · answered May 11 '18 at 15:31

0

I ran into this problem after I removed Main.storyboard and created the main window in code. Reverting back to using Main.storyboard fixed it for me.

answered May 11 '18 at 15:31

Benedict Cohen

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score 0 · Answer 28 · answered May 21 '18 at 07:04

0

For me doing this worked on iPhone 8+ simulator iOS 11.2: 1. Go to Menu -> Hardware -> Erase all contents and settings. 2. Delete derived data from xcode. Xcode -> Preferences -> Locations -> Click on right arrow on left side of "Advanced" button.

answered May 21 '18 at 07:04

crypt

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score 0 · Answer 29 · answered Nov 02 '18 at 05:03

0

for me, on simulator opened, in the menu of your mac, click Hardware and reach to keyboard option and select toggle software keyboard.as shown

answered Nov 02 '18 at 05:03

Preetham NT

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score 0 · Answer 30 · answered Jan 15 '19 at 19:18

There is a library for editing plist files called plistlib. Here is my code:

    import plistlib

    file_name = ('path/to/com.apple.iphonesimulator.plist')
    try:
        p = plistlib.readPlist(file_name)
        p["ConnectHardwareKeyboard"] = "NO"
        plistlib.writePlist(p, file_name)
    except:
        print("Failure")

This reads the plist file, changes the ConnectHardwareKeyboard value to No and then writes the new file to the same location. This works for me, but let me know if there is a better way to do it. I'm still new at coding.

score 0 · Answer 31 · answered Nov 25 '21 at 06:49

For me this problem were coming by window initialisation from the SceneDelegate

in XCode 12, swift 5, minimum deployment target 14, Storyboard

I have used the code just same as below

 func scene(_ scene: UIScene, willConnectTo session: UISceneSession, options connectionOptions: UIScene.ConnectionOptions) {
    guard let _ = (scene as? UIWindowScene) else { return }
    let windowScene = UIWindowScene(session: session, connectionOptions: connectionOptions)
    self.window = UIWindow(windowScene: windowScene)
    setRootVC()
}

After this code written I was getting this issue, paste is working but Keyboard not showing anyhow also not worked Mac Keyboard

to fix this I have removed these lines

 let windowScene = UIWindowScene(session: session, connectionOptions: connectionOptions)
    self.window = UIWindow(windowScene: windowScene)

And the problem was fixed for me, now SceneDelegate looks like

func scene(_ scene: UIScene, willConnectTo session: UISceneSession, options connectionOptions: UIScene.ConnectionOptions) {
    guard let _ = (scene as? UIWindowScene) else { return }
    setRootVC()
}

Not able to type in textfield in iphone simulator using Mac Keyboard?

31 Answers31

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