Print screen key has stopped working

Solution 1:

Check whether the screenshot tool is working properly. Open a terminal and issue the command

gnome-screenshot

A screenshot should be taken (you see the screen flashing) and the screenshot should be added in your Pictures folder.

If that works, then execute the following command to reset the keybinding for "Save a screenshot to Pictures" to the system default:

gsettings reset org.gnome.settings-daemon.plugins.media-keys screenshot

This should restore the function of the PrtScr to the factory default.

Solution 2:

You've proven that logging into a different user account solves the problem. This isolates the problem to something in your normal user account.

Rather than performing massive software uninstalls, we'll try a more targeted surgical approach.

There are three critical folders in your /home directory that can cause problems... .cache, .config, and .local.

We'll start with .cache...

• rename the .cache folder to .cache.HOLD
• IMMEDIATELY log out
• log in
• a new .cache folder got recreated at log in time
• see if the problem is resolved
• if it is resolved, then something in the .cache.HOLD folder was causing the problem
  • move items from .cache.HOLD folder back into the new .cache folder...
  • BUT DO NOT REPLACE EXISTING ITEMS in the new .cache folder.
• if it is not resolved, then the .cache.HOLD folder is not the culprit, and we need to put it back
  • to restore the original .cache folder...
  • rename .cache to .cache.NEW
  • rename .cache.HOLD to .cache
  • IMMEDIATELY log out
  • log in
  • move/delete the .cache.NEW folder
  • consult with me for the next steps... (.local, then .config)