Reset SMC without keyboard
My MBP (13-inch, 2017, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports) has been hit by a small object on its keyboard. I was thinking it didn't get any damage, but several keys are not working anymore and the keyboard backlight is also down. It seems that the location of the hit didn't affect the non working keys (it felt on the left size of the keyboard and several right key are down too)
the left Shift ⇧ control ⌃ option ⌥ does not respond so I can't reset the SMC
Is there a way to reset it without keyboard?
So far I tried to :
- reset PRAM/NVRAM
- start up in safe mode
- reinstall macOS
but the keyboard is still completely unresponsive and the backlight is not working. The Touchbar, however, is working fine.
Solution 1:
My MBP (13-inch, 2017, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports) has been hit by a small object on its keyboard. I was thinking it didn't get any damage, but several keys are not working anymore and the keyboard black light is also down.
Your keyboard is damaged and it needs to be replaced.
the left Shift ⇧ control ⌃ option ⌥ does not respond so I can't reset the SMC
So far I tried to:
- reset NVRAM
- start up in Safe Mode
- reinstall macOS
Let's look at this from the perspective of an automotive analogy. None of these things are going to fix a physical issue with your computer.
SMC/NVRAM reset. This is like getting into an accident where a wheel falls off and thinking that if you can only reset the check engine light, things will work again.
Safe Mode. Same accident, but this time you remove all the bumper stickers, the large spoiler, empty the groceries from the trunk, clean out the glove compartment and put in a fresh, clean tank of gas.
Reinstall macOS. Again, same accident, but this time you just repaint and reupholster the interior.
Your keyboard is broken: Keyboard key stuck or not being recognized; how to fix
I wrote the following to shed some light on the some of the commonly held misconceptions regarding the all too familiar procedures for "fixing" a broken Mac by resetting the SMC/NVRAM, resintalling the software, etc. I hope I can save you some time and alleviate any consternation with respect to the diagnostic procedures in getting you to a solution to your problem.
Resetting Your NVRAM/SMC, Safe Mode, Verbose Mode, and reinstalling macOS
So often we see these as the very first go-to suggestions/solutions to every problem that a Mac faces. 99% of the time, they are not the right thing to do. So, what do they actually do?
Reset the NVRAM
Many times you see this incorrectly referred to as PRAM as well. NVRAM means Non-Volatile RAM (Random Access Memory). PRAM is Parameter RAM. PRAM was used with the PPC (Power Macintosh) like the G3, G4, PowerBook, etc. NVRAM is used with the Intel CPU based Macs.
Your NVRAM holds pre-boot environment variables like initial screen resolution, boot volume, Bluetooth keyboard identification, boot chime volume, etc. It has nothing to do with the running of your Apps or whether some of the keys on your keyboard work or don't.
Resetting your SMC
This is your power controller or what is known in the rest of the computer industry as a PMU (Power Management Unit). It's a chip made by Texas instruments that manages the flow of current, the fans, monitors the temperature, etc. There's nothing special about Apple's SMC other than it's got proprietary code and you cannot purchase it from TI.
Apple tells you when you should reset your SMC and all of the reasons have to do with power, temp, sleep, etc. It will not have any effect on software, keyboard, or wireless.
Looking at it from a PC users perspective, how many times have you heard HP or Dell tell their users to "reset the PMU" to solve an issue?
Safe Mode/Verbose Mode
These are diagnostic modes. Safe mode simple prevents 3rd party software and kexts from loading so that you have the cleanest slate possible so you can see if the problem with with macOS or something else. Verbose mode simply allows you to "see" all of the boottime messages that you might find what's hanging up your system.
These two modes won't fix the problem - they're there to help you diagnose the problem and ultimately reach a solution.
Reinstalling macOS
Too many times I see this one of the first things people do to fix a problem. Keyboard or WiFi not working? Reinstall! This should be near the bottom of the list of things to do when trying to solve an issue. In the case of a keyboard, booting into Safe Mode or even into recovery will give you a much better idea of what the problem is. Generally speaking, if the problem exists in one of these clean macOS environments another one (a fresh install) isn't going to solve it.
And just to show that a reinstall is in fact a "last resort," you can install a clean version of macOS onto a USB thumb drive, boot off of that and see if it solves your problem. If it doesn't, then you wouldn't have wasted your time wiping your drive, risking your data, only to reconfigure your Mac how you had it prior to the reinstall. If a tech leads with "reinstall macOS," run to the nearest exit.