When Ctrl + C is not working on my computer, it’s a problem for me. I will tell you how to fix it in this article.
So, let’s imagine a situation where the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + C for copying text or a file you need suddenly stops working on your computer. I will try to tell you what to do and why it happens. Since you can’t be sure where this key combination doesn’t work, let’s deal with the problem in the abstract.
When you press the Ctrl and C keys simultaneously, the selected (highlighted) object is copied to the Windows clipboard. Or, several objects at once, for example, when working with files. Why this command may not work?
Ctrl+C does not Work when Copying Text
If the ctrl+C key combination does not work when you try to copy text from a website page, there may be a special reason for it. Again, it all depends on the program. Some programs may prohibit copying text and simply disable the ability to add it to the clipboard. For example, this can be found on websites where the owner is trying to protect his information from being copied. In the browser, such a restriction can be easily bypassed using the console. To do this, move the cursor to the desired item, right-click the context menu and select “Explore (inspect) the item” or “View code”:
If it happens not in a browser, but in other program, I recommend to look settings of hotkeys – probably keys were reassigned and Ctrl + C means something else. Also different macros and add-ons for programs can influence this problem. If it was copying before, but not now, I recommend you to restart the program or the whole computer. Maybe there is a clipboard error, and it’s simply overflowed and can not clear itself. Also try to copy in an alternative way by selecting the required text fragment, then using the context menu and clicking “Copy”.
Files in Explorer can’t be copied
What if you can’t copy a file on your computer using Ctrl C? There is only one piece of advice – restart your computer. Probably there is a RAM overflow and it is jammed with other objects. Also I recommend checking the free disk space: if 99% of it is full, the stable operation of your computer is not guaranteed, because the hard disk is also loaded with Windows swap files.
What to do if restarting didn’t help?
There may be many problems, maybe computer viruses penetrated into your system and disabled important settings in the registry, or the Windows system files are corrupted. In this case, I recommend checking your computer for viruses. But still, in case of such abnormal problems, it is advisable to reinstall Windows.
Ah, yes. I had one case in practice, when a co-worker complained that the hotkeys do not work. The problem was in the keyboard – just did not work physically Ctrl key.
