Keyboard suddenly not working through AVD Windows App

Hello Michael, I am Henry and I want to help you with this issue.

Based on the symptoms you've described, the issue is almost certainly caused by a corruption in the user's FSLogix profile. The problem follows the user to different PCs but not to a different access method (web vs. app) in the same way, which strongly points to the user's profile data. Not sure you try to recreate the FSLogix Profile as this process that preserves the user's old profile for data recovery if needed.

1. Fully Sign Out the User: An administrator must ensure the user is completely logged out from all AVD sessions. Go to the AVD host pool in the Azure portal, find the user's session, and force a log-off to ensure their profile disk is not locked.
2. Rename the Profile VHDX File:
   • Navigate to the network share where the FSLogix profiles are stored.
   • Locate the user’s profile disk (it will be a VHD or VHDX file named with their SID or username).
   • Rename the file by adding .old to the end (e.g., Profile_MichaelB.vhdx becomes Profile_MichaelB.vhdx.old).
3. Have the User Log In Again:
   • Ask the user to sign into AVD through the Windows App.
   • FSLogix will not find an existing profile and will create a new, clean one. This should immediately resolve the keyboard issue.

You can later mount the .old profile disk on a virtual machine to recover any necessary files and transfer them to the user's new profile.

I hope you’ll give my recommendation a try and let me know how it goes and if this answer helps, feel free to hit “Accept Answer” so others can benefit too.

Use the following checks and configuration changes to isolate and fix the issue.

1. Verify keyboard mode in Windows App

• In Windows App on the affected client, open Settings (user profile icon → General).
• Toggle Use scancode input when available:
  • If it is on, turn it off to force unicode mode.
  • If it is off, turn it on to force scancode mode.
• Reconnect to the AVD session and test the keyboard again.
• Use unicode mode when the local keyboard layout may not exist on the session host or when there are layout mismatches; use scancode mode when applications rely on raw key events (for example, some consoles, hypervisors, or Qt-based apps).

2. Check alternative keyboard layout in-session

• In the remote session (via Windows App), open the session toolbar.
• Select the cog icon (In session settings).
• Turn Enable alternative keyboard layout on.
• From the drop-down, select the correct remote keyboard layout (for example, the same language/layout the user expects).
• Select Update.
• Choose Disconnect to update settings → Now, then reconnect and test.
• If the language pack for the chosen layout is missing on the session host, the keyboard will fall back to English (United States), so ensure the required language pack is installed on the host.

3. Test IME/unicode interaction

• If the user relies on an Input Method Editor (IME), ensure the keyboard mode is unicode (see step 1). IME support in Windows App requires unicode mode.
• Be aware that standard keyboard input may not behave as expected when an IME is active in some scenarios; test with IME disabled and then enabled.

4. Compare behavior between Windows App and web client

• Since the web client works except for specific keys (like Backspace), focus on:
  • Keyboard mode differences (Windows App can switch scancode/unicode; web client is more limited).
  • Layout differences (confirm the same layout is selected in Windows and in the browser/OS).
• After changing keyboard mode and alternative layout in Windows App, retest the problematic keys (Backspace and others) in both clients.

5. Check for third-party interference on the client

• The context shows that third-party security software (for example, Webroot) can completely break keyboard behavior in Windows 11 and AVD scenarios.
• Temporarily disable or uninstall any endpoint security/AV/keyboard utilities on the client where the issue occurs and retest.
• If the keyboard starts working normally, follow up with the vendor for a permanent fix.

6. Validate with another user/profile

• Because FSLogix is in use, test with:
  • A different user on the same host.
  • The same user on a different host (if using a host pool).
• If only one user is affected and others are fine, the issue may be profile-specific (FSLogix container). In that case:
  • Temporarily assign a new profile (e.g., by redirecting or renaming the existing FSLogix profile VHD/VHDX) and test.
  • If the new profile works, investigate or rebuild the original profile.

7. Basic hardware/OS checks

• Confirm the keyboard works correctly locally on the client in other apps.
• If some keys are intermittent even locally, clean the keyboard or test with another physical keyboard.

Applying steps 1–3 usually resolves layout and key-mapping issues introduced “suddenly” (for example, after an update or configuration change). If the problem persists after these changes and third-party tools are ruled out, focus on FSLogix profile corruption by testing with a fresh profile.

References:

• Use keyboard, mouse, touch, and pen in Windows App
• AVD users might experience extended time on a black screen during logon and SSO failures
• Keyboard doesn’t work right after unplug or undock and then reconnecting
• Keyboard only works for Administrator Account - Microsoft Q&A
• How to reset my keyboard? Combination of "Alt + L " gives weird characters and message is sent automatically. - Microsoft Q&A
• keypad issue - Microsoft Q&A
• Azure VM takes over an hour to login - stuck on "Please wait for the User Profile Service" - Microsoft Q&A
• Why won't my keyboard work when I power up my laptop? - Microsoft Q&A
• Windows key remains held in the local session after pressing Ctrl+Win+L in a remote session
• BACKSPACE or arrow keys do not work in MMC on a computer that is running Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2