Keyboard Not Working - FIXED - Zephyrus Models 2020-Present?
I recently picked up a Zephyrus M GU502GV from facebook marketplace for a considerable discount due to the keyboard being "laggy"
When I picked up the device, the keyboard did not function at all. No response from ANY keys, however the trackpad worked fine. I tried everything from Asus Armory Crate updates, changing settings with drivers, deleting drivers, forgetting devices. Everything gave me an issue. I used an external keyboard for all of the following work and fixes.
I then did a fix I found here, which involves booting into the bios (where the keyboard WILL work for a few seconds, which told me it was not a hardware issue thankfully) and pressing F9, then enter, then F10, and enter. This "loads default optimized settings" and then "Saves and Exits" so you can boot into windows. This DID fix my issue! Continued to use the device as normal for the next few hours, no hiccups or issues.
Next day I turned on the device, backlighting was off, turned it on via keyboard macros, then keyboard ceased to function. I went investigating via reddit, and found a couple items which peaked my interest.
https://www.reddit.com/r/ASUS/comments/1acrkqn/asus_zephyrus_m_gu502gu_keyboard_not_working/
This post explains that in his discovery having the keyboard lighting turned on AT ALL causes problems. I have confirmed this is the problem with my own testing as well. Below is my fix for people whom want to keep windows and do not want to flash their bios.
You must accept that you will NOT have keyboard backlighting anymore.
My (seemingly permanent) fix is as follows:
-Reinstall windows from the cloud, fresh, remove all files.
-Reboot into Bios, and do the F9-F10 reset of optimized settings.
-When getting back into windows, the keyboard should work for a few seconds, TRY to turn off the backlighting via keyboard macros (FN+Down Arrow) OR Launch "G-Helper"
-This will reset the lighting and turn it off.
-Congratulations, your keyboard will work indefinitely given you DO NOT TURN ON THE KEYBOARD BACKLIGHTING.
Even WITHOUT Armoury Crate and all the services which may cause issues, I tried G-Helper, and the moment I turned on the backlighting, the issue came back and the keyboard became completely unresponsive.
My theory is there is a firmware problem baked into the machine, where there is a communication error taking place when the lighting is turned on.
God speed to anyone willing to dig deeper into this cesspool of a problem and firmware issue. Basically echo-chambering this fix method so more people can see it, and know it is STILL an ongoing problem.