StickyKeys is an accessibility feature designed for people who have difficulty holding down two or more keys at a time. When a shortcut requires a key combination such as <CTRL> + <P>, StickyKeys enables the user to press one key at a time instead of pressing them simultaneously. There is a shortcut that allows users to turn StickyKeys on or off by pressing the SHIFT key five times.

FilterKeys is an accessibility option that adjusts the keyboard response so that inadvertently repeated keystrokes are ignored. Using FilterKeys, the user can slow the rate at which a key repeats when it is held down. There is a shortcut that allows users to turn FilterKeys on or off by holding down the right SHIFT key for eight or more seconds.

Many users often end up inadvertently turning on StickyKeys and FilterKeys, because the shortcut key sequence that turns them on is so easily typed by lightly resting a finger on the shift key.

There is an option to not install the Accessibility Options Wizard in the unattended.txt file or winnt.sif file:


However, the option above doesn't remove the features discussed earlier, it only the removes the Control Panel access point to the Accessibility Option Wizard. The Accessibility Option Wizard is the only place in the Windows GUI where these features can be: turned on, turned off, or configured. Even without the Accessibility Option Wizard installed, when a user presses and holds the Shift key for just a few seconds, a dialog for StickyKeys or FilterKeys will still appear, only the Settings button on the dialog will no longer work because it opens the Accessibility Option Wizard. Thus, a user could inadvertently enable Sticky Keys or Filter Keys without having the means to turn them off because the Control Panel access has been disabled. If the user doesn't know what these features are or the hotkey sequence to turn them off, they are stuck with the feature.

Sticky Keys and Filter Keys both change the way several applications work. But unless the user knows this, or knows what key sequence turns on or off this feature, the user will quickly become quite frustrated and think the computer is having issues.

ToggleKeys is an accessibility feature designed for people who have vision impairment or cognitive disabilities. (It also works very well for people who are just plain clumsy on the keyboard and often inadvertently turn on CAPS LOCK.) When ToggleKeys is turned on, the computer will provide sound cues (via the PC speaker, not the sound card) when the locking keys (CAPS LOCK, NUM LOCK, or SCROLL LOCK) are pressed. A high sound plays when one of these the keys is switched on and a low sound plays when one of them is switched off.

This feature does not have a shortcut key to turn it on or off, however the system administrator may want to configure this one way or the other, if the Accessibility Option Wizard is not installed.

To disable these features, use the registry settings below. Both enable and disable are provided for ToggleKeys, so edit the text before using it.

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