Surface Pen not using shortcuts

Question

Hi, I am a sophomore in high school and I have a Surface Go. My Surface pen was working perfectly fine a few months ago during my freshman year, but now I can not use the shortcuts I have set up on my pen. I did not change anything, the pen writes, scrolls, clicks, erases, and the button near the tip works perfectly fine. The eraser part of the pen does not work with the key binds I have set (1 click or 2 clicks). I have restarted my Go, updated everything, reconnected my pen, troubleshooted my pen, looked on the Microsoft help pages for troubleshooting, and nothing has worked. Is my pen defective? Am I missing something? When I hold the eraser down for 5 seconds I can connect it to my Go, so it works in that sense but nothing else.

Answer 1

Apologies for the delayed response, Aidan Bieghler.

You mentioned that you encounter another issue wherein the pen doesn't connect anymore. 

Kindly go to Settings > Update & Security > Troubleshoot.

Look for Bluetooth and run its troubleshooter.

If the issue is still present, please run the system file checker to detect corrupted files and repair it. Please get to this page to be guided on Using System File Checker in Windows 10.

This helps detect corrupted drivers and repair it. This also inspects all of the important Windows files on your computer, including Windows DLL files. If System File Checker finds a problem with any of these protected files, it will replace it.

Then manually update drivers and firmware.

Check what is the current OS Build of your Windows version by going to Settings > System > About.

Go to Download driver and firmware for Surface, choose Surface Go then click Download on the next page.

Choose the .msi file that matches your current OS Build and click Next. If it doesn't match, choose the one that is nearest to it. 

After downloading, run and install the .msi then Restart.

We hope this helps.

Regards,

Janette_Z

Answer 2

I tried everything I could. I updated my pc, I made sure my pen was paired and that my battery was fine (92%). I ran the diagnostic toolkit and it told me I had nothing wrong. I force shut down. When I disconnected my pen and tried to reconnect it, another issue presented itself. The pen would not reconnect to my Surface Go. Even after I force shutdown my device again, it wouldn't reconnect and I couldn't find anything helpful anywhere saying how to reconnect it if this happens. My pen is brand new and hasn't undergone any stress that would break it. When I try to reconnect my pen via bluetooth, my pen shows up as a device but as soon as I try to reconnect it to bluetooth my pc tells me that it couldn't connect to my pen without even trying. I don't think that it's the actual pen that is the problem, but I wouldn't be the one to know.

Answer 3

Hi, Aidan Bieghler!

Thanks for reaching out to Microsoft Community and posting your inquiry regarding your Surface Pen that no longer respond to shortcuts you've setup with it on your Surface Go. 

 To troubleshoot the issue, please do these steps:

• Check for Windows Update:

Go to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > Check for Updates

Please restart your device to apply the updates.

• Run Surface Diagnostic Toolkit and make sure to complete the tasks.
• Check if the pen is paired to your Surface Go and check if Windows Settings are correct.

Go to Settings > Devices > look for Surface Pen.

Then proceed to P****en & Windows Ink then double-check if all setting are set to what's expected.

• Remove and re-pair the pen again.

Go to Settings > Devices > select Surface Penand remove device.

Then select add Bluetooth or other device > under add a device select Bluetooth to pair pen again.

• Force shutdown the device and restart.

1. Press and hold the power button until the screen turns off (about 10 seconds), then release the power button.
2. Press and release the power button to turn your Surface back on. You should see the Microsoft logo.

If that doesn't work, here's how to make sure your Surface turns off completely:

Press and hold down the power button until your Surface restarts and you see the Windows logo screen (about 20 seconds), then release the power button.

If the issue still presents itself, the pen needs to be replaced. Please visit this page https://support.microsoft.com/contactus/ to contact Microsoft Support. If you are outside the US, you can check this https://support.microsoft.com/help/4051701/ page that has the Global Customer service phone numbers for Microsoft.

If this answers your question, please let our Community know by marking this post as an answer. Otherwise, don't hesitate to respond to this thread if there’s anything else that needs to be addressed. 

Kind regards,

Janette_Z