Can Surface Book 1 run safely without a keyboard battery?

Question

TL;DR:  Does the keyboard base need a battery to work and stay ventilated as long as the Surface book is plugged in?

Hi and thanks for your help.  My Surface Book 1 keyboard battery swelled, and the keyboard case separated.  I contacted Microsoft support, but the only option I would have (since it is older than 3 years -- barely) would be to pay around $800 CAD for a refurbished model with only a 90 day warranty.

I rarely use the Surface Book as a laptop and almost always have it plugged in, and use it like a desktop.

I have discarded the back panel with the battery attached, as it totally separated from the front.  The connector for a new battery is there.  No one would remove the battery from the back panel for me since it was an explosion risk.  Perhaps stupidly I gave the entire back panel with battery attached away for recycling as I was told they can't be separated (should have tried myself).

If I get a new back panel for the keyboard (I am thinking of using a hard case as the back panel, something like this: Hard Case for Surface Book -- basically a snap-on plastic bottom), can I still use the keyboard base without a battery as long as it is plugged in?

I'm not sure if it needs a keyboard battery for keyboard fans or something or if it will work fine without the battery and a replacement back panel.

I have the NVIDIA graphics card in the keyboard so looking for a replacement on eBay is too expensive.  I guess I could also get a replacement battery from eBay and try to connect it and store it in the replacement hard case?

Thanks.

Answer 1

Bumping up and really hoping for an answer.  I don't want to use the Surface Book without a back panel and battery if it is dangerous.  I do have it plugged in and it seems to be working fine, and also recognizing the graphics car (which I gather is in the keyboard).  So will it be okay to use?