How to swap the "fn" use of Function keys on an Apple Keyboard in Linux

Question

I have an apple slim keyboard (USB) and if I want to use one of the Function Key as-is, I also have to press "fn " key first. Otherwise, it will try to perform the other function of the key, such as increasing or decreasing the display intensity, change the volume/mute, etc....

As well, the fn key is actually in the position of the "insert" key for regular keyboards. How can I fix all of that ?

I really like this keyboard, as it make my typing much easier, and much more silent too. But some of those mappings that are different sometime bug me.

Thanks :-)

score 80 · Accepted Answer · edited Apr 25 '17 at 07:30

80

echo 0 > /sys/module/hid_apple/parameters/fnmode

Or, in case of permission issue:

echo 0 | sudo tee /sys/module/hid_apple/parameters/fnmode

This will prevent you from having to reboot. Adding the option is a good idea, so the change persists through reboots.

0 = Fn key disabled
1 = Fn key pressed by default
2 = Fn key released by default

From /drivers/hid/hid-apple.c line 42:

Mode of fn key on Apple keyboards (0 = disabled, [1] = fkeyslast, 2 = fkeysfirst)

edited Apr 25 '17 at 07:30

Kohistan

133

answered Dec 18 '10 at 18:27

Cynyr

816

1

It seems I'm not using an apple driver, so this isn't working for me. I have an off-brand apple keyboard (Razor Black Widow). – Kieveli May 08 '13 at 14:26
1

@Kieveli when people say apple keyboard they don't mean it generically, they mean as in apple hardware. if the hardware is not apple then you won't be using apple's driver. you gotta find out which driver you're first – DallaRosa Oct 05 '14 at 03:47
5

For Ubuntu 14.04.3, answer by @cynyr does not works. You get "permission denied". Working one is here: echo 2 | sudo tee /sys/module/hid_apple/parameters/fnmode – akikara Aug 20 '15 at 12:27
for issues with permission, see http://askubuntu.com/questions/103643/cannot-echo-hello-x-txt-even-with-sudo – Diogo Mar 23 '17 at 23:17
I'm using a KUL ES-87 keyboard which has a hardware OS X Mode switch and this answer works for me. – Michael Fulton Oct 05 '21 at 14:36
After an update in Ubuntu 20, my dir /sys/module/hid_apple was deleted, how can I restore it? – Rodrigo Araujo Aug 24 '22 at 15:22
This works for me but the preference does not survive reboot (as expected – /sys is a virtual, RAM-based filesystem). To set the preference permanently, follow wuputah’s answer. – Melebius Feb 14 '23 at 06:36

score 42 · Answer 2 · answered Mar 18 '11 at 19:33

42

The answer above about what option to set in /etc/modprobe.d is a bit out of date. Fortunately there is detailed documentation on the Apple Keyboard support:

Edit or create the file /etc/modprobe.d/hid_apple.conf, e.g.:

gksudo gedit /etc/modprobe.d/hid_apple.conf

Add this line to the previously open file.

options hid_apple fnmode=2

Save the file and execute the following command to notify hid_apple module to reload it's configuration.

sudo update-initramfs -u

Reboot

I'd personally recommend sudo update-initramfs -u -k all to update it for all your kernels (once you are confident the setting works as expected).

Setting the fnmode under /sys still works the same way:

sudo -s 'echo 2 > /sys/module/hid_apple/parameters/fnmode'

The values in both methods are as follows:

0 = disabled : Disable the 'fn' key. Pressing 'fn'+'F8' will behave like you only press 'F8'

1 = fkeyslast : Function keys are used as last key. Pressing 'F8' key will act as a special key. Pressing 'fn'+'F8' will behave like a F8.

2 = fkeysfirst : Function keys are used as first key. Pressing 'F8' key will behave like a F8. Pressing 'fn'+'F8' will act as special key (play/pause)

answered Mar 18 '11 at 19:33

wuputah

531

Thanks - I've added this method to my Linux Mint setup scripts at https://github.com/duncan-bayne/mint-setup – Duncan Bayne Apr 03 '14 at 22:52
All you need is to run as root (on Fedora distro at least) echo 2 > /sys/module/hid_apple/parameters/fnmode to make FN as primary and Mac controls secondary. Oh, yeah!! Thanks, wuputah!! – Ilia Ross May 22 '14 at 20:21
Bonus: If you want to make your ~ key work, you should also set iso_layout=0. My hid_apple.conf looks like this: options hid_apple fnmode=2 iso_layout=0 – Thales Ceolin May 12 '15 at 09:40
WOW you just made my life soo much better thank you! – kumetix Dec 05 '21 at 23:08
Works in Kubuntu 22.04 – cipricus Apr 26 '22 at 08:51

score 6 · Answer 3 · edited Jun 12 '20 at 13:48

6

From Here

how do we swap the function of the Fn key?

First edit /etc/modprobe.d/options

sudo nano /etc/modprobe.d/options

and make sure it has the line

options hid pb_fnmode=2

Then save and exit. Lastly, we need to update ramfs:

sudo update-initramfs -u -v -k uname -r

Then just reboot!

edited Jun 12 '20 at 13:48

Community

1

answered Dec 07 '09 at 13:13

joe

12,395

score 4 · Answer 4 · answered Nov 10 '16 at 12:49

This worked for me on Fedora 24

Create a new file for SystemD to start.

gedit /usr/lib/systemd/system/mac-keyboard.service

Ensure the file contains the following

[Unit]
 Description=mac-keyboard
[Service]
 Type=oneshot
 ExecStart=/bin/sh -c "echo 2 > /sys/module/hid_apple/parameters/fnmode"
 ExecStop=/bin/sh -c "echo 1 > /sys/module/hid_apple/parameters/fnmode"
 RemainAfterExit=yes
[Install]
 WantedBy=multi-user.target

Reload SystemD to read your new file

systemctl --system daemon-reload
Start the SystemD service.

systemctl start mac-keyboard.service
Enable service to start on boot.

systemctl enable mac-keyboard.service

Reference: https://www.dalemacartney.com/2013/06/14/changing-the-default-function-key-behaviour-in-fedora/

Thanks!! I really liked this one!! It worked for me on Pop! OS — luis.madrigal, Jul 22 '23 at 05:14

score 1 · Answer 5 · answered Sep 20 '22 at 08:01

1

On Ubuntu 22.04:

echo 1 > /sys/module/hid_apple/parameters/swap_fn_leftctrl

Or add this line into /etc/modprobe.d/hid_apple.conf:

options hid_apple swap_fn_leftctrl=1

answered Sep 20 '22 at 08:01

Son T

11

How to swap the "fn" use of Function keys on an Apple Keyboard in Linux

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