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If Enter must be pressed twice before the sign-in screen appears, the keyboard is not necessarily faulty. On Windows 11, the first press may be dismissing or focusing the lock-screen surface; on KDE Plasma, the first press can move the login interface to another monitor. A mouse click, your desktop and monitor layout, and the update or desktop versions identify which case you have.
What the two-press symptom usually means
The important distinction is where the first Enter goes. A lock screen is a separate interface from the credential tile. The first keypress can wake that interface or give it focus, while the next keypress advances to the sign-in controls. That explanation fits reports in which a mouse click immediately reveals the login tile. It is a timing and focus inference, not a confirmed vendor diagnosis.
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The same wording can describe a different failure on KDE Plasma. In a reported multi-monitor case, Enter moved the login interface to a second display; another Enter then completed sign-in. Treat Windows and KDE/Linux as separate troubleshooting branches rather than assuming one universal bug.
| Clue | More consistent with Windows lock-screen focus | More consistent with KDE multi-monitor behavior |
|---|---|---|
| Platform | Windows 11 Pro 24H2 | KDE Plasma on a Linux distribution such as CachyOS |
| What a mouse click does | Immediately exposes the sign-in tile | May not matter if the interface has moved to another display |
| What the first Enter does | Dismisses or focuses the lock screen | Moves the login UI to another monitor |
| Useful version clues | Build 26100.8875; update KB5101650 in the reported case | Plasma 6.5.90, KDE Frameworks 6.22.0, Qt 6.11.0 in Bug 514958 |
No reliable prevalence figure exists for this exact symptom, so seeing it does not establish that an update has affected a particular percentage of computers.
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First, identify your branch in under a minute
- Look at the operating-system branding on the lock or login screen. Windows uses the Windows sign-in surface; KDE Plasma normally shows a Linux distribution’s Plasma login manager.
- Press Enter once, then watch every connected display before pressing it again. If the sign-in controls appear on the same screen, continue with the Windows-style focus checks. If they appear on another monitor, follow the KDE branch.
- Try one mouse click on the visible lock screen. If that instantly reveals the account tile, the symptom is consistent with a lock-screen transition or focus problem rather than a completely nonfunctional Enter key.
- Record whether the behavior started immediately after a system update, and write down the operating-system edition, version, build, desktop version, update identifier and monitor arrangement. Those details are more useful than simply reporting “Enter twice.”
Windows 11: what is known about the update-related report
A Windows 11 Pro 24H2 user reported the behavior after installing KB5101650: “After KB5101650 I find that I have to hit Enter twice or more to switch from the lock screen to the login screen, but a mouse click works fine.” The machine was identified as build 26100.8875.
Microsoft documents KB5101650 as the July 2026 monthly security update for Windows 11 versions 24H2 and 25H2. That establishes the update’s release context, not that it caused this particular interaction. Microsoft has not confirmed a causal link between KB5101650 and the two-press symptom. Keep that distinction in mind before removing an update or changing security settings.
Windows policy documentation describes the lock screen as a surface users dismiss with touch, keyboard or mouse. That separate surface explains why a click can work while a keypress appears to require a second attempt, but it still does not prove that every instance has the same underlying defect.
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Windows troubleshooting sequence
1. Use a single mouse click as a diagnostic
At the lock screen, click once in an empty visible area or on the account area. If the sign-in tile appears immediately, use the mouse temporarily and continue testing. This result points toward focus or state transition. It does not prove that the keyboard hardware is healthy in every other application, so test the keyboard normally after signing in.
2. Let the lock screen settle
When the lock screen first appears, wait briefly before pressing Enter once. The original report notes that timing can matter. A short pause is a safe workaround when the interface is still waking or becoming focused. It is not a confirmed permanent fix, and you should not interpret success after waiting as proof of a particular Windows component being at fault.
3. Run the standard-wallpaper experiment
Temporarily select a standard Windows lock-screen wallpaper instead of a custom image, then reboot several times. The reporting user said the two-press behavior stopped after switching to a “bog standard Windows lock screen wallpaper” and rebooting, and that the result remained normal after switching back to a custom wallpaper. This is one person’s anecdotal result, not a Microsoft-supported remedy, but it is low risk and reversible.
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- Open Windows Settings and go to the lock-screen personalization page.
- Choose one of the standard Windows background options.
- Restart the computer more than once, checking whether one Enter now reaches the sign-in tile.
- If the behavior is gone, you may restore the custom wallpaper and test again. If it returns, record the image type, provider or personalization software involved.
Do not delete profiles or reset Windows solely because this experiment fails. A failed wallpaper test only means that this particular workaround did not help.
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If the issue began after an update, open Windows Settings and inspect Windows Update history. Record the KB number, installation date, edition, version and OS build. The reported combination was Windows 11 Pro 24H2, build 26100.8875 and KB5101650. Your machine may be on a different build or update, so do not present that combination as a requirement for reproducing the behavior.
5. Separate lock-screen behavior from a keyboard fault
A mouse click that works at the same moment as a delayed Enter strongly suggests that the lock-screen surface is handling input differently from the sign-in control. Once logged in, verify the Enter key in a text field and in another application. If Enter fails there as well, investigate the keyboard, connection, layout or accessibility settings separately; the lock-screen report alone cannot diagnose those issues.
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KDE Plasma: check the other monitor before pressing Enter again
KDE Bug 514958 records a different sequence on a multi-monitor CachyOS system: after the user entered a password and pressed Enter, “the login UI goes my second monitor and have to hit enter again to then login.” In this case, the first keypress is not merely waking a Windows-style lock screen. It is associated with the login interface moving displays.
The report lists Plasma 6.5.90, KDE Frameworks 6.22.0 and Qt 6.11.0. Those are configuration identifiers from that report, not a claim that every KDE installation on those versions is affected.
KDE diagnostic steps
- Enter the password and press Enter once.
- Immediately inspect the second monitor, including its edges and any screen that may be positioned above or beside the primary display.
- If the login controls have moved, use the keyboard or mouse on that display to complete the sign-in.
- Note the distribution, Plasma version, KDE Frameworks version, Qt version, number and arrangement of monitors, graphics hardware and display connections.
- When reporting the problem, describe the movement explicitly: “the first Enter moves the login UI to monitor two; the second Enter logs in.” That is more actionable than saying only that Enter must be pressed twice.
Disconnecting a monitor or changing the arrangement can help isolate whether display topology is involved, but it is a diagnostic change rather than an established fix for Bug 514958. Restore the normal arrangement after testing so you do not mistake a changed setup for a software repair.
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Optional Windows policy: bypass the lock screen
Windows provides a policy that can remove the separate lock-screen step. In Local Group Policy Editor, the documented location is Computer Configuration > Control Panel > Personalization. Enable the Do not display the lock screen (also described as NoLockScreen) policy to have users see the selected sign-in tile instead of the lock screen.
This is a deliberate change to the sign-in experience, not a patch for the underlying focus behavior. It may be unavailable on some editions, and an organization can override it on a managed device. Policy changes also affect every user covered by that computer setting. Before applying it, confirm that you are allowed to change local policy and that skipping the lock screen is acceptable for the computer’s security and usability requirements.
Microsoft’s policy description explains that users who are not required to press Ctrl+Alt+Delete before signing in normally see a lock screen after the computer is locked and must dismiss it with touch, keyboard or mouse. Bypassing that surface removes one interaction step, but it also changes what appears when the computer is locked.
What not to conclude from the symptom
- It does not prove that KB5101650 caused the Windows behavior. The update and the report are associated in time, while the causal link remains unconfirmed.
- It does not prove that the Enter key is physically broken. A working mouse and normal Enter behavior after sign-in point toward a UI-state issue, although they do not rule out every hardware problem.
- It does not prove that changing wallpaper will fix other computers. The wallpaper result was an anecdote from one reporting user.
- It does not prove that Windows and KDE share one bug. KDE’s documented report involves a multi-monitor login UI transition and different software components.
- It does not justify uninstalling a security update as a first step. Try reversible diagnostics and collect version details before making a system-wide change.
A practical decision guide
| Your observation | Next action | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| One mouse click reveals the Windows sign-in tile | Wait briefly before one Enter; test a standard wallpaper and reboot | Focus or lock-screen transition is plausible |
| Issue started after a Windows update | Record edition, version, build, KB and installation date | Creates a reproducible update-specific report without assuming causation |
| First Enter moves KDE login controls to monitor two | Inspect the other display and document monitor layout and desktop versions | Matches the multi-monitor KDE failure mode more closely |
| Enter also fails after sign-in | Test the keyboard connection, layout and accessibility configuration | Suggests a broader input problem rather than only the lock screen |
| You need to avoid the lock screen entirely | Evaluate the NoLockScreen policy and its edition and management limits | Changes the sign-in flow instead of repairing focus |
What to include in a useful bug report
Include the exact sequence from power-on or wake to successful sign-in, not just the number of keypresses. State whether the screen was locked, whether a mouse click worked, how long you waited, and whether the first Enter changed the visible interface. For Windows, list edition, release, OS build and KB update. For KDE, list the distribution, Plasma, KDE Frameworks and Qt versions, monitor count, physical arrangement and which display showed the login UI after the first Enter.
Attach a short video or photographs only if they do not expose passwords or personal information. A report that distinguishes “click reveals the tile” from “login UI moved to monitor two” gives maintainers a testable behavior and avoids mixing unrelated lock-screen and display-management issues.
Bottom line for choosing your next step
Start with the least disruptive check: click once, wait briefly, and observe every monitor. Windows 11 users with the KB5101650-era report can try the standard-wallpaper reboot experiment and document their build, while KDE users should look for the login interface on a second display. Only consider the NoLockScreen policy when bypassing the lock screen is an intentional change, not as evidence that the update or keyboard has been definitively diagnosed.
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