# App specific keyboard shortcuts stop working

**URL:** <https://community.folivora.ai/t/app-specific-keyboard-shortcuts-stop-working/6786>\
**Category:** Bugs or Unexpected Behavior\
**Created:** [February 13, 2019, 5:56pm UTC](https://community.folivora.ai/t/app-specific-keyboard-shortcuts-stop-working/6786 "2019-02-13T17:56:42Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![PJ\_Mitchell](https://community.folivora.ai/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/p/e99b99/32.png) [@PJ\_Mitchell](https://community.folivora.ai/u/PJ_Mitchell)\
**Post date:** [February 13, 2019, 5:56pm UTC](https://community.folivora.ai/t/app-specific-keyboard-shortcuts-stop-working/6786/1 "2019-02-13T17:56:42Z")

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**Describe the bug**  
App specific keyboard shortcuts stop working after using "Move window one space" shortcuts on a window of that app.

Scenario:  
I open an app. That app creates a new window. I use a keyboard shortcut defined under "Global" to move the window to another workspace. Now, app specific keyboard shortcuts defined for that app stop working. I must restart BTT in order to restore app specific keyboard shortcuts for that app.

**Affected input device (e.g. MacBook Trackpad, Magic Mouse/Trackpad, Touch Bar, etc.):**  
MacBook keyboard, external keyboard

**Screenshots**  
NA

**Device information:**

- Type of Mac: MacBook Pro 2016 15inch with touchbar
- macOS version: 10.14.2
- BetterTouchTool version: 2.717

**Additional information (e.g. StackTraces, related issues, screenshots, workarounds, etc.):**  
The keyboard shortcuts I use for moving windows are defined as: Ctrl+Shift+Left and Ctrl+Shift+Right  
I also have control and caps-lock swapped under the Keyboard-\>Modifier keys settings in System Preferences for my MacBook, so the real key combinations are CapsLock+Shift+Left/Right

**Note:** Before bug reporting, please make sure you have the latest version of BetterTouchTool and that you have already tried to restart your system :-). If you encounter a crash, please attach a crash log from the macOS Console.app from the "User Diagnostic Reports" section.

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**Author:** ![Andreas\_Hegenberg](https://community.folivora.ai/user_avatar/community.folivora.ai/andreas_hegenberg/32/39221_2.png) [@Andreas\_Hegenberg](https://community.folivora.ai/u/Andreas_Hegenberg)\
**Post date:** [February 13, 2019, 6:16pm UTC](https://community.folivora.ai/t/app-specific-keyboard-shortcuts-stop-working/6786/2 "2019-02-13T18:16:08Z")

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Thanks for reporting, I'll look into that.  
However I think switching to another app and back (or clicking the desktop), should also activate them again.

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**Author:** ![PJ\_Mitchell](https://community.folivora.ai/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/p/e99b99/32.png) [@PJ\_Mitchell](https://community.folivora.ai/u/PJ_Mitchell)\
**Post date:** [February 13, 2019, 9:50pm UTC](https://community.folivora.ai/t/app-specific-keyboard-shortcuts-stop-working/6786/3 "2019-02-13T21:50:01Z")

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Awesome, thanks. And yes you are right, switching apps does restore the shortcuts.

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**Author:** ![mpjalexander](https://community.folivora.ai/user_avatar/community.folivora.ai/mpjalexander/32/5251_2.png) [@mpjalexander](https://community.folivora.ai/u/mpjalexander)\
**Post date:** [April 11, 2019, 5:03pm UTC](https://community.folivora.ai/t/app-specific-keyboard-shortcuts-stop-working/6786/4 "2019-04-11T17:03:07Z")

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I have the same issue: app-specific keyboard shortcuts (in Outlook) stop working randomly until I restart BTT. I'll try switching to another app and back again, but surely this isn't the expected behaviour and there's a bug to be squashed somewhere?

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**Author:** ![patrickplaggenborg](https://community.folivora.ai/user_avatar/community.folivora.ai/patrickplaggenborg/32/19423_2.png) [@patrickplaggenborg](https://community.folivora.ai/u/patrickplaggenborg)\
**Post date:** [August 20, 2021, 9:14am UTC](https://community.folivora.ai/t/app-specific-keyboard-shortcuts-stop-working/6786/5 "2021-08-20T09:14:05Z")

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I have the same problem. I have app specific shortcuts set up in Figma. I'm using these shortcuts very frequently, multiple times within a few seconds.

It works perfectly until it randomly stops working.

The workaround: Press cmd + tab twice to quickly switch to a different app and back. This re-enables the shortcuts.

Because using Figma is shortcut heavy this problem is really slowing me down. I trip over a shortcut that fails to work, then have to realize it stopped working, then have to press cmd+tab twice, then continue with what I want to do.

I don't know how to reproduce this consistently, but it does happen consistently, multiple times within an hour. Often times minutes after each other.

Is there any way for me to help debug this or find in an error log what is actually happening inside BTT that makes the shortcuts fail?

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**Author:** ![biziclop](https://community.folivora.ai/user_avatar/community.folivora.ai/biziclop/32/4014_2.png) [@biziclop](https://community.folivora.ai/u/biziclop)\
**Post date:** [September 23, 2021, 8:01pm UTC](https://community.folivora.ai/t/app-specific-keyboard-shortcuts-stop-working/6786/6 "2021-09-23T20:01:21Z")

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For a while it seemed to be fixed, but recently it started forgetting what the current app is. Maybe Covid made it senile. ☹  
It can be quite extremely annoying. Can we help anything to debug it?

Edit: I have (had…) a global shortcut having "Prevent recursive triggers" on (trying to work around a sh\*tty key sending multiple keypresses on my keyboard). Turning it off seems to prevent the buggy BTT behaviour.

> [@App specific shortcuts suddenly stop working and only start working again by refocusing the applicaiton](https://community.folivora.ai/t/app-specific-shortcuts-suddenly-stop-working-and-only-start-working-again-by-refocusing-the-applicaiton/20900/6):
>
> @ybbond, I use these Terminal commands to change the Cmd-Q shortcuts to Cmd-Ctrl-Q: defaults write org.mozilla.firefox NSUserKeyEquivalents -dict-add "Quit Firefox" "@^Q" defaults write com.apple.Safari NSUserKeyEquivalents -dict-add "Quit Safari" "@^Q" defaults write com.apple.finder NSUserKeyEquivalents -dict-add "Quit Finder" "@^Q" then killall cfprefsd to quit/restart the cfprefsd process which caches the preferences.
