How to Get Rid of a Flashing Not Allowed Sign on Linux

Don’t disregard this annoying alert; it whitethorn beryllium hinting astatine a problem that’s easy to fix.

The flashing “Not Allowed” motion usually appears erstwhile your input devices aren't moving correctly. But this isn't ever nan case; nan awesome tin fuss you moreover erstwhile you’re not spamming immoderate inputs.

Try these tips and tricks to resoluteness nan input issues connected your Linux strategy and banish nan Not Allowed alert for good.

Why Does nan Not Allowed Sign Appear?

The flashing Not Allowed motion is an alert that appears astatine nan bottommost of nan surface erstwhile invalid inputs are registered. Any input instrumentality tin trigger it, including—but not constricted to—keyboards, mice, and moreover headphones pinch power buttons. This alert is usually expected to look if you many times participate invalid inputs.

Unfortunately, nan alert has a wont of showing up erstwhile it isn’t expected to. It’s communal successful 2-in-1 laptops, arsenic bugs sometimes origin nan laptop to mistakenly registry that it’s successful tablet mode and disable nan keyboard. The origin tin besides beryllium a faulty input device. Worst of all, it often impairs your expertise to type and usage your PC. Luckily, it’s a wholly fixable issue.

How to Get Rid of nan Not Allowed Sign

There are a fewer troubleshooting methods you tin usage to get free of nan Not Allowed sign. You should commencement by checking your input devices and keyboard keys. If that doesn’t work, you whitethorn request to troubleshoot imaginable 5.x kernel bugs; don't worry, though, this is little scary than it sounds!

Check Your Plug-In Devices and Keyboard

To start, you should cheque each 1 of your input devices to find if it mightiness beryllium astatine fault. Unplug and switch your keyboard, mouse, and immoderate different devices that supply input. Check whether your strategy continues to show nan Not Allowed alert moreover aft you’ve unplugged those devices.

Disable Keyboard Keys

If you’ve narrowed down nan origin to your keyboard, effort to activity retired if 1 of nan keys is stuck. Open nan Terminal with Ctrl + T and participate nan pursuing bid to spot what inputs are being registered from your keyboard:

sudo evtest

This will people a database of each input instrumentality connected to your PC. Enter nan instrumentality arena number associated pinch your keyboard, past hold to spot which inputs your keyboard registers. Next, property Ctrl + C to adjacent nan progressive process.

You’ll request to hole immoderate keyboard keys that evtest reported inputs from erstwhile they weren’t pressed. Alternatively, try remapping nan key.

Troubleshoot Potential 5.x Kernel Bugs

It’s believed that issues pinch nan flashing Not Allowed alert commonly hap connected 2-in-1 laptops owed to an incompatibility pinch nan 5.x Linux kernel. Many users person recovered that this rumor is resolvable by blocking intel_vbtn, a driver responsible for supporting nan Intel Virtual Button interface. Open nan Terminal pinch Ctrl + T and update your strategy configuration by entering nan pursuing command:

sudo nano /etc/modprobe.d/block-intel_vbtn.conf

Once nan matter editor opens, you’ll request to adhd nan pursuing statement to nan configuration file, prevention and exit from nan file, and reboot your computer:

# This statement disables nan intel_vbtn module, which is believed to interfere
# pinch nan keyboard in 5.x.

blacklist intel_vbtn

You whitethorn besides beryllium capable to resoluteness nan input issues by changing nan type of Linux you’re using. Reboot your PC and hold for nan footwear action loader to appear. Next, prime advanced options—if you’re utilizing Ubuntu, your strategy should automatically footwear to a database of options including advanced options for Ubuntu.

Next, select a different type of nan Linux kernel from nan database provided. Save your caller action and reboot your PC. Once your strategy starts, you should observe that nan issues pinch nan Not Allowed alert wholly disappear.

Enjoy Linux Free of Intrusive Pop-Ups

While nan Not Allowed alert tin service an important intent successful flagging erstwhile invalid inputs are being entered, it tin besides beryllium a awesome nuisance. Investigating nan origin of this issue—whether it’s faulty keyboard keys aliases issues pinch nan 5.x Linux kernel—and employing common-sense solutions is simply a awesome measurement to return power of your strategy and make it easy to usage erstwhile again.