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How to Force Detach your Surface Book
9 min. read
Updated onOctober 4, 2023
updated onOctober 4, 2023
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Key notes
Microsoft presented theSurface Bookas the most powerful laptop, and the device is indeed powerful, but it’s more than just a regular laptop.
Namely, you can detach the screen from thekeyboard, and use Surface Book as a fully legitimate tablet.
Since detaching a screen is a simple action, it should be performed without any issues, but this doesn’t appear to be the case.
A couple of userscomplainedthat they’re unable to detach Surface Book from thekeyboard, as the detach button doesn’t react well.
When I first got mysurface bookI could detach it without any issues, however, I am no longer able to. Now when trying to detach it the detach button’s light blinks green but nothing happens.
When I hover over the software detach option it says Surface Detach: Detached and when looking at the battery status it says Battery 1 not available. Everything appears to indicate it does not think it is currently attached to thekeyboard, when in fact it is.
Microsoft noticed this issue, but the company said that all necessary updates for Surface Book have already been released, so the issue must be of a technical nature.
But even if the company didn’t help, users managed to find the solution by themselves, so if you’re also facing the problem with detaching your Surface Book from thekeyboard, check out the solutions below.
Surface Book is a great device, but several users reported that they are unable to detach thekeyboard. Speaking of issues, these are some common problems with thekeyboardthat users reported:
How can I fix Surface Book detaching from keyboard error?
1. Perform a two button reset
One user reported that the detaching issue was solved by performing a two-button shutdown, and since it’s the simplest solution we have in this article, we’re going to try it first.
Once you performed a two-button shutdown, try to detach your Surface Book from thekeyboard, and it should work without any problems. In case you’re still unable to detach it, try some of the following solutions.
Your Surface Book is not turning back on? Check this guide to solve the problem quickly.
2. Enter BIOS
This solution was provided by the user who reported the issue onMicrosoft Community forumsat first place.
It does sound a little strange for us, and we didn’t test if it works, but he claims that it solved the problem for him, so if performing a two-button reset didn’t work, you can give his solution a try.
After doing this, as our friend from Community forums says, various permission errors will occur, but you should ignore them, and just restart your computer again.
After that, everything should get back to normal, and you should be able to detach your Surface Book from thekeyboardwithout any problems.
If your Surface Book keyboard becomes unresponsive, you can fix it by following thishandy guide.
3. Manually detach the keyboard
Before we start, we have to mention that this solution is potentially dangerous and by performing it, you might permanently damage your device.
We’re not responsible for any damage that can occur to your device as a result of this solution.
According to users, if you’re unable to detach Surface Book fromkeyboard, you might be able to do that manually. To do that, you just need a paperclip or any other long and thin object.
To do that, you just need to put your paperclip through the sixth ventilation hole and find the hidden button that holds thekeyboard. If you can’t find the button, you might need a flashlight in order to find it.
Keep in mind that you need to do that for both sides in order to release thekeyboard. It’s also worth mentioning thatkeyboardcould also snap back to its original location and become locked again, so you need to be careful.
As we already mentioned, using this solution you can cause physical damage to your device, so use it only if other solutions don’t work.
Another great thing about this solution is that you can use it even if your device is turned off, so you can detach thekeyboardeven if your battery is empty.
Many users reported that this solution worked for them, but if you want to try it, be extra cautious in order to avoid causing damage to your PC.
4. Make sure that your applications are using integrated graphics processor
According to users, sometimes you’re unable to detach Surface Book fromkeyboardbecause your applications are still using dedicated graphics processor.
To fix the issue, you need to openNvidia Control Paneland set all your applications to prioritize integrated graphics.
After making this change, your applications won’t use dedicated graphics and you should be able to detach yourkeyboardwithout any problems.
Keep in mind that there’s a downside to this solution, and you might experience lower performance after setting all your applications to use integrated graphics.
If you’re using demanding applications, such as video games, for example, you can set them to use a dedicated graphics processor in order to achieve better performance.
After doing that, you should be able to detach yourkeyboardwithout any issues.
Nvidia Control Panel won’t open on your Surface Book? Don’t worry, we’ve got the right solution for you.
5. End the application that is using your dedicated graphics
If you’re unable to detach Surface Book fromkeyboard, it’s rather likely that a certain application is still using your dedicated graphics processor.
In our previous solution we showed you how to make all applications use a dedicated processor, however, if you don’t want to do that, you can always manually end the application that is using your GPU.
To do that, you need to use Task Manager. To end an application, just follow the steps above.
After ending the application, you should be able to detach thekeyboardwithout any problems.
Keep in mind that this isn’t a permanent solution, so you’ll have to manually end the applications that are using your GPU whenever you want to detach yourkeyboard.
Can’t open Task Manager? Take a look at thisstep-by-step guideand fix the issue in no time.
Windows won’t end a task in Task Manager? Count on us to solve the problem.
6. Charge your Surface Book
According to Microsoft, you might be unable to detach Surface Book fromkeyboardsimply because your battery isn’t charged.
In order to detach thekeyboard, your device must be charged more than 10 percent. After charging your device, you should be able to detach thekeyboardwithout any problems.
7. Wait for 10 seconds before pressing the detach key
If you can’t detach yourkeyboard, you might want to wait for a couple of moments and then try again. According to users, simply press Detach key for a one second and try to detach thekeyboard.
If that doesn’t work, you might have to wait for 10 seconds or more and try again.
That’s about it, once again these are not official solutions, as we picked them up from users of Microsoft Community.
So, if you’re also experiencing the similar problem, we can’t guarantee that they’ll work for you, but you can give it a try.
If you have any other questions or suggestions, feel free to leave them in the comments section below and we’ll be sure to check them out.
More about the topics:Keyboard issues,surface book,windows 10
Ivan Jenic
Windows Hardware Expert
Passionate about all elements related to Windows and combined with his innate curiosity, Ivan has delved deep into understanding this operating system, with a specialization in drivers and driver troubleshooting.
When he’s not tackling diverse driver-related problems, Ivan enjoys watching good movies and spending time hiking with his family and friends.
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Ivan Jenic
Windows Hardware Expert
Ivan has delved deep into understanding the Windows OS, with a specialization in drivers and driver troubleshooting.
