Delete Key Doesn't Work in V. 1.98.2 in Windows 11

[RHH42]

First, if this is posted here incorrectly, please accept my apologies. I first tried to contact Microsoft Support (after finding no workable solutions by searching the Web) only to find no place to address VS Code issues on that website. I then posted a question at freecodecamp.org and was directed here. After a bit of fumbling to find a place to post, I landed here; so if I'm out of line please tell me and accept my apologies. I don't even know if this website or forum is the right place for such issues.

I have been using VS Code as my editor for the last couple or 3 months as I try to gain skills. I've used it for HTML, CSS, javascript, and even php. I'm still learning new things about VS Code. I don't recall installing a new version, but I do recall that until relatively recently (the last week or so) the keyboard functioned in VS Code like it does in other apps, mainly, the delete key could be struck to delete selected characters. That no longer works in v. 1.98.2 in Windows 11. I've verified that the key works as usual in every other app I've tried it in (4 or 5, recently). There is no hardware problem. I've tried uninstalling VS Code then downloading and installing a fresh copy to no avail: the delete key doesn't delete selected characters. I can delete by selecting characters and striking the backspace key, but this takes time and diverts attention away from the task at hand requiring attention to be refocused after the deletion, an altogether annoying process.

If anyone knows of a way to fix this problem, I would be grateful to know of it. I must presume that it is a bug because in my searching I found references to the problem going all the way back to v. 1.88.n; however solutions were to install an earlier release. I tried to find a way to go back a release or two but did not find where one might be located and downloaded.

[alefragnani]

Hi @RHH42 ,

First of all, I'm sorry to hear not only you are having this issue, but also difficulties to know where to report it. To sum up, you have two different locations:

• if you want to report issues or suggest features, you should use the VS Code repo (https://github.com/microsoft/vscode/issues).
• If you want to ask questions about VS Code usage, you should use Stack Overflow (https://stackoverflow.com/questions/tagged/vscode)

This info is located at https://github.com/microsoft/vscode#feedback

And I'll give you a tip. if you want to report an issue or suggest features, use the Help: Provide Feedback command inside VS Code.

About your issue, I would suggest you to be sure you don't have any extension (specially keyboard related on) installed/enabled, or even initialize VS Code via CLI with --disable-extensions arg, and try out. If still doesn't work, please report the issue in the VS Code repo, as commented above, so the VS Code team could take a look.

Hope this helps

[RHH42]

Thank you for the response.

I've bookmarked both those links you posted.

To my knowledge, I do not have any extensions running. I say TMK because I'm not a guru with VSC by any means. I have looked at all the extensions that appear when I click the icon and none appear as installed. I had read about that somewhere and took that step.

A suggestion: Get Microsoft to post something on the support.Microsoftsupport.com page that directs people who have questions or issues with VS Code. It took me weeks to find this page.

As for Stack Overflow, I've had issues there, too. My impression and experience has been that the admins are more concerned about the form of your question than about answering it. It's as if you have to know how in their minds the question should be written or not post it. FWIW, I'm an 83 yo retired CIO/CTO who grew up and lived in the mainframe world. If anyone on any of my support teams had ever treated someone the way I've had posts treated at SO, I'd have fired them on the spot and made it known through private backchannels exactly what pricks they were.

[RHH42]

After searching further, I learned another way to locate extensions associated with VS Code. Extensions are stored at:
"C:\Users<username>.vscode\extensions". I found a lot of extensions there - far more than I have ever installed. I deleted them all then restarted VS Code. I then tested to see if the delete key worked. It did.

So, there was an extension - though I don't know which one - that was causing the delete key not to work.

Can anyone explain the large number of extensions I found at the path cited above? Are they, perhaps, installed with the installation of VS Code? I think that most of them were not installed and active, but I have no way to know that. Is there a way to discover - within VS Code itself - what extensions are installed? I thought I could just run down the list of extensions that appear in the Explorer window after clicking the extensions button looking for installed or active extensions, but apparently that doesn't work.

I reinstalled 2 extensions that I rely on: Live Server and Prettier. The delete key continues to work with these extensions installed.

I hope my journey helps the next guy who is frustrated by this issue.

[RHH42]

I found and fixed the problem.

Apparently there was an installed extension that was the culprit. Further searching revealed a path for finding VS code extensions - C:\Users<username>.vscode\extensions. I deleted everything in that folder and the delete key worked afterward. I reinstalled 2 extensions: Live Server and Prettier and the delete key continues to work.

I have no idea where the long list of extensions that I deleted came from. I can only infer that they came with the VS Code install. I have no idea which of the many extensions I removed was causing the delete key issue.

I had tried to remove extensions relying on the list within VS Code that appears in the Explorer window upon clicking the extensions icon. I found none that indicated they were active. Can this be done within VS Code without having to resort to Windows File Explorer?

At any rate, I hope this information helps someone who might find this post.

[alefragnani]

I'm glad to know you could fix the issue, and that it was caused by some extension.

About your journey to find out the extensions, the Extensions view inside VS Code should display all extensions you installed, either enabled or not. Builtin extensions will be displayed there too, but not in the default view. So, If that view is empty, your VS Code should not have extension installed. The only scenario I wonder differ is if you are using Profiles, because the list of extensions will be exclusive for each profile. But it doesn't seem to be your scenario. But, if you are able to replicate this empty Extension view behavior you noticed, open an issue in the VS Code repo (https://github.com/microsoft/vscode/issues).

The extensions located on that folder you accessed via Windows Explorer also are the ones you installed, not the builtin. Builtin extensions stays located within VS Code installation folder. BEW, you may have multiple versions of the same extension on that folder because VS Code didn't have a chance to remove the updated or because Profiles. But either way, only installed extensions are there.

If you are able to discover which extension were causing the Delete Key issue, I would suggest to report an issue on the extension's repo, so the team/person behind it could take a look.

Thank you