List of Keys, Mouse Buttons, and Joystick Controls
Friday, June 22, 2018
9:05 AM
Mouse
General buttons
LButton
Left mouse button
RButton
Right mouse button
MButton
Middle or wheel mouse button
Advanced buttons
XButton1
4th mouse button. Typically performs the same function as Browser_Back.
XButton2
5th mouse button. Typically performs the same function as Browser_Forward.
Wheel
WheelDown
Turn the wheel downward (toward you).
WheelUp
Turn the wheel upward (away from you).
WheelLeft
WheelRight
[v1.0.48+]: Scroll to the left or right.
Requires Windows Vista or later. These can be used as hotkeys with some (but not all) mice which have a second wheel or support tilting the wheel to either side. In some cases, software bundled with the mouse must instead be used to control this feature. Regardless of the particular mouse, Send and Click can be used to scroll horizontally in programs which support it.
Keyboard
Note: The names of the letter and number keys are the same as that single letter or digit. For example: b is the B key and 5 is the 5 key.
Although any single character can be used as a key name, its meaning (scan code or virtual keycode) depends on the current keyboard layout. Additionally, some special characters may need to be escaped or enclosed in braces, depending on the context. [v1.1.27+]: The letters a-z or A-Z can be used to refer to the corresponding virtual keycodes (usually vk41-vk5A) even if they are not included in the current keyboard layout.
General keys
CapsLock
CapsLock (caps lock key)
Space
Space (space bar)
Tab
Tab (tabulator key)
Enter (or Return)
Enter
Escape (or Esc)
Esc
Backspace (or BS)
Backspace
Cursor control keys
ScrollLock
ScrollLock (scroll lock key)
Delete (or Del)
Delete
Insert (or Ins)
Insert
Home
Home
End
End
PgUp
PageUp (page up key)
PgDn
PageDown (page down key)
Up
↑ (up arrow key)
Down
↓ (down arrow key)
Left
← (left arrow key)
Right
→ (right arrow key)
Numpad keys
Due to system behavior, the following keys seperated by a slash are identified differently depending on whether NumLock is ON or OFF. If NumLock is OFF but Shift is pressed, the system temporarily releases Shift and acts as though NumLockis ON.
Numpad0 / NumpadIns
Numpad1 / NumpadEnd
Numpad2 / NumpadDown
2 / ↓
Numpad3 / NumpadPgDn
Numpad4 / NumpadLeft
4 / ←
Numpad5 / NumpadClear
5 / typically does nothing
Numpad6 / NumpadRight
6 / →
Numpad7 / NumpadHome
Numpad8 / NumpadUp
8 / ↑
Numpad9 / NumpadPgUp
NumpadDot / NumpadDel
NumLock
NumLock (number lock key)
NumpadDiv
/ (division)
NumpadMult
* (multiplication)
NumpadAdd
+ (addition)
NumpadSub
- (subtraction)
NumpadEnter
Enter
Function keys
F1 - F24
The 12 or more function keys at the top of most keyboards.
Modifier keys
LWin
Left Win. Corresponds to the <# hotkey prefix.
RWin
Right Win. Corresponds to the ># hotkey prefix.
Note: Unlike Control/Alt/Shift, there is no generic/neutral "Win" key because the OS does not support it. However, hotkeys with the # modifier can be triggered by either Win key.
Control (or Ctrl)
Control. As a hotkey (Control::) it fires upon release unless it has the tilde prefix. Corresponds to the ^ hotkey prefix.
Alt
Alt. As a hotkey (Alt::) it fires upon release unless it has the tilde prefix. Corresponds to the ! hotkey prefix.
Shift
Shift. As a hotkey (Shift::) it fires upon release unless it has the tilde prefix. Corresponds to the + hotkey prefix.
LControl (or LCtrl)
Left Control. Corresponds to the <^ hotkey prefix.
RControl (or RCtrl)
Right Control. Corresponds to the >^ hotkey prefix.
LShift
Left Shift. Corresponds to the <+ hotkey prefix.
RShift
Right Shift. Corresponds to the >+ hotkey prefix.
LAlt
Left Alt. Corresponds to the <! hotkey prefix.
RAlt
Right Alt. Corresponds to the >! hotkey prefix.
Note: If your keyboard layout has AltGr instead of RAlt, you can probably use it as a hotkey prefix via <^>! as described here. In addition, LControl & RAlt:: would make AltGr itself into a hotkey.
Multimedia keys
The function assigned to each of the keys listed below can be overridden by modifying the Windows registry. This table shows the default function of each key on most versions of Windows.
Browser_Back
Back
Browser_Forward
Forward
Browser_Refresh
Refresh
Browser_Stop
Stop
Browser_Search
Search
Browser_Favorites
Favorites
Browser_Home
Homepage
Volume_Mute
Mute the volume
Volume_Down
Lower the volume
Volume_Up
Increase the volume
Media_Next
Next Track
Media_Prev
Previous Track
Media_Stop
Stop
Media_Play_Pause
Play/Pause
Launch_Mail
Launch default e-mail program
Launch_Media
Launch default media player
Launch_App1
Launch My Computer
Launch_App2
Launch Calculator
Special keys
AppsKey
Menu. This is the key that invokes the right-click context menu.
PrintScreen
PrintScreen
CtrlBreak
Ctrl+Break
Pause
Pause
Break
Break. Since this is synonymous with Pause, use ^CtrlBreak in hotkeys instead of ^Pause or ^Break.
Help
Help. This probably doesn't exist on most keyboards. It's usually not the same as F1.
Sleep
Sleep. Note that the sleep key on some keyboards might not work with this.
SCnnn
Specify for nnn the scan code of a key. Recognizes unusual keys not mentioned above. See Special Keys for details.
VKnn
Specify for nn the hexadecimal virtual key code of a key. This rarely-used method also prevents certain types of hotkeys from requiring the keyboard hook. For example, the following hotkey does not use the keyboard hook, but as a side-effect it is triggered by pressing either Home or NumpadHome:
^VK24::MsgBox You pressed Home or NumpadHome while holding down Control.

Known limitation: VK hotkeys that are forced to use the keyboard hook, such as *VK24 or ~VK24, will fire for only one of the keys, not both (e.g. NumpadHome but not Home). For more information about the VKnn method, see Special Keys.
Warning: Only Send, GetKeyName, GetKeyVK, GetKeySC and #MenuMaskKey support combining VKnn and SCnnn. [v1.1.27+]: The presence of an invalid suffix prevents VKnn from being recognized. For example, vk1Bsc001:: raises an error in v1.1.27+, but sc001 was ignored (had no effect) in previous versions.
Joystick
Joy1 through Joy32: The buttons of the joystick. To help determine the button numbers for your joystick, use this test script. Note that hotkey prefix symbols such as ^ (control) and + (shift) are not supported (though GetKeyState can be used as a substitute). Also note that the pressing of joystick buttons always "passes through" to the active window if that window is designed to detect the pressing of joystick buttons.
Although the following Joystick control names cannot be used as hotkeys, they can be used with GetKeyState:
JoyX, JoyY, and JoyZ: The X (horizontal), Y (vertical), and Z (altitude/depth) axes of the joystick.
JoyR: The rudder or 4th axis of the joystick. 
JoyU and JoyV: The 5th and 6th axes of the joystick. 
JoyPOV: The point-of-view (hat) control.
JoyName: The name of the joystick or its driver. 
JoyButtons: The number of buttons supported by the joystick (not always accurate). 
JoyAxes: The number of axes supported by the joystick.
JoyInfo: Provides a string consisting of zero or more of the following letters to indicate the joystick's capabilities: Z (has Z axis), R (has R axis), U (has U axis), V (has V axis), P (has POV control), D (the POV control has a limited number of discrete/distinct settings), C (the POV control is continuous/fine). Example string: ZRUVPD
Multiple Joysticks: If the computer has more than one joystick and you want to use one beyond the first, include the joystick number (max 16) in front of the control name. For example, 2joy1 is the second joystick's first button.
Note: If you have trouble getting a script to recognize your joystick, one person reported needing to specify a joystick number other than 1 even though only a single joystick was present. It is unclear how this situation arises or whether it is normal, but experimenting with the joystick number in the joystick test script can help determine if this applies to your system.
See Also:
Joystick remapping: methods of sending keystrokes and mouse clicks with a joystick.
Joystick-To-Mouse script: using a joystick as a mouse.
Hand-held Remote Controls
Respond to signals from hand-held remote controls via the WinLIRC client script.
Special Keys
If your keyboard or mouse has a key not listed above, you might still be able to make it a hotkey by using the following steps:
Ensure that at least one script is running that is using the keyboard hook. You can tell if a script has the keyboard hook by opening its main window and selecting "View->Key history" from the menu bar.
Double-click that script's tray icon to open its main window.
Press one of the "mystery keys" on your keyboard.
Select the menu item "View->Key history"
Scroll down to the bottom of the page. Somewhere near the bottom are the key-down and key-up events for your key. NOTE: Some keys do not generate events and thus will not be visible here. If this is the case, you cannot directly make that particular key a hotkey because your keyboard driver or hardware handles it at a level too low for AutoHotkey to access. For possible solutions, see further below.
If your key is detectable, make a note of the 3-digit hexadecimal value in the second column of the list (e.g. 159).
To define this key as a hotkey, follow this example:

SC159:: ; Replace 159 with your key's value.
MsgBox, %A_ThisHotkey% was pressed.
return
Reverse direction: To remap some other key to become a "mystery key", follow this example:
; Replace 159 with the value discovered above. Replace FF (if needed) with the
; key's virtual key, which can be discovered in the first column of the Key History screen.
#c::Send {vkFFsc159}
Alternate solutions: If your key or mouse button is not detectable by the Key History screen, one of the following might help:
Reconfigure the software that came with your mouse or keyboard (sometimes accessible in the Control Panel or Start Menu) to have the "mystery key" send some other keystroke. Such a keystroke can then be defined as a hotkey in a script. For example, if you configure a mystery key to send Control+F1, you can then indirectly make that key as a hotkey by using ^F1:: in a script.
Try AHKHID. You can also try searching the forum for a keywords like RawInput*, USB HID or AHKHID.
The following is a last resort and generally should be attempted only in desperation. This is because the chance of success is low and it may cause unwanted side-effects that are difficult to undo:
Disable or remove any extra software that came with your keyboard or mouse or change its driver to a more standard one such as the one built into the OS. This assumes there is such a driver for your particular keyboard or mouse and that you can live without the features provided by its custom driver and software.