Keyboard Jiggler: Free F15 Scripts for Windows, Mac and Linux

A keyboard jiggler is a device or a small program that presses a key every minute or so, so your computer never counts you as idle. The screen does not lock, the computer does not sleep, and apps that read the system idle time, such as Microsoft Teams, keep you Available. Most keyboard jigglers press F15, a key that almost no keyboard has and almost no app uses, so the press does nothing you can see. You can buy one as a USB stick or run a free script, and both are below.

A keyboard jiggler does not keep Slack green on its own. The key goes to whichever window is in front, and Slack counts only input inside its own window. Slack Green keeps your Slack status active from our servers during the hours you set, with nothing running on your computer.

Keyboard jiggler vs mouse jiggler

Both do the same job with a different input. A mouse jiggler moves the pointer a pixel or two. A keyboard jiggler sends a key press. Windows, macOS and Linux reset the idle timer for either one.

Pick the keyboard version when:

• • The pointer must stay still, for example while you read a long document or watch a dashboard.
• • A mouse move would close a menu or tooltip that you need open.
• • A remote desktop or virtual machine ignores tiny mouse moves but passes key presses through. For Citrix, see how to keep a Citrix session active.

Pick the mouse version when you type in the same window the whole day. A stray key in a text field is a bigger risk than a one-pixel move. Auto clicker vs mouse jiggler covers the third kind of tool, which clicks instead of moving.

Keyboard jiggler options compared



Option	Works on	Needs install or admin	Keeps Teams green	Keeps Slack green
USB keyboard jiggler (AirDrive and others)	Any computer with USB	No software	Yes	Only with Slack in front
Caffeine app by Zhorn Software, F15 every 59 s	Windows	Portable, no admin	Yes	Only with Slack in front
PowerShell F15 script	Windows	Nothing	Yes	Only with Slack in front
AutoHotkey script	Windows	AutoHotkey	Yes	Only with Slack in front
osascript loop	macOS	Accessibility permission	Yes	Only with Slack in front
xdotool loop	Linux on X11	xdotool package	Yes	Only with Slack in front
PowerToys Awake, caffeinate	Windows, macOS	Varies	No, it sends no input	No
Slack Green	Nothing on the computer	No	No	Yes, on your schedule

The USB kind presents itself to the computer as a keyboard. The AirDrive Keyboard and Mouse Jiggler, for example, acts as a USB mouse and a USB keyboard at the same time and has three jiggle modes. It needs no driver, which is why people use it on locked-down work laptops. The computer still lists it as a new keyboard, so IT can see it in the device list.

Free keyboard jiggler for Windows (F15 every minute)

Windows needs nothing extra. PowerShell can press keys through the old WScript.Shell object, which accepts function keys up to F16. Paste this into a PowerShell window and leave it open. Ctrl+C stops it.

# keyboard-jiggler.ps1: press F15 every 59 seconds, Ctrl+C to stop
$wsh = New-Object -ComObject WScript.Shell
while ($true) {
    $wsh.SendKeys('{F15}')
    Start-Sleep -Seconds 59
}

The 59-second gap matches the Caffeine app by Zhorn Software, a free portable tool that does the same thing with a tray icon. A version with a stop time for the end of the work day is in PowerShell script to keep Teams active.

If you already use AutoHotkey, this v2 script presses F15 only when you have been idle for 50 seconds, so it never fires while you type:

#Requires AutoHotkey v2.0
Persistent
SetTimer(Jiggle, 59000)

Jiggle() {
    if (A_TimeIdle > 50000)   ; ms since the last key or mouse input
        Send("{F15}")
}

A_TimeIdle counts milliseconds since the last input of any kind. Checking it first keeps the script out of your way when you come back to the keyboard.

Keyboard jiggler for Mac and Linux

On a Mac, System Events can press a key by its key code. Some Apple keyboards use F14 and F15 for screen brightness, so this loop presses F18 (key code 79) instead:

# keyboard-jiggler for macOS: press F18 every 59 seconds, Ctrl+C to stop
while true; do
  osascript -e 'tell application "System Events" to key code 79'
  sleep 59
done

The first run asks for permission. Turn on your terminal app in System Settings > Privacy & Security > Accessibility, or the loop prints an error that it is "not allowed to send keystrokes". If all you need is a Mac that stays awake, skip the key presses and run caffeinate -d; our mouse jiggler for Mac guide compares both.

On Linux with an X11 session, xdotool does the same:

# keyboard-jiggler for Linux (X11): press F15 every 59 seconds
while true; do
  xdotool key F15
  sleep 59
done

On Wayland, xdotool cannot reach the desktop. Use ydotool, as described in mouse jiggler for Linux.

Which key should a keyboard jiggler press?

Use a key that types nothing and triggers nothing:

• F15 on Windows and Linux. Keyboards stopped at F12 decades ago, but the system still knows F13 to F24 and counts them as input.

• F18 on a Mac, for the brightness reason above.

• Avoid Shift. Windows turns on Sticky Keys after five Shift presses in a row, and a held Shift changes what you type next.

• Avoid Scroll Lock and Num Lock. They toggle a mode, and Excel moves differently with Scroll Lock on.

• Never a letter, Space or Enter. The key lands in whatever window has focus, so a letter ends up in your email draft.

Some apps and remote tools do map F13 to F24, and some keyboard remapping tools use them. If a keyboard shortcut starts firing on its own, change the key.

Does a keyboard jiggler work for Teams, Slack and monitoring software?

Teams: yes. Teams moves you to Away after about 5 minutes without input anywhere on the computer, and a key press is input. Details in does a mouse jiggler work for Teams; the same rules apply to keys.

Slack: only while the Slack window is in front. Slack counts input inside its own window and marks you away after 10 minutes without it. An F15 press into Excel does nothing for Slack. If Slack is the app you need green, a jiggler is the wrong tool.

Monitoring software: it depends on the product. Tools such as ActivTrak and Teramind record which app is in front and how much you type. A key press every 59 seconds with no other activity forms an even pattern that a report can show, and a USB jiggler shows up as a new keyboard. What each tool records is in can ActivTrak detect a mouse jiggler and can a mouse jiggler be detected.

Keyboard jiggler questions

Is a keyboard jiggler the same as an auto key presser? Mostly. An auto key presser repeats any key you choose at a set interval. A keyboard jiggler is an auto key presser set to one harmless key and a long interval.

Can I use a keyboard jiggler without admin rights? Yes on Windows. The PowerShell script and the portable Caffeine app run as a normal user. More options are in keep a computer awake without admin rights.

Does a keyboard jiggler stop the screen from locking? Yes, if the lock is triggered by idle time. It cannot stop a lock you trigger yourself, or a lock that closing the lid starts.

Will F15 show up in my documents? No. F15 types no character. Apps that do not bind it ignore it.