What Is ATK Hotkey Utility?

The ATK Hotkey Utility is the driver program that allows the function ("F" or "Fn") keys, also known as hotkeys, on the keyboard of an ASUS or Lenovo laptop to work correctly with the operating system and other installed software. The ATK Hotkey drivers run as a background service in Windows when the computer boots up. Because of the role it plays in launching programs or performing other operating system functions, modifying or uninstalling the ATK Hotkey Utility is strongly discouraged.

Hotkeys are keyboard shortcuts that launch a program or other operating system operation. The ATK Hotkey Utility defines which function keys can be used in changing the brightness of the screen, switching between the monitor and external video source, turning the webcam and wireless networking on or off, or toggling of the "NumLock" or "CapsLk" keys, for example. In both Lenovo and ASUS computers, the ATK Hotkey also assigns media functions to the function keys.

The ATK Hotkey Utility runs as a background service in the "Services" applet on ASUS laptops and as "ATK0101 ACPI UTILITY" in "Device Manager" on Lenovo laptops. Stopping the service or disabling the device in "Device Manager" will cause the hotkeys on the keyboard to stop functioning correctly.

The ATK Hotkey Utility comes preinstalled on ASUS and Lenovo laptops. There may be some instances where it is necessary to reinstall the package due to corrupt drivers or software incompatibilities that cause the hotkeys to malfunction. ASUS and Lenovo maintain updated ATK Hotkey packages on their respective support websites, which are provided in the "References" section below.