# KEY_EVENT_RECORD

The KEY_EVENT_RECORD structure is used to report keyboard input events in a console INPUT_RECORD structure.

    typedef struct _KEY_EVENT_RECORD {
        BOOL bKeyDown;
        WORD wRepeatCount;
        WORD wVirtualKeyCode;
        WORD wVirtualScanCode;
        union {
            WCHAR UnicodeChar;
            CHAR  AsciiChar;
        } uChar;
        DWORD dwControlKeyState;
    } KEY_EVENT_RECORD;

### Members

bKeyDown
Indicates whether a key is down. This member is TRUE if the key is pressed, or FALSE if the key is released.
wRepeatCount
Count indicating that a key is being held down. For example, when a key is held down, you might get five events with this member equal to 1, one event with this member equal to 5, or multiple events with this member greater than or equal to 1.
wVirtualKeyCode
Virtual-key code that identifies the given key in a device-independent manner.
wVirtualScanCode
Virtual scan code of the given key that represents the device-dependent value generated by the keyboard hardware.
uChar
Translated Unicode or ASCII character, depending on whether the wide-character (Unicode) or ANSI version of the ReadConsoleInput function was used.
dwControlKeyState
Indicates the state of the control keys. This member can be one or more of the following values.

Key | Value | Description
--- | --- | ---
CAPSLOCK_ON | 0x0080 | The CAPS LOCK light is on.
ENHANCED_KEY | 0x0100 | The key is enhanced.
LEFT_ALT_PRESSED | 0x0002 | The left ALT key is pressed.
LEFT_CTRL_PRESSED | 0x0008 | The left CTRL key is pressed.
NUMLOCK_ON | 0x0020 | The NUM LOCK light is on.
RIGHT_ALT_PRESSED | 0x0001 | The right ALT key is pressed.
RIGHT_CTRL_PRESSED | 0x0004 | The right CTRL key is pressed.
SCROLLLOCK_ON | 0x0040 | The SCROLL LOCK light is on.
SHIFT_PRESSED | 0x0010 | The SHIFT key is pressed.

### Remarks

Enhanced keys for the IBM® 101- and 102-key keyboards are the INS, DEL, HOME, END, PAGE UP, PAGE DOWN, and direction keys in the clusters to the left of the keypad; and the divide (`/`) and ENTER keys in the keypad.
Keyboard input events are generated when any key, including control keys, is pressed or released. However, the ALT key when pressed and released without combining with another character, has special meaning to the system and is not passed through to the application. Also, the `CTRL+C` key combination is not passed through if the input handle is in processed mode (ENABLE_PROCESSED_INPUT).
See also:
PeekConsoleInput, ReadConsoleInput, WriteConsoleInput, INPUT_RECORD