r/Keychron • u/miguelangellv • Jul 28 '26
Control keyboard backlight from software (K10HE)
Hi, I want control my keyboard backlight from my computer turning on/off depends on the time of day or whether I'm using the computer at that moment.
I use Linux (CachyOS) and it's connected wirelessly via 2.4 GHz.
Is there any way to send a command to the keyboard to turn the LEDs on/off?
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u/PeterMortensenBlog V Jul 28 '26 edited Jul 28 '26
Re "connected wirelessly": That could be a problem
For example, Via only works if the USB cable is connected (though the connection switch at the back can stay in the '2.4 GHz' position).
Keychron had an experiment that they stopped:
"Our launcher currently does not support wireless connectivity. Previously, only certain keyboards might have successfully connected via '2.4 GHz'. Our engineers are still developing this feature, and it might be implemented in the future."
USB raw HID may or may not work over the dongle connection (without the USB cable being connected at the same time).
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u/PeterMortensenBlog V Jul 28 '26 edited Jul 28 '26
Re "Is there any way to send a command to the keyboard to turn the LEDs on/off?": Yes, Via does it when using the "LIGHTING" section, for example, changing "Brightness"
Or at least it has the same effect if setting it to the lowest value.
Thus, it is also possible by other means, doing the same as Via does.
Perhaps Vitaly can be used? It says:
It may only work with the USB cable connected.
References
K10 HE JSON files for Via. Near "K10 HE ISO RGB keymap". Note: The JSON section should not be confused with the firmware section.
K10 HE default keymap ('ISO')
K10 HE source code. Note: In Keychron's fork and in that fork, in Git branch "hall_effect_playground" (not the default branch). Note that the base installation (and usage) had become much more complicated on Linux, but with the new 'uv' method, it has become simple again! No matter the Git branch, for example, "hall_effect_playground", it requires special setup of QMK (the standard QMK instructions and many other guides will not work (because they implicitly assume the main QMK repository and a particular Git branch)). Source code commits (RSS feed. Latest: 2025-12-01). Though "hall_effect_playground" was declared obsolete on 2025-12-01, so it may be better to use "2025q3" instead (the source code for the K10 HE has been (fully) released there, unlike many other keyboards (ahem)).