Auto-type via HID keyboard

The badge can act as a keyboard and type stored data into a connected device. This is used to type a stored password from the password vault and to type a 2FA code from the 2FA menu. Two transports provide the keyboard: Bluetooth (BLE HID) and USB.

Whichever transport is active provides the keyboard to the rest of the firmware, so the Type action and the 2FA menu use whatever keyboard is currently connected.

BLE keyboard (default)

The Bluetooth keyboard module (mod_blehid) is enabled by default. It advertises the badge as a HID keyboard (the standard HID over GATT service) and delivers keystrokes over an encrypted connection. It does not use a USB interface slot, so it works alongside the USB FIDO2 and GPG functions.

To use it, open Settings → BLE Keyboard:

Menu item	Action
Status	Show connection state and the selected Unicode method.
Start / Stop Advertising	Make the badge discoverable as a keyboard, or stop.
Unicode Method	Choose how non-ASCII characters are typed (see below).
Disconnect	Disconnect the current host (only when connected).

Pair from the host’s Bluetooth settings while the badge is advertising. Once connected, open a password entry and press Y to type it, or use the 2FA menu to type a code.

USB keyboard

The USB keyboard module (mod_usbhid) is disabled by default. When enabled and started, it registers a USB HID keyboard interface and takes over as the active keyboard, restoring the previous keyboard (for example BLE) when it stops.

Its menu lives under Settings → USB Keyboard:

Menu item	Action
Status	Show whether the interface is active, waiting for the host, or connected.
Unicode Method	Choose how non-ASCII characters are typed (see below).

USB interface budget

The badge enumerates as a single composite USB device. Alongside the always-on serial console (CDC), the firmware arbitrates the optional HID-class and smartcard (CCID) interfaces and allows at most two of them active at the same time.

These modules each need one of those two interface slots:

Module	USB interface	Default
FIDO2	FIDO2 / U2F HID	enabled
GPG	OpenPGP smartcard (CCID)	enabled
USB keyboard (mod_usbhid)	USB keyboard	disabled
OTP HID (mod_otphid)	Yubico OTP challenge-response	disabled

With the default set (FIDO2 + GPG) the USB budget is already full. To enable the USB keyboard you must first disable one of the active USB modules, under Tools → Expert → Modules or over serial (MODULE DISABLE <name> / MODULE ENABLE <name>). Otherwise starting it fails with “No free USB slot”.

Note

The USB keyboard and the OTP HID module share the same interface slot and cannot run at the same time. Toggling USB modules re-enumerates the device; replug the USB cable if the host does not pick up the new configuration.

The BLE keyboard uses no USB interface slot, so it is unaffected by the USB budget.

Unicode method

Both keyboards offer the same setting for how non-ASCII characters (for example accented letters) are typed. The default is ASCII only.

Method	Behaviour
ASCII only	Fallback transliteration (for example ae, oe, ue). Works everywhere.
Windows (Alt+Numpad)	Alt + numeric-keypad code sequences.
Linux (Ctrl+Shift+U)	Ctrl+Shift+U hex entry.
macOS (limited)	Option-based sequences (limited coverage).

Pick the method that matches the operating system you are typing into. If in doubt, ASCII only is the safe choice for passwords made of plain ASCII characters.

Typing a password

1. Connect a keyboard transport (pair over BLE, or enable and connect the USB keyboard).
2. Open the password vault and select an entry.
3. In the detail view, press Y to type the password into the focused field on the connected device.

If no keyboard is connected, the detail view shows “No keyboard connected” instead of a Type action.