Pause / Break Key: What is a "Break"?
Pause / Break Key: What is a "Break"?
Computer dictionary definition of what break means, including related links, information, and terms.
The Break key is a keyboard key whose original purpose was to immediately halt execution of a running a program. On modern computers, it has no default function. It is not commonly used, although any software may use it for its own purpose. The Break key may also be remapped with a program like AutoHotkey.
Funny, in my early PC days it was a very frequently used key. Lots of times programs would hang in a way that you couldn't otherwise get out of them. It was also super easy to make a mistake in a DOS command or .bat file that would either run endlessly or for way longer than you intended, so being able to just stop execution was super useful.
I use this all the time in my day to day. Except it’s Ctrl-C. Sometimes Ctrl-Z +
kill -9if it’s being extra ornery.I use it to cancel Visual Studio's build process when I accidentally start it without intending to.