---
title: Change a shortcut | Relic Help
description: How to give any Relic shortcut new keys, put one back to its default, clear one you never use, and what to do when the system refuses a chord.
canonical: https://relic.space/help/change-a-shortcut
source: https://relic.space/llms.txt
---
Shortcuts

# Change a shortcut

How to give any Relic shortcut new keys, put one back to its default, clear one you never use, and what to do when the system refuses a chord.

Updated 10 September 2026 · Windows, Mac, Linux

## [Recording new keys](#record)

Every global shortcut has a row in Settings›General. Changing one takes a few seconds and needs no restart.

1. Open Settings
Click the gear in the Relic window, or right-click the tray icon and choose Open history, then the gear. General is the first pane.
2. Find the shortcut
The shortcut rows sit near the top of General. Each one shows its keys as keycaps and a Change button.
Open history shortcut
Global hotkey to summon the full popup.
Settings › General › Shortcuts › Open history shortcut: shortcut, default Ctrl + Shift + Q. Mac: Ctrl + Shift + Q. Linux: Ctrl + Shift + Q
3. Press Change
The keycaps are replaced by the words Press a shortcut, with Esc to cancel. Relic stops listening for its other shortcuts while it waits. Press Esc to keep the old keys.
4. Press the keys you want
Hold at least one of Ctrl, Alt, Shift or the Windows key, then press the main key. The row shows the new chord at once and it is live from then on.

## [What the recorder accepts](#rules)

* **At least one modifier.**A bare letter is refused with the message "Use at least one modifier (Ctrl / Alt / Shift / Win)." On a Mac it reads Ctrl / Option / Shift / Cmd.
* **One main key.** Letters, digits, Space, function keys and most navigation keys all work. Pressing only modifiers keeps the recorder waiting.
* **Physical keys, not letters.** Relic remembers which key you pressed, so the shortcut keeps working if you switch keyboard layouts. The label on the keycap is only for display.
* **No two rows on the same chord.** Two shortcuts on one chord would fight, so the second one is refused.

Picking a chord that will not clash

Global shortcuts take the keys from every app on the computer, so pick a chord nothing else uses. Ctrl+Shift with a letter the browser does not claim, or Ctrl+Alt with a letter, are safe on most machines. Ctrl+Shift+D and Ctrl+Shift+B are Chrome's bookmark keys everywhere, and Ctrl+Shift+V pastes in many apps.

## [Going back to the defaults](#defaults)

There is no reset button. To put a shortcut back, press Change and type its default chord. The defaults are:

* Open history: Ctrl \+ Shift \+ Q
* Mini picker: Ctrl \+ Shift \+ Space
* Save and annotate: Ctrl \+ Shift \+ E
* Promote last: Ctrl \+ Shift \+ W
* Quick paste: Ctrl \+ Shift \+ 1 through Ctrl \+ Shift \+ 5
* Paste stack: Ctrl \+ Alt \+ D to add, Ctrl \+ Alt \+ B to paste next

The full table, with the Mac and Linux keycaps, is on the [shortcuts page](https://relic.space/help/shortcuts).

## [When a shortcut is refused](#refused)

Relic asks the system for each chord when it starts. If another app already owns one, the system says no, and the row shows a red line instead of its helper text:

Open history shortcut

This shortcut could not register. Another app may already use it; pick a different one.

Settings › General › Shortcuts › Open history shortcut: shortcut, default Ctrl + Shift + Q. Mac: Ctrl + Shift + Q. Linux: Ctrl + Shift + Q

The shortcut does nothing until you change it. Screen recorders, launchers, and keyboard tools are the usual owners. Quitting the other app and restarting Relic also works, if you would rather keep the chord. More causes are on [Shortcut not working](https://relic.space/help/hotkey-not-working).

## [The paste stack keys](#stack-keys)

The two stack rows only appear while **Sequential paste stack** is on, and their chords are only held while it is on. Turn the feature off and the keys go back to whatever else wanted them.

Sequential paste stack

Queue several items, then paste them one at a time in order. Adds two shortcuts.

Settings › General › Power features › Sequential paste stack: toggle, default off.

On some keyboard layouts Ctrl+Alt types a character (it is the AltGr key), and some Linux desktops bind Ctrl+Alt+D to show the desktop. In both cases the system refuses the chord and the row says so; pick another pair.

Related

[Keyboard shortcutsShortcuts](https://relic.space/help/shortcuts)[Settings: GeneralSettings reference](https://relic.space/help/settings-general)[A shortcut does nothingTroubleshooting](https://relic.space/help/hotkey-not-working)[The paste stackPaste](https://relic.space/help/paste-stack)