Is there a problem with 'forward' and 'delete' in macOS? — Quora This may be the most common question I receive from readers. The short answer? The answer The Mac's Delete and Backspace keys, and their function, are quite a bit different from the Windows key. How to replace Microsoft 'Delete' key with Macintosh's Delete key. I'm working to find an easier way to explain how to find and replace a specific key for all your applications. This time around, I'm trying a different route to solve the problem of why the Windows Delete button is missing. I already covered the process to replace the Windows Delete key from Windows to your Mac, the Mac-focused alternative to Windows, and Apple's own key-removal utility. That is really all you need to know to replace the right-pointing 'Delete' keys with Macintosh Delete key. However, there is one very important issue that must be addressed to prevent confusion later on. The Windows Delete button is in fact not a Delete button in the Mac's operating system. This is true. The 'Delete' key on a Mac doesn't actually delete files or applications or files from the hard disk, in Windows. It actually deletes the character to the left of or below the cursor. In other words, it does not, in fact, delete any file. This means for example, that if you use the Windows Delete key combination in Microsoft Word and then open a new document with Mac OS X's default 'Forward delete' option, the Word document will be deleted again. Where is the Delete key on a Mac? For those seeking a way to replace Mac's 'Delete' key, there is only one way… You. The Mac has no equivalent to the Windows 'Backspace' key on a Mac. That is one key from the most frequently used keyboard combinations in Mac that actually performs a Delete type act. And now that the Mac's Delete key is no longer the same in both OSes (it was never to begin with), that key, in fact, should be replaced with the Mac Delete key. The easiest to use solution is to turn it into a Forward Delete key. Simply replace the Delete key by a Delete key. To find and replace the 'Delete' key on some versions of Mac OS X, just open Command Prompt and type credit.MSC and hit the Enter key or run the below code with the desired key combination.