How to fix Microsoft office 2021/2019/365 not working after an windows Update

Understanding the Issue with Microsoft Office After Windows Update

After updating Windows 10 or Windows 11, Microsoft Office applications such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook often stop working. This issue tends to occur due to internal settings within Microsoft Office after a Windows update, where Office programs configure themselves to run in compatibility mode. As a result, these applications may freeze, preventing you from using them effectively.

Common Symptoms:

• Applications like Excel, Word, Outlook, etc., do not open or freeze after the update.
• Error messages such as “Updating of Office, please wait a moment” or “We’re sorry, but Excel has run into an error” appear.
• Office applications may immediately close after these errors appear.

Troubleshooting Steps for Fixing Microsoft Office After a Windows Update

Step 1: Disabling Add-Ins in Safe Mode

To resolve issues with Office not working correctly, try opening the respective program in Safe Mode:

1. Excel: Type “Excel /safe” in the Run window and press Enter to open Excel in Safe Mode.
2. Word: Type “Word /safe” in the Run window and press Enter to open Word in Safe Mode.
3. Outlook: Type “Outlook /safe” in the Run window and press Enter to open Outlook in Safe Mode.

If Safe Mode resolves the issue, you can disable add-ins as follows:

Steps to Disable Add-Ins:

1. Navigate to File > Options and select ‘Add-ins’.
2. Click the ‘Go’ button to view available add-ins.
3. Uncheck the boxes to disable add-ins and click OK.

Disable add-ins one by one to identify which one may be causing the issue.

Step 2: Toggling Compatibility Mode Settings

If the above steps don’t resolve the issue, you may need to disable Compatibility Mode for Office programs.

For MS Excel:

1. Right-click the Excel icon and select Properties.
2. Go to the Compatibility tab and uncheck all the boxes. Click OK to save the changes.

For MS Word:

1. Right-click the Word icon and select Properties.
2. Go to the Compatibility tab and uncheck all the boxes. Click OK to save the changes.

For MS Outlook:

1. Right-click the Outlook icon and select Properties.
2. Go to the Compatibility tab and uncheck all the boxes. Click OK to save the changes.

Fixing Office Not Working Using SFC Scan

Step 3: Running SFC Scan

To repair corrupted files that might be causing Office to malfunction, use the System File Checker (SFC):

1. 1. Open the Windows Terminal as an Administrator.
   2. Type “SFC /SCANNOW” in the command window and press Enter.
   3. Wait for the scan to finish. If no issues are found, exit the terminal. If errors are detected, follow up with the DISM command:

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

Step 4: Reinstalling Microsoft Office

If the issue persists, reinstall Microsoft Office using the following steps:

1. Download the Microsoft Support and Recovery Assistant utility.
2. Run the setup file and follow the prompts to uninstall Office.
3. Reinstall Office by visiting your Office account and clicking on the ‘Install’ option.

Step 5: Resetting Windows (if necessary)

If none of the above solutions work, you may need to reset your Windows operating system. Please back up your files before proceeding, as a reset will erase your settings and data.

How to Reset Windows 10/11:

1. For Windows 10: Select Start > Settings > System > Recovery, then click ‘Reset PC’.
2. For Windows 11: Select Start > Settings > System > Recovery, then click ‘Reset PC’.

In Conclusion

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