Microsoft KB Archive/301990

= &quot;The Office Assistant requires Microsoft Agent 2.0 or later&quot; error message when you start an Office XP program or use the Office Assistant in a program =

Article ID: 301990

Article Last Modified on 1/31/2007

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APPLIES TO


 * Microsoft Access 2002 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft Excel 2002 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft FrontPage 2002 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft Outlook 2002 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft PowerPoint 2002 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft Publisher 2002 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft Word 2002 Standard Edition

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This article was previously published under Q301990



SYMPTOMS
When you start an Office XP program or try to use the Office Assistant from within a program, you may receive the following error message:

The Office Assistant requires Microsoft Agent 2.0 or later. This product is available on the Office System Pack.



CAUSE
This behavior can occur if the Agentsvr.exe file, which is located in C:\Windows\Msagent, is missing or damaged.



RESOLUTION
To resolve this issue, use one of the following methods.

Method 1: Extract Agentsvr.exe from the Cabinet File on the Office XP CD-ROM

 * 1) Open the \Files\OSP\1033 folder on the Office XP CD-ROM, and then double-click OSP1.cab.
 * 2) Locate and double-click Agentsvr.exe.
 * 3) When you are prompted to do so, browse to the Windows\Msagent folder, and then click the Save button.

Method 2: Reinstall System Files Update (Microsoft Windows 98 and Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 Only)
You can force a reinstallation of the System Files Update. This only applies to Windows 98 and Windows NT 4.0, because they are the only operating systems that require the System Files Update. To do this, follow these steps:  Insert the Office XP CD-ROM into your computer's CD-ROM drive. Click Start, click Run, and then type the following in the Open box:

 \Setup /spforce

where  is the drive letter of your CD-ROM drive. Select Repair System Files Update, and then select Detect and Repair errors in the System Files Update installation.

Method 3: Download Agent Core Components
Download and install the Agent Core Components from the following Microsoft Web site:

http://activex.microsoft.com/activex/controls/agent2/msagent.exe

Additional query words: OFFXP agent msagent assistant prb

Keywords: kbcorrupt kberrmsg kbtshoot kbprb KB301990

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