Knowledge Base

Part 2: Troubleshooting problems when Word 2002 has encountered a problem and has to close

PSS ID Number: 290930

Article Last Modified on 9/8/2004

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Word 2002

This article was previously published under Q290930

For a Microsoft Word 2000 version of this article, see 236383.
For a Microsoft Word 97 version of this article, see 168198.

SUMMARY

This article is part 2 of a series of three Microsoft Knowledge Base articles that present a systematic approach to eliminating error messages in Microsoft Word 2002.

For additional information and troubleshooting steps, click the article numbers below to view the articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

290929 WD2002: Part 1: Troubleshooting Problems When Word Has Encountered a Problem and Needs to Close

290931 WD2002: Part 3: Troubleshooting Problems When Word Has Encountered a Problem and Needs to Close

MORE INFORMATION

The following topics are covered in part 2 of this article:

Troubleshooting IPFs and exception errors that occur while printing or formatting the document.

Troubleshooting invalid page faults and exception errors that occur while working in the document.

Troubleshooting invalid page faults and exception errors that occur while printing or formatting the document

Invalid page faults and exception errors can occur while you are printing or formatting the document. These actions trigger the use of several Windows components, including the following Windows drivers:

Printer driver

Video driver

Back to topics

Is the Printer Driver Damaged?

Word frequently queries the printer driver for information it needs when formatting and printing a document. A damaged printer driver can cause an invalid page fault or exception error to occur when you are working in a document.

Most non-PostScript (PCL) printer drivers use a common core file called the Unidrv.dll. This includes Microsoft Fax and Generic/Text Only. For this reason, if you are using a PCL printer driver and want to troubleshoot the printer driver, it is necessary to install a non-PCL printer driver.

Almost all PostScript printer drivers use a common core file called Pscript.drv. For this reason, if you are using a PostScript printer driver and want to troubleshoot the printer driver, it is necessary to install a non-PostScript printer driver.

To troubleshoot this problem, install a different printer driver by following these steps:

Quit all Windows programs.
Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Printers.

NOTE: For Microsoft Windows XP, click Start and then click Printers and Faxes.
Use the appropriate method for your type of printer.
- Method 1: PostScript Printer
  
  If you currently print to a PostScript printer, follow these steps:
  1. Double-click Add Printer to run the Add Printer Wizard.
    
    NOTE: In Windows XP, click Add Printer under Printer Tasks on the left.
  2. Follow the instructions in the wizard to install a local PCL printer driver or some other non-PostScript printer driver.
- Method 2: Non-PostScript Printer
  
  If you currently print to a non-PostScript printer (for example; a PCL, dot-matrix, or ink-jet type printer), follow these steps:
  1. Double-click Add Printer to run the Add Printer Wizard.
    
    NOTE: In Windows XP, click Add Printer under Printer Tasks on the left.
  2. Follow the instructions in the wizard to install a local PostScript printer.
Right-click the printer icon, and then click Set As Default on the shortcut menu.
Start Word normally (without using the /a switch), and then try to reproduce the problem.

If the problem is corrected, you have identified the problem as a damaged printer driver. Follow the steps in the next section, "Remove and Reinstall the Printer," to resolve the problem.

If Word fails to function correctly, continue troubleshooting using the steps in the "Is It the Video Driver?" section of this article.

Remove and Reinstall the Printer:

NOTE: The following steps may require your Microsoft Windows 98 CD or the printer driver files supplied by the manufacturer of the printer. To remove and reinstall the printer driver, follow these steps:

Quit all Microsoft Office programs.
Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Printers.

NOTE: For Windows XP, click Start and then click Printers and Faxes.
Right-click the printer that is causing the problem (the printer that you were using before you started troubleshooting the printer driver), and then click Delete on the shortcut menu.
Click Yes to confirm the deletion. The following message appears:

Some files were used only for this printer and are no longer needed. Would you like to delete these files now?

Click Yes.
Double-click Add Printer to run the Add Printer Wizard.

NOTE: In Windows XP, click Add Printer under Printer Tasks on the left.
Follow the instructions in the wizard to install the correct printer driver for the printer you print to, or follow the instructions that came with your printer.
After the printer is installed, right-click the printer's icon, and then click Set As Default on the shortcut menu.

Back to printing or formatting

Is the Video Driver Causing the Problem?

Word frequently queries the video driver for information that Word needs when formatting and printing the document. A damaged video driver can cause an invalid page fault or exception error to occur.

In Microsoft Windows 2000 and Windows XP, follow these steps to load the Standard VGA driver for testing:

Restart the computer.
Before the Windows 2000 or Windows XP splash screen appears, press F8.
Select Enable VGA Mode, and then press ENTER.
If you are prompted to select the operating system, select the operating system that you want to start, and then press ENTER.

The operating system loads the Standard VGA driver.

Proceed to the troubleshooting steps in the next method.

To troubleshoot this problem, install a different video driver by following these steps:

Quit all Windows programs.
Right-click the desktop, and then click Properties on the shortcut menu.
Click the Settings tab. Note the settings for the desktop area, color palette, and font size. You may need to know these if you want to return the display settings to their original state.

NOTE: In Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition (Me), click Advanced, and then click Monitor.

Click Change Display Type. Note the display adapter that is currently in use. You may need this if you want to return the display settings to their original state.
For the Adapter type, click Change.
Click Show All Devices.
At the top of the Manufacturers list, click Standard Display Types.
For the Model, click Standard Display Adapter (VGA).
Click OK and then click Close to close the dialog boxes.
Click Yes when Windows asks you to restart your computer. When the computer is restarted, your display appears in 640x480 resolution with 16 colors.
Start Word normally (without using the /a switch), and then try to reproduce the problem.

If the problem is corrected, you have identified the problem as a damaged or incompatible video driver. You need to contact the manufacturer of the video card for an updated video driver.

For information about how to contact your video card manufacturer, click the appropriate article number in the following list to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

65416 Hardware and Software Third-Party Vendor Contact List, A-K

60781 Hardware and Software Third-Party Vendor Contact List, L-P

60782 Hardware and Software Third-Party Vendor Contact List, Q-Z

If Word fails to function correctly, continue troubleshooting using the steps in the next section of this article, "Troubleshooting invalid page faults and exception errors that occur while working in the document."

Back to printing or formatting

Troubleshooting invalid page faults and exception errors that occur while working in the document

Invalid page faults and exception errors can occur while you are working in a document because of any of the following:

Damaged Custom Dictionary

Damaged AutoCorrect File

Damaged Spelling and Grammar Files

Damaged Fonts

Back to Topics

Is the Custom Dictionary Damaged?

When you type a space or press ENTER, background spelling attempts to check the word. If background spelling does not find the word that you typed in the main dictionary, background spelling looks in the custom dictionary. When you run Spelling and Grammar and click Add to add a word to the spelling dictionary, the word is actually added to the custom dictionary. If the custom dictionary gets damaged for some reason, an error occurs when you start to check spelling.

To correct this problem, follow these steps:

Microsoft Windows 98 or Microsoft Windows NT 4.0
1. Quit all Microsoft Office programs.
2. Click Start, point to Find, and then click Files or Folders.
3. In the Named box, type *.dic.
4. In the Look in list, select your local hard disk (or an alternate user location if you are running Word from a network server).
5. Click Find Now to search for the file. The default name for the custom dictionary is Custom.dic, and the default location is in the following folder:
  
  ...\Application Data\Microsoft\Proof
  
  NOTE: Your custom dictionary file may have a different file name, and it may be located in a different folder than the default. If you are using profiles, your custom dictionary may be located in your Profiles folder.
6. For each occurrence of a custom dictionary file that appears in the Find dialog box, right-click the file. Click Rename on the shortcut menu. Type a new name for the old custom dictionary file (for example, OldCustom.dic), and then press ENTER.
7. Close the Find dialog box, restart Word as you normally do (without using the /a switch), and then try to reproduce the problem.
-or-
Windows Millennium Edition (Me) or Windows 2000
1. Quit all Microsoft Office programs.
2. Click Start, point to Search, and then click For Files or Folders.
3. In the Search for files or folders named box, type *.dic.
4. In the Look in list, select your local hard disk (or an alternate user location if you are running Word from a network server).
5. Click Search Now to search for the file. The default name for the custom dictionary is Custom.dic, and the default location is in the following folder:
  
  ...\Application Data\Microsoft\Proof
  
  NOTE: Your custom dictionary file may have a different file name, and it may be located in a different folder than the default. If you are using profiles, your custom dictionary may be located in your Profiles folder.
6. For each occurrence of a custom dictionary file that appears in the Search Results dialog box, right-click the file and then click Rename on the menu that appears. Type a new name for the old custom dictionary file (for example, OldCustom.dic), and then press ENTER.
7. Close the Search Results dialog box, restart Word as you normally do (without using the /a switch), and then try to reproduce the problem.
-or-
Microsoft Windows XP
1. Quit all Microsoft Office programs.
2. Click Start, and then click Search.
3. Click All Files or Folders, click More advanced options, and then click to select Search hidden files and folders.
4. In the All or part of a file name box, type *.dic.
5. Set the Look in menu to your local hard disk (or to an alternate user location if you are running Word from a network server).
6. Click Search Now to search for the file. The default name for the custom dictionary is Custom.dic, and the default location is in the following folder:
  
  ...\Application Data\Microsoft\Proof
  
  NOTE: Your custom dictionary file may have a different file name, and it may be located in a different folder than the default. If you are using profiles, your custom dictionary may be located in your Profiles folder.
7. For each occurrence of a custom dictionary file that appears in the Search Results dialog box, right-click the file. Click Rename on the shortcut menu. Type a new name for the old custom dictionary file (for example, OldCustom.dic), and then press ENTER.
8. Close the Search Results dialog box, restart Word as you normally do (without using the /a switch), and then try to reproduce the problem.

If the problem is corrected, you have identified the problem as a damaged custom dictionary file. At this point you have created a new custom dictionary file, and it does not contain any of the words that you added in the past. If you want to add the words from the old custom dictionary file, follow the steps in the "Adding Words Back to the New Custom Dictionary" section of this article.

If Word fails to work correctly, continue troubleshooting by using the steps in the "Is It the AutoCorrect (ACL) File?" section of this article.

Adding Words Back to the New Custom Dictionary:

To add words from an old custom dictionary (or any text file) to a current (or new) custom dictionary, follow these steps:

Open the old custom dictionary file in Word. If you recently renamed the old custom dictionary file using the steps outlined in this article, the file is most likely called OldCustom.dic.
If background spelling is turned on, you should see red wavy underlines under each word. Right-click each word and click Add on the shortcut menu.

NOTE: If background spelling is not turned on, click Spelling and Grammar on the Tools menu. After all of the words have been added, you can close the file and delete it.

Back to working in the document

Is the AutoCorrect (ACL) File Causing the Problem?

When you type a space or press ENTER, the background AutoCorrect attempts to correct the spelling or grammar of a word or add special symbols in place of some characters. The AutoCorrect list (ACL) stores a list of what words or characters to act upon, and what to substitute for them.

If this file is damaged, you can experience an IPF when Word tries to access the ACL file. To correct this problem, follow these steps:

Microsoft Windows 98 or Microsoft Windows NT 4.0
1. Quit all Microsoft Office programs.
2. Click Start menu, point to Find, and then click Files or Folders.
3. In the Named box, type *.acl.
4. In the Look in list, select your Windows folder.
5. Click Find Now. When the search is completed, a list of .acl files appears. These files are stored in the Windows folder.
  
  IMPORTANT: Three of the .acl files are named Mso1033.acl, Mso2057.acl, and Mso3081.acl. Do not rename or delete these files unless you are instructed to do so by Microsoft Technical Support or unless you completely remove Microsoft Office XP from the computer.
6. Right-click one of the .acl files (for example, User.acl), and then click Rename on the shortcut menu.
7. Press END on the keyboard. Type .old and then press ENTER. The file appears with ".old" appended to the end (for example, User.acl.old).
8. Except for Mso1033.acl, Mso2057.acl, and Mso3081.acl, repeat steps 6 and 7 for all .acl files in the Windows folder.
9. Close the Find dialog box, restart Word normally (without using the /a switch), and then try to reproduce the problem.
-or-
Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition (Me) or Windows 2000
1. Quit all Microsoft Office programs.
2. Click Start, point to Search, and then click For Files or Folders.
3. In the Search for files or folders named box, type *.acl.
4. In the Look in list, select your Windows folder.
5. Click Search Now. When the search is completed, a list of .acl files appears. These files are stored in the Windows folder.
  
  IMPORTANT: Three of the .acl files are named Mso1033.acl, Mso2057.acl, and Mso3081.acl. Do not rename or delete these files unless you are instructed to do so by Microsoft Technical Support or unless you completely remove Microsoft Office XP from the computer.
6. Right-click one of the .acl files (for example, User.acl), and then click Rename on the shortcut menu.
7. Press END on the keyboard. Type .old and press ENTER. The file appears with ".old" appended to the end (for example, User.acl.old).
8. Except for Mso1033.acl, Mso2057.acl, and Mso3081.acl, repeat steps 6 and 7 for all .acl files in the Windows folder.
9. Quit the Search Results dialog box, restart Word normally (without using the /a switch), and then try to reproduce the problem.
-or-
Microsoft Windows XP
1. Quit all Microsoft Office programs.
2. Click Start and then click Search.
3. Click All Files or Folders, click More advanced options, and then click to select the Search hidden files and folders. In the All or part of a file name box, type *.dic.
4. Click Search Now.
  
  When the search is completed, a list of .acl files appears. These files are stored in the Windows folder.
  
  IMPORTANT: Three of the .acl files are named Mso1033.acl, Mso2057.acl, and Mso3081.acl. Do not rename or delete these files unless you are instructed to do so by Microsoft Technical Support, or you completely remove Microsoft Office 2000 from the computer.
5. Right-click one of the .acl files (for example, User.acl), and then click Rename on the shortcut menu.
6. Press END on the keyboard. Type .old, and press ENTER. The file appears with ".old" appended to the end (for example, User.acl.old).
7. Except for Mso1033.acl, Mso2057.acl, and Mso3081.acl, repeat steps 3-5 for all .acl files in the Windows folder.
  
  IMPORTANT: Do not rename Mso1033.acl, Mso2057.acl, and Mso3081.acl.
8. Close the Search Results dialog box, restart Word normally (without using the /a switch), and then try to reproduce the problem.

If the problem is corrected, you have identified the problem as a damaged ACL file.

If Word fails to work correctly, continue troubleshooting using the steps in the section of this article titled "Is Spelling and Grammar Causing the Problem?"

Back to working in the document

Is Spelling and Grammar Causing the Problem?

When you type a space or press ENTER, background Spelling and Grammar checks what you typed and flags it as a misspelled word (with a red wavy underline) or as a grammar error (with a green wavy underline) if needed. If either the spelling or grammar files are damaged, it may cause an error when you type. To test whether this is the problem, try reproducing the problem with background Spelling and Grammar turned off.

To turn off (or turn on) background Spelling and Grammar, follow these steps:

Open the document, if possible.
Immediately, before doing anything else, click Options on the Tools menu.
Click the Spelling and Grammar tab.
Click to clear the Check spelling as you type check box and the Check grammar as you type check box.
Click OK and then try to reproduce the problem.

If the problem is corrected, or if you could not run the preceding test, you may have identified the problem as damaged Proofing Tools. To correct the problem, run Detect and Repair on the Help menu. After completing Detect and Repair, turn background Spelling and Grammar back on.

If Word fails to work correctly, continue troubleshooting using the steps in the "Are the Fonts Damaged?" section of this article.

Back to working in the document

Are the Fonts Damaged?

A damaged font can cause an IPF when working with Microsoft Word (or any other Windows program).

If a document crashes while you are working in it, try to determine what fonts are in the document, and apply these fonts to a new document based on Normal.dot. If the problem occurs in the new document, systematically reduce the number of fonts in the new document until you are left with the font causing the problem.

NOTE: Tahoma is the font that is used in the dialog boxes and menus in Word and Office. If Word is crashing when you start it, one possible cause might be a damaged Tahoma font. Follow the instructions below for removing and reinstalling the Tahoma font.

After you determine (or suspect) a damaged font, follow these steps to remove and reinstall the font.

NOTE: This procedure removes the font from your system and requires you to be able to reinstall the font from its original source.

Quit all Microsoft Office programs.
Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.

NOTE: In Windows XP, click Start and then click Control Panel.

Double-click Fonts.
Drag the font (or fonts) that you think may be damaged to your desktop (or to some other location outside of the font folder). The font is now "removed" from your computer. Any document formatted with that font actually has another font substituted.
Close the font folder, restart Word normally (without using the /a switch), and then try to reproduce the problem.

If the problem is corrected, you may have identified the problem as a damaged font. To resolve the problem, run Detect and Repair on the Help menu. After completing Detect and Repair, try to reproduce the problem.

NOTE: If the font that you removed came from a different software program, you may need to reinstall that program to replace the font on your system.

If Word fails to work correctly, continue troubleshooting by following the steps in the section of part 3 of this article series titled "Starting Word as Cleanly As Possible."

Back to working in the document

For additional information about troubleshooting invalid page faults and exception errors in Word, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

290931 WD2002: Part 3: Troubleshooting Invalid Page Faults (IPFs) and Exception Errors

Microsoft provides third-party contact information to help you find technical support. This contact information may change without notice. Microsoft does not guarantee the accuracy of this third-party contact information.

Additional query words: tshoot inf prb

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Technology: kbWord2002 kbWord2002Search kbWordSearch

Microsoft KB Archive/290930

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