Troubleshooting Damaged Documents in Word

Summary

This article provides guidance on how to identify a damaged Word document in Word 2007 and later versions. It also offers step-by-step instructions to help you recover text and data from a document once you’ve determined it’s corrupted.

This article is designed for computer users with beginner to intermediate skills. Printing this article might make it easier to follow the steps.

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Damaged Document or Software Issue?

A Word document can become corrupted for various reasons, preventing you from opening it. This issue might stem from damage to the document itself or the template it’s based on. Signs of a damaged document can include:

• Pages renumbering themselves repeatedly.
• Page breaks constantly readjusting.
• Incorrect document layout and formatting.
• Unreadable characters appearing on the screen.
• Error messages during processing.
• Computer freezing when opening the file.
• Any other unexpected behavior not typical of normal program operation.

Sometimes, these symptoms can be caused by factors other than document corruption. It’s crucial to determine if the document is genuinely damaged or if the problem lies with the software. To rule out other factors, follow these steps:

1. Check for similar behavior in other documents. Try opening other Word documents to see if the same problem occurs. If other documents open without issue, the problem is likely with the specific Word document.
2. Check for similar behavior in other Microsoft Office programs. If problems occur across different Office applications, the issue might be with another application or the operating system itself.

If these checks suggest the problem isn’t document-specific, you’ll need to troubleshoot Word, the Office suite, or your computer’s operating system.

Troubleshooting Steps When a Damaged Document Won’t Open

Try these methods in the order presented. If one doesn’t work, proceed to the next.

Method 1: Open in Draft Mode Without Updating Links

Step 1: Configure Word

1. Launch Word.
2. Go to the View tab and select Draft in the Views group.
3. Click the File Menu, then Options, and then Advanced.
4. In the Show document content section, check Use draft font in Draft and Outline views and Show picture placeholders.
5. Scroll to the General section, uncheck Update automatic links at open, click OK, and close Word.

Step 2: Open the Damaged Document

1. Start Word.
2. Click the File Menu, and then select Open.
3. Choose the damaged document and click Open.

If the document opens, close it and reopen using Method 6 to attempt repair. If not, proceed to Method 2.

Method 2: Insert as File into a New Document

Step 1: Create a New Blank Document

1. Click the File Menu, and then select New.
2. Choose Blank document, and then click Create.

Step 2: Insert the Damaged Document

1. Go to the Insert tab, select Insert Object, and then choose Text From File.
2. In the Insert File dialog box, find and select the damaged document. Then, click Insert.

Note: You might need to reapply some formatting to the last section of the new document.

Method 3: Create a Link to the Damaged Document

Step 1: Create a Blank Document

1. In Word, click the File Menu, and then select New.
2. Select Blank document, and then click Create.
3. In the new document, type “This is a test.”
4. Click the File Menu, and then select Save.
5. Type “Rescue link,” and then click Save.

Step 2: Create Link

1. Select the text you typed in step 1-3.
2. On the Home tab, click Copy in the Clipboard group.
3. Click the File Menu, and then select New.
4. Select Blank document, and then click Create.
5. On the Home tab, click the arrow on the Paste button in the Clipboard group, and then select Paste Special.
6. Choose Paste link, select Formatted Text (RTF).
7. Click OK.

Step 3: Change the Link to the Damaged Document

1. Right-click the linked text, point to Linked Document Object, and then select Links.
2. In the Links dialog box, select the file name of the linked document, and then click Change Source.
3. In the Change Source dialog box, select the document that won’t open, and then click Open.
4. Click OK to close the Links dialog box.

Note: If there’s recoverable data or text, it will appear from the damaged document.

5. Right-click the linked text, point to Linked Document Object, and then select Links.
6. In the Links dialog box, click Break Link.
7. When prompted with “Are you sure you want to break the selected links?”, click Yes.

Method 4: Use the “Recover Text from Any File” Converter

Note: This converter has limitations. Document formatting, graphics, fields, drawing objects, and non-text items will be lost. However, field text, headers, footers, footnotes, and endnotes are retained as plain text.

1. In Word, click the File Menu, and then select Open.
2. In the Files of type box, select Recover Text from Any File(.).
3. Select the document you want to recover text from.
4. Click Open.

After recovery, some binary data text might remain, primarily at the beginning and end of the document. Delete this binary data before saving as a Word document.

Note: In Word 2007, if there’s no File button, use the Office Button and follow the instructions.

Troubleshooting Steps When You Can Open the Damaged Document

Method 1: Copy All But the Last Paragraph Mark to a New Document

Step 1: Create a New Document

1. In Word, select File on the Ribbon, and then select New.
2. Select Blank document, and then click Create.

Step 2: Open the Damaged Document

1. Select File on the Ribbon, and then select Open.
2. Select the damaged document, and then click Open.

Step 3: Copy and Paste Content to the New Document

Note: For documents with section breaks, copy only text between breaks. Avoid copying section breaks as they might transfer the damage. Use draft view for copying and pasting between documents to prevent section break transfer. To switch to draft view, go to the View tab and select Draft in the Document Views group.

1. In the damaged document, press CTRL+END, then CTRL+SHIFT+HOME.
2. On the Home tab, click Copy in the Clipboard group.
3. On the View tab, select Switch Windows in the Window group.
4. Select the new document created in step 1.
5. On the Home tab, click Paste in the Clipboard group.

If the issue persists, proceed to Method 8.

Method 2: Change the Document Template

Step 1: Identify the Document Template

1. Open the damaged document in Word.
2. Select File on the Ribbon, and then select Options.
3. Select Add-Ins.
4. In the Manage box, select Templates under View and manage Office add-ins.
5. Click Go. The Document template box displays the current template. If it’s Normal, go to step 2. Otherwise, go to step 3.

Step 2: Rename the Global Template (Normal.dotm)

1. Exit Word.
2. Click the Start button.
3. Search for normal.dotm in your operating system. It’s typically located at: %userprofile%appdataroamingmicrosofttemplates
4. Right-click Normal.dotm, and then select Rename.
5. Type “Oldword.old”, and press ENTER.
6. Close File Explorer.
7. Start Word and open the document.

Step 3: Change the Document Template

1. Open the damaged document in Word.
2. Select File on the Ribbon, and then select Options.
3. Select Add-Ins.
4. In the Manage box, select Templates, and then click Go.
5. Click Attach.
6. In the Templates folder, select Normal.dotm, and then click Open.
7. Click OK to close the Templates and Add-ins dialog box.
8. Exit Word.

Step 4: Verify Template Change

1. Start Word.
2. Select File on the Ribbon, and then select Open.
3. Select the damaged document, and then click Open.

If problems continue, proceed to Method 3.

Method 3: Start Word with Default Settings

Use the /a switch to launch Word using only default settings, without loading add-ins or using your existing Normal.dotm template.

Step 1: Start Word with the /a Switch

1. Exit Word.

2. Click the Start button and search for Run. In the Run dialog box, type:

   winword.exe /a

Step 2: Open the Document

1. In Word, select File on the Ribbon, and then select Open.
2. Select the damaged document, and then click Open.

If issues persist, proceed to Method 4.

Method 4: Change Printer Drivers

Step 1: Try a Different Printer Driver

1. Search for “Devices and Printers” in your operating system.
2. Click Add a printer.
3. In the Add Printer dialog box, select Add a local printer.
4. Choose Use an existing port, and then click Next.
5. In the Manufacturer list, select Microsoft.
6. Select Microsoft XPS Document Writer, and then click Next.
7. Choose Use the driver that is currently installed (recommended), and then click Next.
8. Check Set as the default printer, and then click Next.
9. Click Finish.

Step 2: Verify Printer Driver Change

1. Start Word.
2. Select File on the Ribbon, and then select Open.
3. Select the damaged document, and then click Open.

If problems continue, go to step 3.

Step 3: Reinstall Original Printer Driver

Windows 10 and Windows 7:

1. Search for “Printers” in your operating system.

2. Select your original default printer, and then click Delete.

   If prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, enter it or click Continue.

3. If asked to remove all files associated with the printer, click Yes.

4. Click Add a printer or scanner, and follow the Add Printer Wizard instructions to reinstall the printer driver.

Step 4: Verify Printer Driver Reinstallation

1. Start Word.
2. Select File on the Ribbon, and then select Open.
3. Select the damaged document, and then click Open.

If problems persist, proceed to Method 5.

Method 5: Force Word to Repair the File

Step 1: Repair Document

In Word, select File on the Ribbon, and then select Open.

1. In the Open dialog box, single-click to highlight your Word document.
2. Click the arrow on the Open button, and then select Open and Repair.

Step 2: Verify Repair

Check if the unusual behavior is resolved. If it continues, restart Windows and proceed to Method 6.

Method 6: Change Document Format and Convert Back to Word Format

Step 1: Open the Document

1. Start Word.
2. Select File on the Ribbon, and then select Open.
3. Select the damaged document, and then click Open.

Step 2: Save in a Different File Format

1. Select File on the Ribbon, and then select Save as.
2. Select Other Formats.
3. In the Save as file type list, select Rich Text Format (*.rtf).
4. Click Save.
5. Select File on the Ribbon, and then select Close.

Step 3: Reopen and Convert Back to Word Format

1. In Word, select File, and then select Open.
2. Select the converted document, and then click Open.
3. Select File, and then select Save as.
4. Choose Word Document for the Save As type.
5. Rename the document and click Save.

Step 4: Verify Format Conversion

Check if the strange behavior is gone. If it persists, try saving in other formats, repeating steps 1-4 with these formats in order:

• Webpage (.htm; .html)
• Any other word processing format
• Plain Text (.txt)

Note: Saving as Plain Text (.txt) might resolve damage, but all formatting, macros, and graphics will be lost. Reformatting will be necessary. Use Plain Text (.txt) only if other formats fail.

If problems continue, proceed to Method 7.

Method 7: Copy Undamaged Parts to a New Document

Step 1: Create a New Document

1. In Word, select File, and then select New.
2. Select Blank document, and then click Create.

Step 2: Open the Damaged Document

1. Select File, and then select Open.
2. Select the damaged document, and then click Open.

Step 3: Copy and Paste Undamaged Parts

Note: When copying from documents with section breaks, copy only text between breaks and avoid copying the breaks themselves. Use draft view to prevent transferring section breaks during copy/paste.

1. In the damaged document, select an undamaged section of content.
2. On the Home tab, click Copy in the Clipboard group.
3. On the View tab, select Switch Windows in the Window group.
4. Select the new document from step 1.
5. On the Home tab, click Paste in the Clipboard group.
6. Repeat steps 3a-3e for each undamaged section. You’ll need to reconstruct damaged parts manually.

Method 8: Switch Document View to Remove Damaged Content

If the document seems truncated (not all pages are visible), switching views might help remove damaged content.

1. Determine the page number where truncation starts.
   1. In Word, select File, and then select Open.
   2. Select the damaged document, and then click Open.
   3. Scroll to the last visible page before truncation. Note the content on that page.
2. Switch views and remove damaged content.
   1. On the View tab, in the Document Views group, select Web Layout or Draft view.
   2. Scroll to the content noted before truncation.
   3. Select and delete the next paragraph, table, or object.
   4. On the View tab, in the Document Views group, select Print Layout. If truncation persists, continue switching views and deleting content until it’s resolved in Print Layout view.
   5. Save the document.

Method 9: Open the Document with Notepad

If corruption is severe and other methods fail, try recovering content by opening the document with Notepad.

Note: All formatting will be lost, but the goal is content recovery.

1. Locate the damaged document in Windows File Explorer.

2. Right-click the document and select Open with.

3. Select Notepad.

4. The document opens in Notepad with extra code and text around the content.

   Note: You might need to change the file type from “Text Documents (.txt)” to “All Files (.)”.*

5. Clean the text by deleting most of the extra characters.

6. Select File, and then Save As… Rename the document to avoid overwriting the damaged original.

Return to Word and open the new document. You can then clean it up and attempt to reapply lost formatting.