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I'm sorry but this may just be a client-side issue. We often have issues with Office and have to either have to repair Office, re-connect the Plugin, or in more dire situations, recreate their user profile on their machine. If this Plugin requires either a Service, Feature, or Solution on the SharePoint side, you may want to try to. This article is about troubleshooting missing add-ins in Office. The troubleshooting steps described reference Templafy VSTO add-ins, however the same steps can be used for the Templafy SlideProof add-in which is specific to PowerPoint. Sections in this article: Check if Templafy add-ins are enabled in an Office application.

1. Microsoft Word Error Loading Add Ins
2. Error Loading Add Ins Word
3. Error Loading Add-ins Word 2016 File

(Helper Files/Programs That Sometimes Cause Problem)

This page last revised: 08 Jul 2021 14:20:31 -0400 .

People are often directed to this page because they are receiving a query about whether they want to save changes to the attached template (the normal template). The converse of this also happens where they try to save changes to the normal template and are prevented from doing so (without notice). Such changes are things like modification of styles, recorded macros, and saved AutoText or AutoCorrect. These problems are usually symptoms of a poorly-written Add-In for Word. (If in a corporate network, the problems can also be caused by group polices or automatic rewriting of the normal template. This is becoming rare as IT professionals learn of those problems.)

Inactive Application Add-ins. Most likely when the addon worked before on the system, then it got somehow disabled. This could happen when there was a previous loading problem or long running action where the user aborted the start of PowerPoint, or maybe PowerPoint crashed last time. In July 2016, Microsoft released a flawed Office security update that prevents many VBA add-ins (including Macabacus Lite) from loading when starting Excel 2016, 2013, or 2010. This update leaves hundreds of thousands (or more) of Excel users wondering why their add-ins are suddenly not loading. The Wikipedia app works with Word and Excel 2013 or later, on Word and Excel 2016 for Mac, on Word and Excel for iPad as well as on Word and Excel Online. RefWorks for Word - £11.99/y l The RefWorks app lets you insert in-text citations directly from your Word documents, move and remove citations and auto-generate or update your bibliography.

Background

Microsoft Word, at least since Word 97, has allowed third parties, including users, to change the program's interface with the user by adding menus, toolbars, ribbons, macros, keyboard shortcuts, and other building blocks or components. In Word 97 this was done only by using Global Templates loaded as Add-ins, usually Startup FolderThe Alert to Save Changes to the Normal Template Should Be Switched 'ON'

Word has an option to alert the user if changes are about to be saved to the normal template upon exiting Word. This option should be kept on. Recent versions of Word install with this turned 'off.' You want it turned on. The normal template is a key component of Word. You do not want changes made to it unless you approve them. I suspect it was turned off as a part of installation because of the number of calls to Microsoft and to corporate IT departments caused by poorly-written Add-Ins triggering the alert.

In ribbon versions of Word, this setting is in the Word Options - Advanced.

The Word 97-2003 dialog appears below. Tools > Options > Save

I tell people this is Word's equivalent to the smoke alarm. If it keeps buzzing, something is wrong that needs fixing. The solution to the problem is not taking the battery out of the smoke alarm, or switching off this alert.

Short-term Work-Arounds for Change Default Problems Caused by Poorly-Written Add-Ins

These are called 'short-term work-arounds' because they don't fix the problem but they let you get your work done until you can take the time to fix the problem.

Unable to save changes to defaults, changes to the normal template

You can open the normal template directly, make your changes there, and save. This will almost always defeat the blocking done by Add-Ins.

Note: You do not open the normal template (or any template in Word) by double-clicking on it.

Note: In Ribbon versions of Word you may want to be Changing Style Defaults in the Manage Styles dialog.

One solution to these problems is to start Word without loading Add-Ins. This is done through the command-line switch /a. Doing this is a useful diagnostic tool; it lets you pin down that an Add-In is the source of your problem. It is not how you want to run Word, though. Add-Ins can be very helpful in using Word or in using Word with other programs such as Adobe Acrobat. They can make your life easier. Here is a link to some of the free template Add-Ins I've developed. I use a number developed by others as well.

To start Word without loading Add-Ins you use the following command in the Run Window under the Start Menu:

winword.exe /a (note the space before /a)

In Windows XP and later, you can get to the Run window by pressing the Windows key with the letter R.

(In Windows 8 or later, the run command can be found among the Windows Apps between Help and Task Manager. You can also use the search bar and click on the result that shows up. - See below.

If you have multiple versions of Word installed on your computer and this launches the wrong version, you will have to find the actual path to the winword.exe file that runs the version you want. Word 2016 should be in the folder labeled Office16. Word 2013 should be in a folder labeled Office15. Word 2010 should be in a folder labeled Office14. Word 2007 will be in a folder labeled Office12. Word 2003 will be in a folder labeled Office11. Word 97 will be in a folder labeled Office.

Annoying Message about Saving Changes to the Normal Template

Again, you do not want to turn off the alert.

Solving an Add-In Problem - the Long-Term Method

Note

Office 365 ProPlus is being renamed to Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise. For more information about this change, read this blog post.

Summary

If you have the Adobe Acrobat PDFMaker Office COM add-in installed on your computer and your Office programs are crashing or not responding, this might mean that the version of PDFMaker you have installed is incompatible with your version of Office.

More information

To verify that the PDFMaker add-in is installed on your computer, do the following:

• Office 2010: Open any Office application, and then select File > Add-Ins.
• Office 2013 and later versions, select File > Options > Add-Ins. Next to Manage COM Add-ins select Go. You will see a dialog box that resembles the following screenshot:

To resolve this issue, use one of the following methods:

Method 1: Upgrade your Adobe product

Note

Fees may apply when you upgrade your Adobe product.

See Compatible web browsers and PDFMaker applications to determine which version of the Adobe Acrobat PDFMaker Office COM add-in is compatible with your Office version. If your version isn't compatible, try to upgrade your Adobe product to a later version that's compatible with your Office version.

If you're an advanced user and want to check the PDFMOfficeAddin.dll version compatibility, see the following table.

Method 2: Manually disable Acrobat PDFMaker Office COM Add-in

If you have administrative permissions, you can also disable the add-in by following these steps in each Office program:

1. Open the Office program, and then select File > Options > Add-ins.
2. In the Manage drop-down list, select COM Add-Ins, and then select Go.
3. Clear the Acrobat PDFMaker Office COM Addin check box, as follows (Office 2010 screen shot), and then select OK.

If you cannot disable the add-in by following these steps, use one of the following methods.

Important

Follow the steps in this section carefully. Serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Before you modify it, back up the registry for restoration in case problems occur.

First, exit the Office program that you're having issues with when the PDFMaker add-in is loaded, and then use one of the following methods to start Registry Editor.

Windows 8

From the Start screen, type CMD. In the results pane, swipe down on Command Prompt to reveal the charm bar, then select Run as administrator on the charm bar. If you are using a mouse, right-click the Command Prompt to reveal the charm bar.

Windows 7, Windows Vista, or Windows XP

1. Select Start > All Programs > Accessories.
2. Right-click the Command Prompt, and then select Run as administrator.

Select the Office program that you're having problems with, and then use the appropriate method, as follows, to manually disable the PDFMaker add-in.

Access, Excel, Word, PowerPoint, or Publisher

Microsoft Word Error Loading Add Ins

Note

The <Office program> placeholder represents the name of the Office program that you're having issues with when the PDFMaker add-in was installed.

1. Locate and select the following registry key:

   HKEY_CURRENT_USERsoftwaremicrosoftoffice<Office program>addinsPdfmaker.OfficeAddin

   1. If the PDFmaker.<Office program>Addin key exists, modify the Load Behavior value under the key to 0, and then go to step 2.
   2. If the PDFmaker.<Office program>Addin key does not exist, go to step 2.

2. Repeat step 1 with each of the following registry keys:

   • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESoftwareMicrosoftOffice<Office program>AddinsPDFMaker.OfficeAddin
   • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESoftwareWow6432NodeMicrosoftOffice<Office program>AddinsPDFMaker.OfficeAddin

3. Exit Registry Editor, and then start the Office program.

Outlook

1. Locate and select the following registry key:

   HKEY_CURRENT_USERsoftwaremicrosoftofficeOutlookaddinsPdfmOutlook.PDFMOutlook

   1. If the PdfmOutlook.PDFMOutlook key exists, modify the Load Behavior value under the key to 0, and then go to step 2.
   2. If the PdfmOutlook.PDFMOutlook key does not exist, go to step 2.

2. Repeat step 1 with each of the following registry keys:

   • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINEsoftwaremicrosoftofficeOutlookaddinsPdfmOutlook.PDFMOutlook
   • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESoftwareWow6432NodeMicrosoftOfficeOutlookAddinsPdfmOutlook.PDFMOutlook

3. Exit Registry Editor, and then start Outlook.

Visio

1. Find and select the following key in the registry:

   HKEY_CURRENT_USERsoftwaremicrosoftVisioaddinsPDFMVisio.PDFMVisioCOMAddin

   1. If the PDFMVisio.PDFMVisioCOMAddin exists, modify the Load Behavior value under the key to 0, and then go to step 2.
   2. If the PDFMVisio.PDFMVisioCOMAddin key does not exist, go to step 2.

   Note

   This registry path does not include the Office subkey as do the registry paths used by other Office programs.

2. Repeat step 1 with each of the following registry keys:

   • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINEsoftwaremicrosoftVisioaddinsPDFMVisio.PDFMVisioCOMAddin
   • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESoftwareWow6432NodeMicrosoftVisioaddinsPDFMVisio.PDFMVisioCOMAddin

3. Exit the Registry Editor and open Visio.

Error Loading Add Ins Word

Third-party information disclaimer

The third-party products that this article discusses are manufactured by companies that are independent of Microsoft. Microsoft makes no warranty, implied or otherwise, about the performance or reliability of these products.

Error Loading Add-ins Word 2016 File

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