Microsoft to Fix Word Bug Causing Unexpected File Deletions

Microsoft has confirmed a new issue that causes Word documents to be unexpectedly deleted when saved.

Published: Oct 08, 2024

Hero approved Microsoft 365

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Key Takeaways:

  • Microsoft is investigating a bug that is causing Word files to be deleted unexpectedly when saved.
  • Microsoft recommends users manually save documents before closing Word.
  • Microsoft has acknowledged the problem and is investigating it, with a fix expected in a future update.

Microsoft is working to fix a new bug that unexpectedly deletes Word files when users attempt to save them. This bug is currently affecting all users running Word for Microsoft 365 version 2409.

Microsoft officially acknowledged the issue in a support document published on October 3. The company mentioned that the deletion bug occurs when users save a Word document with a capitalized file extension. It can also be triggered by including a ‘#’ character in the file name.

“Users may encounter an issue in version 2409 where their file is deleted after save if the title contains a capitalized file extension (.DOCX, .RTF) or #. The issue occurs after making an edit to the file and saving when prompted after trying to close Word,” Microsoft explained.

Workarounds for the Microsoft Word file deletion bug

Fortunately, deleted files are not permanently lost; instead, Microsoft Word moves them to the Recycle Bin. The Word team is actively investigating the issue, and a fix is expected in a future update. In the meantime, Microsoft advises users to manually save all Word documents before closing the app to avoid encountering the bug.

Alternatively, Microsoft Word users can navigate to the File menu, select Options, and then click on the Save tab. From there, users should enable the option labeled “Don’t show the Backstage when opening or saving files with keyboard shortcuts.”

Finally, Microsoft advises that users can temporarily resolve this issue by reverting to a previous version until a fix is released. To do this, users need to open the command prompt with administrative privileges and run the following commands.

  • cd %programfiles%\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\ClickToRun
  • officec2rclient.exe /update user updatetoversion=17928.20156

Last month, Microsoft confirmed a bug that caused Word, Outlook, and OneNote to crash unexpectedly while typing. Users can resolve this issue by performing an online repair of the Office app or by reinstalling the language pack.

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