WD97: Problem Saving Normal.dot on Computer with Multiple Users

If you perform a local installation of Word 97 and then turn on User Profiles so that the local installation of Word is shared by several people using the same computer, you may have problems with the way the Normal.dot file is managed. For example, you may notice the following symptoms:

• You receive an error message about the Normal.dot file being read-only.
• You inherit settings and options that belong to other users.
• You are unable to customize certain options.

In a local installation, the template location is not unique for each user. For the first user, the Normal.dot file is created in the correct location (\Program Files\Microsoft Office \Templates). When subsequent users log on, the location of the Normal.dot is replicated, so Word defaults to the \Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office directory and creates another Normal.dot there.

Method 1: Manually Change the User Templates Location

In order to customize each instance of Word, each user must have a unique copy of the Normal.dot file. The location of the Normal.dot file is controlled by a customization setting. To change the location of the Normal.dot so that it will be unique for each user, follow these steps:

1. Create a unique folder for each user.
2. Have the user log on to the computer.
3. Start Word.
4. On the Tools menu, click Options.
5. Click the File Locations tab.
6. Click the User Templates setting and click Modify.
7. Navigate to the unique folder you created in step 1 and click OK.
   
   If you want copies of the Office Templates for each user, you can copy the Office Templates from the \Program Files\Microsoft Office\Templates folder to the folder you created in step 1.

If you want the users to share the Office templates, follow these steps:

1. Have the user log on the computer.
2. Start Word.
3. On the Tools menu, click Options.
4. Click the File Locations tab.
5. Click the Workgroup Templates setting and click Modify.
6. Navigate to the Office Templates folder (the most likely location for this folder is \Program Files\Microsoft Office\Templates), and click OK.

Now, when you click New on the File menu, you will see a combination of the User Templates (the user's Normal.dot and other user-specific templates) and Workgroup templates (the templates the user is sharing with other users).

Method 2: Perform a Server/Workstation Installation

To perform an Administrative setup on the computer and then perform a Workstation setup for each user, use the following steps:

1. Create a unique folder for each user and a folder for the server installation of Word.
2. Log in as the administrator and run the "setup /a" command on the server folder on the computer.
3. Log on as one of the users and perform a workstation installation. Install to the user's unique folder you created in step 1. Repeat this step for each user.

This will install the program files to the server folder and create a Normal.dot template for each user on the system.

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article.

The User Templates setting is typically used to indicate a location for templates that you may want to customize. Generally, the Normal.dot file is stored in this location so that users can save changes (such as a default font, custom styles, and so on) to their work environments.

The Workgroup Templates setting is typically used to indicate a location for templates that are shared with other users. Because multiple users will be using the same templates in this situation, either no users will be able to save changes to the templates (if they are marked as read only), or only the first user will be able to save changes to the template (the first user gets full control or the template and the other users get read only access).

The following components are stored in the Normal.dot global template. Customization of any of these features will require a separate Normal.dot file for each user: If you install Office using a Run From Server setup, rather than by performing a local installation, the effects are slightly different. The first time the new user quits Word, the user will see a message stating that the Normal.dot has been changed, but the changes can't be saved because the file is read-only. The User Templates path in the registry for this user is pointing to the Office folder, which in this case is on the server, and is read-only.

NOTE: The message is slightly misleading. The Normal.dot does not yet exist in that location. Word is trying to save a new, default Normal.dot for this user in the User Templates location.

To work around this situation, use one of the workarounds listed in the "Workaround" section of this article.

For more information about Normal.dot and templates, please see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: For more information about "user templates and workgroup templates," click the Office Assistant, type "workgroup templates," click Search, and then click one of the following topics: For more information about performing a server install, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: