Article ID: 905248 - Last Review: January 15, 2007 - Revision: 2.5

Custom changes that you made in the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT subtree are overwritten after you update or repair the Office installation

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Important This article contains information about how to modify the registry. Make sure to back up the registry before you modify it. Make sure that you know how to restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up, restore, and modify the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
256986  (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/256986/ ) Description of the Microsoft Windows registry
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SYMPTOMS

Consider the following scenario. You make custom changes to the registry settings in the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT subtree. Then, you update or repair the Microsoft Office installation. In this scenario, the custom changes that you made in the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT subtree are overwritten with the original settings.
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CAUSE

When the Microsoft Windows Installer performs a per-machine installation of Office, the settings that appear in the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT subtree are actually written to the following registry subkey:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Classes
When you update or repair the Office installation, these settings are rewritten based on the installation logic of the Office Setup program. Any custom changes that you made to registry settings in the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT subtree are overwritten.
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WORKAROUND

Warning Serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly by using Registry Editor or by using another method. These problems might require that you reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that these problems can be solved. Modify the registry at your own risk.

To work around this behavior, make your custom changes in the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes subkey. When you update or repair the Office installation, the changes that you made will not be overwritten.
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MORE INFORMATION

In Microsoft Windows 2000 and in later versions of Windows, information that is stored in the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT subtree is a combination of the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE subtree and of the HKEY_CURRENT_USER subtree. The HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Classes subkey contains default settings that can apply to all users on the local computer. The HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes subkey contains settings that override the default settings. Additionally, these settings apply only to the interactive user. The HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT subtree provides a view of the registry that merges the information from these two sources.

For more information about the Windows registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
256986  (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/256986/ ) Description of the Microsoft Windows registry
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APPLIES TO
  • Microsoft Office Professional Edition 2003
  • Microsoft Office Standard Edition 2003
  • Microsoft Office Small Business Edition 2003
  • Microsoft Office Basic Edition 2003
  • Microsoft Office Access 2003
  • Microsoft Office OneNote 2003
  • Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2003
  • Microsoft Office Publisher 2003
  • Microsoft Office XP Small Business Edition
  • Microsoft Office XP Standard Edition
  • Microsoft Access 2002 Standard Edition
  • Microsoft Excel 2002 Standard Edition
  • Microsoft FrontPage 2002 Standard Edition
  • Microsoft Outlook 2002 Standard Edition
  • Microsoft PowerPoint 2002 Standard Edition
  • Microsoft Publisher 2002 Standard Edition
  • Microsoft Word 2002
  • Microsoft Office 2000 Professional Edition
  • Microsoft Office 2000 Premium Edition
  • Microsoft Office 2000 Small Business Edition
  • Microsoft Office 2000 Standard Edition
  • Microsoft Access 2000 Standard Edition
  • Microsoft Excel 2000 Standard Edition
  • Microsoft FrontPage 2000 Standard Edition
  • Microsoft Outlook 2000 Standard Edition
  • Microsoft PowerPoint 2000 Standard Edition
  • Microsoft Publisher 2000 Standard Edition
  • Microsoft Word 2000
  • Microsoft Office Basic 2007
  • Microsoft Office Enterprise 2007
  • Microsoft Office Home and Student 2007
  • Microsoft Office Professional 2007
  • Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2007
  • Microsoft Office Standard 2007
  • Microsoft Office Ultimate 2007
  • Microsoft Office Word 2007
  • Microsoft Office Visio Professional 2007
  • Microsoft Office Visio Standard 2007
  • Microsoft Office Publisher 2007
  • Microsoft Office Project Professional 2007
  • Microsoft Office Project Standard 2007
  • Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007
  • Microsoft Office Outlook 2007
  • Microsoft Office Outlook 2007 with Business Contact Manager
  • Microsoft Office OneNote 2007
  • Microsoft Office Excel 2007
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Keywords: 
kbsetup kbtshoot kbprb KB905248
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