Creating new normal.dot on each logon

[Steve]

On each logon to a Windows 2000 network on a Windows XP
machine Office XP starts the installer and creates a new
normal.dot template while renaming the one from the
previous session normal.dot.old. This is very annoying for
the users as they have to setup their preferances every
time that they log on. Any sugestions, have a felling it
is to do with the priveledge levels of the users.

Steve

 

[nsperry]

This is not the default behaviour of Word 2002. If a normal.dot is not
present in the users profile e.g
C:\Documents and Settings\UserName\Application Data\Microsoft\Templates,
then Word will create a default normal.dot for you. Once it has created one
or
one is present I've never heard or it by default renaming the old one.

This is the kind of scenario I've seen with a custom login script, which
forces the users to use a standard company normal.dot. The only other thing
I can think
of is that one of your systems administrators has modified the original
Office XP MSI (STD.msi or PRO.MSI) to perform the above mentioned with some
custom action or similar.

N

 

[Steve]

No the Application Data folder is redirected to the users
home directory but normal.dot is not being read. It could
be that the folder mapping is taking to long as XP does
not log on sychronously as 2000 did, resulting in drives
etc not being present until you try to access them.

Steve

 

[Nathan Sperry]

Not sure why you'd what to redirect the Application Data folder to the users Home directory, other than you don't have roaming profiles. That might be a problem but doesn't answer why it's renaming it to normal.dot.old. If it can't find thei
normal.dot then how can it rename it to normal.dot.old? so it can't be doing this on logon

Open Word and take a look in Tools>Options>File Locations Tab and where your User and Workgroup Template locations are set. Does it tie up with where think it should be or is it blank

Do you have a normal.dot located in the Workgroup locations

Does it rename to normal.dot.old when they close word or every time they logoff and Logon

Do you have a company standard normal.dot

Do you have a macro in normal.dot to rename it to normal.dot.old upon exit

Still word does not rename an exisitng normal.dot to normal.dot.old, some script or macro must be running

N

 

[Steve]

Not sure why you'd what to redirect the Application Data
folder to the users Home directory, other than you don't
have roaming profiles.

No roaming profiles as set default profiles are used.

That might be a problem but doesn't answer why it's
renaming it to normal.dot.old. If it can't find their
normal.dot then how can it rename it to normal.dot.old?
so it can't be doing this on logon.

After logon normal.dot exists in the templates directory.

Open Word and take a look in Tools>Options>File
Locations Tab and where your User and Workgroup Template
locations are set. Does it tie up with where think it
should be or is it blank?

Both the template locations are set to where they should
be - and they both work correctly under Office 2000 which
is also on the network.

Do you have a normal.dot located in the Workgroup
locations?

No each student has their own normal.dot as they have to
have access to the macros they create during the course of
the year.

Does it rename to normal.dot.old when they close word or
every time they logoff and Logon ?

It only renames it after they logoff and logon and restart
word (intsaller starts); and only if normal.dot.old does
not exist, if it exists, it deletes normal.dot.

Do you have a company standard normal.dot ?

Staff do but not students.

Do you have a macro in normal.dot to rename it to
normal.dot.old upon exit ?

No, clean install of office from network install point.

Still word does not rename an exisitng normal.dot to
normal.dot.old, some script or macro must be running.

No I think installer is doing that as it starts, i.e. it
thinks that the student is a new user each time that they
log on.

Thanks

Steve