Password prompt when clicking back after displaying word docin bro

[Marty]

Some users are experiencing the following problem:
If you use Internet Explorer to open a Word document in a Web site, and you
either click Back or close your Web browser window, you may
be prompted to type a user name and password.

I have seen the Microsoft Articles
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q306534
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;225234

However the version of word being used is "Microsoft Word 2000 9.0.6926
SP-3" - I assume this is newer than the SR-1 release recomended as a fix ?

Anyway, We have 4,500 copies of word on 100 sites accross the country
-upgrading word is not an option.

More information:
We have 2 webservers, we have deployed the same web pages (from VSS) to each
webserver.
WebserverA has NT 4/ IIS 4.0 / Frontpage extensions 2000 installed.
WebserverB has Windows 2003/IIS 6.0/ Frontpage extensions 2002 installed.
WebserverA is (was) our existing webserver. Webserver B is the "New" server
we have begun to use instead of WebserverA.

ALL users have no problems clicking "back" on word documents, when using
WebserverA.
Many, but not all users get the problem when they use WebserverB.
Originally, I had a web folder connected to webserverB, and I had the
problem. I deleted the web folder connection and now it works for me.
However, many users who have the problem using webserverB have no web folders
connected.
( I have no idea how or why I had a web folder connected and now it's
disconnected I don't know how to reconnct it. However since many
users have the problem who don't have any web folders connected I don't
think that this can be a fix.)

My assumption is that this is something to do with front page extensions.

Article Q225234 says:
These symptoms occur for the following reasons:
• The Web server is using Windows NT Challenge/Response or Basic
authentication, or both.

-and-
• Office 2000 documents are opened in a Web browser as read-write.

Does this mean IF Office 2000 documents are opened in a Web browser as
read-write, there may be problems, or does it mean there may be

problems BECAUSE Office 2000 documents are opened in a Web browser as
read-write.

If the former, I wonder if the problems are occuring because the documents
are read/write - WebserverB has Anonymous Access on and the anonymous role is
set to administrator ? However we are using Windows NT Challenge/Response.

I have tried to reproduce the problem on our development system, but in this
environment, the word application itself opens ! Also some
live users have reported this happening on WebserverB - is it related ?

 

[Sparky Polastri]

The problem occurs because of the juxposition of "collaborative intranet"
purposes and "public web site" purposes are both built into FrontPage
extensions and MS Office.

MS Word and other Office programs attempt to "collaborate" (i.e. open
read/write to make changes) when they open within a browser. That is a
function of Internet Explorer and those programs. MS fixed the problem with
later releases.

You options are a) tell your users to press cancel instead b) use a
different document format c) upgrade your Office (there are other good
reasons to do that) d) Tell Internet Explorer NOT to open those files inline
but rather download them (a function of the MIME type and possibly IE
settings, MIME type is your best bet to fix it all at once.

You could also give everybody read/write access. That would remove the
dialogue. Of course there's other problems with that.

I think FrontPage 98 extensions did not have that problem, but they have
other severe problems (remote exploits) that make it a bad option.

As far as I know, "web folders" have nothing to do with it. It's Office
with FP extensions that does it.

One thing you could try is have two separate virtual webs, one a plain ol
web with no FP extensions on the primary hostname.

Then a separate web with full FP on it for the guys doing the updating.
That way the users on the regular web aren't going to be detecting the FP
extensions are present. (I haven't tried this, but since I don't have the
problem on non-FP webs it might work.)

In any case, there isn't some magic button in IIS you can use, you just need
to figure out the path of least hassle and do that.

 

[Marty]

Thanks Sparky,
I was thinking of the two web option - the user forms that need FPSE are in
exactly 1 folder and contain no word documents, while the other 150 folders
contain word documents, but don't need Front page. The only problem I see is
that the 1 folder will have to remain under the default web site, while all
the other folders will have to be moved to another folder on the same server
and a separate Virtual directory created for each of the 150 folders. That
way, relative links will continue to work between all the pages (won't they
?). Is there a simpler way to split the folders ? It would be easier to move
the 1 folder, to a seperate web, but then I think I would have to change all
the relative links to full paths to the new web. On reflection perhaps this
would be the best bet ?

 

[Steve Easton]

Info and a fix: http://www.95isalive.com/fixes/index.htm

Bottom of the page.



--
Steve Easton
Microsoft MVP FrontPage
95isalive
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