Article: KB-WRDSWTCH

The information in this article applies to:
Microsoft Word 2002
Microsoft Word 2000

Summary

This article describes the command-line switches that can be used to start Word and their purpose. Some of these switches are also described in Word Help. For more information about startup switches, click Microsoft Word Help on the Help menu, type control what happens when you start word in the Office Assistant or the Answer Wizard, and then click Search to view the topics returned.

More Information

To use a command-line switch to start Word, use one of the following methods.

Method 1: Use the Run Command

1. Click Start and then click Run.
2. Click Browse.
3. Locate the Office folder, select Winword.exe, and then click Open. The Winword.exe file is located in the following folder by default:

C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office

NOTE: The path to Winword.exe is enclosed in quotation marks.

4. Click in the Open box, and then reposition the insertion point outside of (to the right of) the closing quotation mark at the end of the path statement.
5. Type a space, followed by the switch that you want to use. For example, if you want to start Word and prevent the loading of add-ins and global templates, type the following in the Open box, including the quotation marks:

"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office\Winword.exe" /a

Method 2: Use a Shortcut

Follow these steps to create a shortcut to start Microsoft Word from the Windows desktop:

1. Right-click the Windows desktop, point to New on the shortcut menu that appears, and then click Shortcut.
2. In the Create Shortcut dialog box, click Browse.
3. In the Browse dialog box, change the Look in box to the following folder:

C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office

NOTE: This location of this folder may be different on your system.

4. Click the Winword.exe file, and then click Open.
5. Click in the Command-line box, and then position the insertion point at the end of the path listed. The path listed in the Command-line box should look similar to the following:

"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office\Winword.exe"

6. After the closing quotation mark, type a space and then type the switch that you want. The path listed in the Command-line box should now look similar to the following:

"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office\Winword.exe" /a

7. In the Create Shortcut dialog box, click Next.
8. In the Select a name for the shortcut box, type the name of your new shortcut, and then click Finish.

Method Notes

If you put the switch inside the closing quotation mark and then click OK, you receive one of the following error messages:
Cannot find the file 'C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office\Winword.exe /a' (or one of its components). Make sure the path and filename are correct and that all required libraries are available.
-or-
Windows cannot find 'D:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office10\WINWORD.EXE /a'. Make sure you typed the name correctly, and then try again. To search for a file, click the Start button, and then click Search.
If you specify a path or file name that contains spaces after a switch, enclose the path in quotation marks. For example, if you want to start Word and automatically create a document based on the Contemporary Fax template, the switch should look similar to the following:
/t"c:\program files\microsoft office\templates\1033\contemporary fax.dot"
Therefore, the complete startup command would be similar to the following:
"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office\Winword.exe" /t"c:\program files\microsoft office\templates\1033\contemporary fax.dot"
This is also true for the /l switch.

List of Word Startup Switches

The following Word startup (command-line) switches are listed in Word Help.

/a Starts Word and prevents add-ins and global templates (including the Normal template) from being loaded automatically.
The /a switch also locks the setting files; that is, the setting files cannot be read or modified if you use this switch.

/laddinpath Starts Word and then loads a specific Word add-in.

/m Starts a new instance of Word without running any AutoExec macros.

/mfilen Starts Word and then opens the specified file on the Most Recently Used (MRU) list on the File menu.

/mmacroname Starts Word and then runs a specific macro. The /m switch also prevents Word from running any AutoExec macros.

/n Starts a new instance of Word with no document open. Documents opened in each instance of Word will not appear as choices in the Window menu of other instances.

/ttemplatename Starts Word with a new document based on a template other than the Normal template.

/w Starts a new instance of Word with a blank document. Documents opened in each instance of Word will not appear as choices in the Window menu of the other instances.

(no switch) A new Word window is opened with a blank document using the existing instance of the Word program.

Note: To suppress automatic macros without using switches, hold down SHIFT while you start Word. If you start Word from the Microsoft Office Shortcut Bar, click the button for the program on the Office Shorcut Bar first, and then immediately hold down SHIFT whil Word start.

The following Word startup (command-line) switches are not listed in Word Help.

/c Starts a new instance of Word and then invokes NetMeeting.

/q Starts Word without displaying the Word splash screen. This switch is only available in Word 2000 Service Release 1 (SR-1).

/r Starts Word in the background, makes changes in the Windows registry, and then quits. This switch forces a re-register of Word in the Windows registry.

/u Has no effect and does not start Word.

/x Starts a new instance of Word from the operating shell (for example, to print in Word). This instance of Word responds to only one DDE request and ignores all other DDE requests and multi-instances. If you are starting a new instance of Word in the operating environment (for example, in Windows), it is recommended that you use the /w switch, which starts a fully functioning instance.

User-Initiated Safe Mode

/safe or pressing CTRL while you start the program

When you start Microsoft Word in "user-initiated" Office Safe Mode, the following restrictions apply:

Templates cannot be saved.
The Office Assistant is not automatically displayed.
Toolbar or command bar customizations are not loaded and customizations cannot be saved.
The AutoCorrect list is not loaded and changes are not saved.
Recovered documents are not automatically opened.
Smart tags are not loaded and new tags cannot be saved.
All command line options are ignored except "/a" and "/n".
User preferences (on the Tools menu, click Options) cannot be saved.
Additional features and programs (add-ins) will not automatically be loaded.

(any other switch) Starts a new instance of Word. For example, if you start Word with just the / and no switch, or with any unlisted switch combination, Word just starts a new instance of Word with a new blank document.