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How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word

After using Microsoft Word for multiple different projects, you may notice that the program no longer runs quite the way it did when it was first installed. The default settings for one or more features-- for instance, styles, fonts,...
Method 1 of 2:

For PCs

  1. How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word Picture 1How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word Picture 1
    Choose the Run option from the Start menu. This displays the Run dialog box.
  2. How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word Picture 2How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word Picture 2
    In the "Open" box, type in "regedit." Click "OK" to start the Regedit program.
    1. If you are using Word 2010, select the HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Microsoft/Office/14.0/Word .
    2. If you are using Word 2007, select the HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Microsoft/Office/12.0/Word .
    3. If you are using Word 2003, select the HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Microsoft/Office/11.0/Word .
    4. If you are using Word 2002, select the HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Microsoft/Office/10.0/Word .
    5. If you are using Word 2000, select the HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Microsoft/Office/9.0/Word .
  3. How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word Picture 3How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word Picture 3
    Press the Delete key. A prompt will ask if you really want to delete the key. Select "Yes."
  4. How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word Picture 4How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word Picture 4
    Close the Registry Editor.
  5. How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word Picture 5How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word Picture 5
    Restart Microsoft Word. It should now be restored to default settings.
Method 2 of 2:

For Macs

  1. How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word Picture 6How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word Picture 6
    Quit all Microsoft Office applications.
  2. How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word Picture 7How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word Picture 7
    Using your "Finder," navigate to the "~/Library/Preferences" folder ("~" is a shorthand for your user account name).
  3. How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word Picture 8How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word Picture 8
    Drag all of the files for Microsoft Word to the desktop. These files will differ depending on the version of Microsoft Word you have:
    1. For Word 2008, select:
      ~/Library/Preferences/com.microsoft.Word.plist

      ~/Library/Preferences/com.microsoft.office.plist
      ~/Library/Preferences/Microsoft/Office 2008/Office Font Cache
    2. For Word 2004, select:
      ~/Library/Preferences/Microsoft/com.microsoft.Word.prefs.plist
      ~/Library/Preferences/Microsoft/com.microsoft.Office.prefs.plist
      ~/Library/Preferences/Microsoft/Office Font Cache
    3. For Word X, select:

      ~/Library/Preferences /Microsoft/Word Settings
      ~/Library/Preferences /Microsoft/Microsoft Component Preferences
      ~/Library/Preferences /Microsoft/Microsoft Office Settings
      ~/Library/Preferences/Microsoft/Carbon Registration Database
      ~/Library/Preferences/Microsoft/Office Font Cache
  4. How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word Picture 9How to Restore Factory Settings in Microsoft Word Picture 9
    Microsoft Word should now be successfully reset. If everything works as expected, you can delete the files you dragged to your desktop.
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