Mso97.dll and Mso7enu.dll Errors Appear When Starting a Program

• Microsoft Office 97 for Windows
• Microsoft Excel 97 for Windows
• Microsoft Word 97 for Windows
• Microsoft Access 97
• Microsoft PowerPoint 97 for Windows
• Microsoft Outlook 97
• Microsoft Project 98 for Windows

IMPORTANT: This article contains information about editing the registry. Before you edit the registry, you should first make a backup copy of the registry files (System.dat and User.dat). Both are hidden files in the Windows folder.

SYMPTOMS

When you start any of the programs listed at the beginning of this article, you may receive either of the following error messages:

   Error Starting Program
   A required .DLL file, MSO97.DLL, was not found.

   -or-

   <Program> requires the file 'MSO7enu.DLL' to run. Run Setup again to
   assure proper installation.

CAUSE

This problem may occur if the following conditions are true:

• You run Setup from an administrative installation point and click "Run from Network Server."

  -and-

• You choose to keep all shared components on the server.

  -and-

• You then perform a Typical or a Custom installation for a stand-alone version of any of the Office programs listed at the beginning of this article from the program compact disc or from a different network server or share.

  -and-

• You start the stand-alone program.

WORKAROUND

To prevent this problem from occurring, do not install a stand-alone version of the program after you perform a "Run from Network Server" installation on the same computer. To install a stand-alone version of Microsoft Outlook after you perform a "Run from Network Server" installation of other Office 97 program, perform a "Run from Network Server" installation of Microsoft Outlook 97.

To work around this problem, use either of the following two methods.

Method 1: Copy Ms*.dll Files to the Folder Indicated in the Registry

Copy the .dll files that the program cannot find to the folder that the program searches.

WARNING: Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall Windows 95. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems resulting from the incorrect use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

To determine which folder to copy the files to, look in the registry. The following registry key indicates the folder that an Office program search for the Mso97.dll and Mso7enu.dll files:

   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\8.0\BinDirPath

If you copy Mso97.dll and Mso7enu.dll to the folder referenced by this key, you can prevent the problem from occurring. To do this, use the following steps:

1. On the Start menu, click Run. In the Open box, type "regedit" (without the quotation marks) and click OK.

2. Double-click the plus signs (+) to open the following key:

         HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\8.0
   

3. Click the folder to the left of 8.0.

4. Write down the name of the folder that appears to the right of the BinDirPath entry in the value pane. (Usually, the location is C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office.)

   The folder that is displayed is the folder in which you must copy Mso97.dll and Mso7enu.dll.

5. On the Registry menu, click Exit.

After you copy the Mso97.dll and Mso7enu.dll files to the correct folder, start the stand-alone program.

Method Two: Change the PATH Statement in Autoexec.bat

You can also prevent this problem from occurring by modifying the PATH statement in the Autoexec.bat file so that it refers to the folder on the network server that contains Mso97.dll and Mso7enu.dll. (Usually, these files are located in the Msoffice\Office folder on the network server.)

NOTE: To use this method, you must assign a permanent drive letter to the network server and share. To do this, use the Map Network Drive button in the Windows Explorer to connect a drive letter.

To modify the Autoexec.bat file, follow these steps:

1. On the Start menu, click Run. In the Open box, type "notepad c:\autoexec.bat" (without the quotation marks) and click OK.

2. If the PATH statement exists, add the path to the network server to it. For example, if Autoexec.bat contains the following line

         PATH=C:\WINDOWS;C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND
   

   add a semicolon (;) and the path to the network server.

   For example, if drive G is connected to the network, add "G:\MSOFFICE\OFFICE" (without the quotation marks) to the end of the line as in the following example:

         PATH=C:\WINDOWS;C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND;G:\MSOFFICE\OFFICE
   

   If the PATH statement does not exist, add the statement as in the following example:

         PATH=G:\MSOFFICE\OFFICE
   

3. On the File menu, click Save. Then, click Exit on the File menu.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in the Microsoft products listed at the beginning of this article. We are researching this problem and will post new information here in the Microsoft Knowledge Base as it becomes available.

MORE INFORMATION

When you install any of the programs listed at the beginning of this article, many keys, including the BinDirPath key, are created in your registry.

The BinDirPath key refers to the folders in which programs search for certain dynamic-link library (DLL) files, including Mso97.dll and Mso7enu.dll. In most cases, these two files are stored in the same folder as the program files that use them. However, if you perform a "Run from Network Server" installation of Microsoft Office 97, and then perform an installation of a stand-alone program, the BinDirPath key may point to a folder that does not contain Mso97.dll or Mso7enu.dll.

If this occurs, you may not be able to start the stand-alone program because it cannot find Mso97.dll and Mso7enu.dll in the folder. Programs installed as part of Microsoft Office 97 start correctly because the program files are in the same folder as the Mso97.dll and Mso7enu.dll files.