OFF97: "I/O Error" Creating New Data Source Under Windows NT

• Microsoft Office 97 for Windows
• Microsoft Excel 97 for Windows
• Microsoft Windows NT Workstation version 4.0

SYMPTOMS

In Microsoft Excel 97, if you point to Get External Data on the Data menu, and then click Create New Query to create a new data source, you may receive the following error message:

   Microsoft Query
   I/O error during save. You may have typed an invalid file name.

CAUSE

This problem may occur if all of the following conditions are true:

• Your computer is running Microsoft Windows NT version 4.0.

  -and-

• You install Service Pack 3 (SP3) for Windows NT 4.0.

  -and-

• You then perform a Run From Network Server (RFS) installation of Microsoft Office 97 from a server that contains an administrative installation of Microsoft Office 97.

WORKAROUND

To work around this problem, follow these steps:

1. Quit all running programs.

2. Use Windows NT Explorer to go to the Winnt\System32 folder on the hard disk. Delete or rename the following file:

         Odbc32.dll
   

3. On the Start menu, point to Settings, and click Control Panel. In the Control Panel, double-click Add/Remove Programs. Click the Install/Uninstall tab. In the list of programs, click Microsoft Office 97. Then, click Add/Remove.

4. In the Microsoft Office 97 Setup dialog box, click Remove All. When you are prompted to remove Microsoft Office 97, click Yes. When you are prompted to remove shared components, click Yes.

5. After Microsoft Office 97 is removed from your computer, reconnect to the network server that contains the administrative installation point for Microsoft Office 97, and then run the Setup program located on the server.

6. Install Microsoft Office 97.

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

The following combination of factors cause this problem to occur:

• Service Pack 3 for Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 includes a copy of the file Odbc32.dll. When you install Service Pack 3 on your computer, Odbc32.dll is installed in the Winnt\System32 folder.
• When you install Microsoft Office 97 on your computer, the Setup program checks for the existence of the Odbc32.dll file in the Winnt\System32 folder. If the program locates a newer version of the file, it assumes that certain keys exist in the registry. As a result, the Setup program does not attempt to create or update the keys.
• If the Microsoft Office 97 Setup program detects that a newer version of Odbc32.dll already exists in the Winnt\System32 folder, it does not create the following registry key:

        HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\ODBC\odbc.ini\ODBC File DSN\
           DefaultDSNDir
  
     The value of this key is usually the following:
  
        C:\WINDOWS\ODBC\Data Sources
  
  

• If this key is missing and you create a new data source by using Microsoft Excel 97 and Microsoft Query 97, the new data source is created in the default installation folder. Usually, this folder is Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office.

  However, if you performed a Run From Network Server installation of Microsoft Office 97, the default installation folder is located on the network server. Because this folder is usually a read-only folder, the new data source cannot be saved in the folder, and you receive the error message.