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Learn how to repair a corrupted Word document and recover lost text
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Do you have a damaged Word document? Microsoft Word has a built-in document repair feature that can help you recover lost information and restore corrupted files. If this doesn't work, there are ways to troubleshoot missing text. Here's how to repair a Word document on your Windows or Mac computer.
Quick Steps
- Open Microsoft Word.
- Click File and select Open .
- Click Browse and select the corrupted document.
- Click the down-arrow next to Open .
- Click Open and Repair .
Steps
Section 1 of 2:
Repairing a Document
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Open a new document in Microsoft Word. Do not open the corrupted file.
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Click File , and then Open . This is at the top-left corner of the screen.Advertisement
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Click Browse . You'll need to navigate to the corrupted Word document.
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Select the corrupted Word document. The file name should be highlighted only—don't double-click to open it.
- Make sure to go to the exact location or folder where the document is saved; you won't be able to proceed if you use the Recents section.
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Click the down-arrow next to "Open". A drop-down menu will open with more options.
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Click Open and Repair . This is towards the bottom of the menu.
- This will start the Open and Repair command. If it succeeds, the Word document will be recovered.
- To prevent corrupted files, always safely eject external hard drives or USB flash drives and close programs completely before shutting off your computer.
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Expert Q&A
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QuestionHow do I recover an unsaved document at work?Spike Baron is a Network Engineer & Desktop Support Expert based in Los Angeles, California. He is the owner of Spike’s Computer Repair. With over 25 years of working experience in the tech industry, Spike specializes in PC and Mac computer repair, used computer sales, virus removal, data recovery, and hardware and software upgrades. He has worked as an IT Systems expert for numerous companies, including Huntington Health, Blackbox, Honda, and Manufacturers Bank. In his spare time, Spike also builds and restores computers. He has his CompTIA A+ certification for computer service technicians and is a Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert.Use the Exchange Server! If you're in a corporate environment with an Exchange server, there is a backup copy that is saved to the Exchange Server of recent files. So, in Word, there's an option where you can try to recover the file.
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About This Article
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Reader Success Stories
- "Following your instructions as a guide, I was able to locate on my computer, open and save in a newly created folder some 330 uncorrupted copies of my saved MS Word docs that had been rendered totally corrupted by "doc.crypt" ransomware. With my thanks." ..." more
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