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Old 09-14-2022, 08:47 PM
jdiho jdiho is offline AutoText Normal.dotm file restore? Windows 10 AutoText Normal.dotm file restore? Office 2016
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Default AutoText Normal.dotm file restore?

Hi,



I'm having a Issue where word has lost all the AutoText templates. The Normal.dotm file found in user\appdata\roaming\microsoft\templates is 18 KB and contains nothing. Previously this document contained ALOT of templates but after a power cycle of the device everything disappeared. Is there any way to recover/restore the .dotm file?


TIA
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Old 09-14-2022, 10:28 PM
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Guessed Guessed is offline AutoText Normal.dotm file restore? Windows 10 AutoText Normal.dotm file restore? Office 2016
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Restarting the computer doesn't remove Normal.dotm but it is possible that something else caused it to be deleted or moved. It is also possible that your missing building blocks were never actually in Normal.dotm. By default they would go into a different template known as Building Blocks.dotx
Are you positive that the missing building blocks were in your Normal template?

Word will re-create Normal.dotm if it doesn't find it when it starts up.
What date is on the Normal.dotm that you can see? Does that date coincide with when you noticed the missing building blocks?
Have you also done a wider search for any copies of Normal.dotm on your computer?


Quote:
The Normal.dotm file found in user\appdata\roaming\microsoft\templates is 18 KB and contains nothing. Previously this document contained ALOT of templates
Pedants Corner: Terminology matters -- Normal.dotm is a template and no template (or document for that matter) contains lots of templates. A template can contain building blocks which is the correct name for what it appears you call AutoTexts and/or templates.
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Old 09-14-2022, 10:45 PM
jdiho jdiho is offline AutoText Normal.dotm file restore? Windows 10 AutoText Normal.dotm file restore? Office 2016
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Guessed View Post
Restarting the computer doesn't remove Normal.dotm but it is possible that something else caused it to be deleted or moved. It is also possible that your missing building blocks were never actually in Normal.dotm. By default they would go into a different template known as Building Blocks.dotx
Are you positive that the missing building blocks were in your Normal template?

Word will re-create Normal.dotm if it doesn't find it when it starts up.
What date is on the Normal.dotm that you can see? Does that date coincide with when you noticed the missing building blocks?
Have you also done a wider search for any copies of Normal.dotm on your computer?



Pedants Corner: Terminology matters -- Normal.dotm is a template and no template (or document for that matter) contains lots of templates. A template can contain building blocks which is the correct name for what it appears you call AutoTexts and/or templates.


Hi Mate, I appreciate your reply.
The recent normal.dotm file I was able to locate was from a day after the building blocks disappeared. The next earliest file was from 12 months ago and was missing quite a few building blocks that had been added. It's bizarre that they just one day weren't there.
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Old 09-15-2022, 06:02 AM
Charles Kenyon Charles Kenyon is offline AutoText Normal.dotm file restore? Windows 11 AutoText Normal.dotm file restore? Office 2021
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You can (and should) store your building blocks in a custom global template.
Where can Building Blocks be stored?
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Old 09-18-2022, 09:20 PM
jdiho jdiho is offline AutoText Normal.dotm file restore? Windows 10 AutoText Normal.dotm file restore? Office 2016
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Any other solutions on how to recover the missing normal.dotm?
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Old 09-19-2022, 12:24 AM
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Guessed Guessed is offline AutoText Normal.dotm file restore? Windows 10 AutoText Normal.dotm file restore? Office 2016
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We don't know where it has gone.

I would try looking in your user template locations for templates with likely modified dates and see what is in them. Usually if some process is going to replace your Normal.dotm it would rename the existing file first so that is the best place to start.

You can also check your recycle bin to see if there are any templates in there.
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Old 09-20-2022, 07:09 AM
Charles Kenyon Charles Kenyon is offline AutoText Normal.dotm file restore? Windows 11 AutoText Normal.dotm file restore? Office 2021
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jdiho View Post
Any other solutions on how to recover the missing normal.dotm?
Like Andrew, I do not know where it went.
For future use, consider regularly running a backup when you make changes.
Backup Normal.dotm template using a macro
I realize that this is "closing the barn door after the horse has gone," using a phrase from my childhood.



When searching for the normal.dotm file, you need to look in hidden and system files as well.
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