MS Office and Office-related Applications Cannot Connect to MS Servers

Question

Originally I had continually upgraded my Office 2021 Pro Plus through time; I had reached version 2308 from August 28, 2023 (Build 16731.20170) and everything was fine. However, when I tried upgrading to the newest version from September 12, 2023 (Build 16731.20234) the bar would continually loop for some time until I got an error code.

Because of this I resorted to running the Online Repair of Microsoft Office. All this did was remove Office and afterward say that it could not continue (I am deducing it could not connect to the servers for some reason, despite throughout all time I've retained fast Internet).

Then I tried downloading the newest offline version of Office from https://officecdn.microsoft.com/pr/492350f6-3a01-4f97-b9c0-c7c6ddf67d60/media/en-us/ProPlus2021Retail.img . Starting from two days ago I tried downloading it many times and every time the download would stop at 2.0 GB downloaded and remain stuck there at 0 KB/s Internet speed (I am guessing a problem with Microsoft's servers).

I had an earlier download of the Offline version so I went on and installed it. Afterward I activated it and activation worked. However, since the version I've installed is not the latest one now I am stuck at Office 2021 Pro Plus version 2208 (15601.20142). Trying to update again ends up in a loop which ends with the 30183-27 (2147954402) error code.

I've also tried installing the Bulgarian Language Pack which had installed wonderfully beforehand but it will not continue past the initial first window now (the small white window which appears instantaneously upon starting the *.exe). Neither will the Online Installer for Office work (it would again be stuck on the aforementioned white window at 'We're getting things ready...' and eventually give out error code 30023-2016 2147954402). Now this leads me to believe that Microsoft's servers cannot be reached by the software for some reason. I have not used Proxies and have currently only Windows Defender installed as antivirus software. I have even tried connecting to a different network and there was no difference.

To further corroborate this, I tried upgrading another machine which has Office 2019 Pro Plus installed and it would go into a synonymous loop once more. Both machines are running Windows 11 Pro. Beforehand upgrading Office on them was a smooth process and there were no bumps along the way to newer versions and there have been no major changes prior to the appearance of the problem mentioned herein which might have triggered it.

I have been upgrading Office regularly and have not had such problems heretofore. I was on a newer version and with the Bulgarian language pack installed nicely before the Repair forced me to reinstall. Currently I am lacking both the newest version and the ability to install a language pack or to use the Online Office Installer or even to download the latest Offline version of it. My Internet is strong and continually working at all times and I have regarded having the same problem on a second machine. I would like to know if this concerns a problem with the Microsoft servers and will remain only transiently and be amended precipitately and be thankful for any solutions and recommendations provided herewith.

Kindly,

VictorG97

Answer 1

Hi,

I suggest you search Services.msc, in the Services window, scroll to find Microsoft Office Click-to-Run service. I suggest you check if the Startup type is Automatic and Service status is Running:

Just checking in to see if the information was helpful. Please let us know if you would like further assistance.

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