Microsoft help not working

Question

I have had a lot of problems with my installation of Office 2016.  I thought everything was fixed with a uninstall and reinstall but now I get an error that Microsoft help is noy working from the Microsoft Help Viewer. It is in multiple programs. I went ahead and uninstall and reinstalled again without fixing it.

Windows 10, 1511build 10586.11. Office 16.0.1601.1038.

Answer 1

I found the answer on this site--going to Internet Options in the Control Panel then clearing the browsing history and clicking to Clear SSL state fixed it.

Answer 2

I was able to fix the problem by following a tip I read: Open Internet Explorer and clear all temporary files, i.e. cookies, history, etc. (I made sure I was out of all Office apps at the time, just to be safe.) After I did that, Office Help worked again. NOTE: I did this a while ago, before Windows 10 Anniversary Update. If you've updated to the Anniversary update and it's still happening, maybe this tip will still work. It's easy to do and non-invasive, so it's worth a try. Good luck!

Answer 3

I've been having the same problem with the F1 and other 'help' shortcuts not working in Word 2016.  I also have another version of Microsoft Office (2010) on my computer.  I am running Windows 10.  The problem only started a few weeks ago. 'Help' still works in Excel and PowerPoint, but not in Word 2016.  I got them from the 365 package through my college.  I checked the Trust settings in Word, those are fine.  My default browser is Firefox.  In order, I tried all of the following, sometimes multiple times.

I tried renaming the Help folder to Microsoft Help.OLD....ran a quick repair...it replaced the folder.  Nothing changed.

I then tried running the Online repair, but it keeps telling me I'm not connected with an Error code: 30094-9.  I have been unsuccessful in finding the meaning for the error code.  The links in this error window will not work, either.  I am clearly connected to the Internet if I am able to write to you here.  I tried the 'Quick Repair' again to no avail.

I tried updating to the latest version and restarted my computer.  Nothing changed.

I have tried other suggestions to clear the SLL state.  My browser history was recently cleared...the problem persisted after this. 

The only thing I haven't tried is reinstalling the whole thing.  I read on here that some people tried this and it crashed the help function for the other programs by not installing a Microsoft Help folder at all.

I really need these 'Help' functions to work.  I am in school online with limited instructor interaction.  Going to Office.com as directed from the 'Help is not working....' window does very little to help me. 

Thank you

Answer 4

I installed the current insider build on Office 2016 and had the same trouble with Help not working. I did clear history and SSL state but the problem continued. I uninstalled and reinstalled the recommended version and things are working.

Answer 5

Hi,

Thank you for posting your query in Microsoft Office Community.

As per your issue description, I would suggest you to update your Windows 10 Updates as well as Office updates and check. Please refer to the article for more information and check:

https://support.office.com/en-in/article/Known-issues-with-Office-and-Windows-10-28d56d84-c16c-4763-8eac-e51e05a37a16

If issue still persists, please try to repair Office and check the results. Refer to the link mentioned to repair Office 2016 installation:

http://office.microsoft.com/en-in/project-help/repair-or-remove-office-HA010357402.aspx

Hope it helps. Please post us with the required information for further assistance.

Thank you.