Compare document function in Word 2016 hangs

Question

The compare document function always hangs in Word 2016, I do not have such problem prior to my recent migration to Word 2016. I had reinstall Word and googled for resolution on this issue, but in vain.

I hope Microsoft can help resolved this. Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

Hi Eddie,

Thanks for the updates. Given the situation, please try the following steps and see the outcome.

1.    Copy the contents in you affected files to two new files. Here are the steps:

    a.    Create a new file, and type in anything like “My name is Linda.”. Then save the document

    b.    Select all the contents in the affected files and copy it to the clipboard. When you paste, click Home in Ribbon > Paste > Paste Special > select Formatted Text as below shows > OK.

2.    If the issue persists, please save the file to the Plain Text format to see if there is any improvement. To do it, open File > Save as > Browser > In the Save as file type list, click Plain Text (*.txt) > Save.

Note: It will remove all document formatting, macro code, and graphics.

Moreover, please let us know if the compare function works when you compare one affected file with other files. If the issue disappears, you can use exclusion method to see which file is causing the original problem.

Regards,

Linda

Answer 2

Hi Linda,

I had tried all suggestions and none work. But the compare function works for file size up to 2MB.

It maybe a corrupted file issue but I had been using the compare function with no issue in the prior Word version, I had a file that is 10MB and it would fine.

Thanks for your help.

Regards,

Eddie Lee

Answer 3

Hi Eddie,

As you can run the Compare Function with 2 new files, the issue may be related to your current files.

I suggest following the methods as below to check the result:

1.    Copy and save all the content of the files into two new documents to see if there is any improvement.

2.    Try Open and Repair. To do it, start Word > on the Filemenu > click Open > In the Open dialog box, click to select the file that you want to open> Click the down arrow on the Open button, and then click Open and Repair as below.

Regards,

Linda

Answer 4

Hi Linda,

Thanks for the advice but the issue still persist. To be specific, the header of Word shows "(Not Responding") after running the compare function for 30mins and the sound of the laptop fan can be heard.

I did run the compare function with 2 clean files and they work given the files contains 2 words in each of them. However, the compare function does not work on the actual files, the file size are between 2MB and 3MB. It did not any issue in the past.

The clean startup and Online Repair were performed too.

My Office version is Microsoft Office 365 ProPlus.

Hope someone knows what is going on here.

Regards,

Eddie

Answer 5

Hi Eddie,

Please perform the following methods to check the result.

1.    Create another two clean files to try the result. Generally, compare operations are not successful if either document contains any tracked changes.

2.    Open word in safe mode. To do that, press Windows + R keys > type winword /safe > OK.

3.    Perform a clean startup to determine whether background programs are interfering with Office.

4.    TryOnline Repair.

If the issue persists, I would like to collect the following information:

1.    Have you seen any error messages when compare document function hangs in Word 2016? If so, could you provide it with us for reference?

2.    A screenshot about the Office version on your computer. Open a program, and then click File > Account > Product Information.

Let us know the update at your convenience.

Regards,

Linda