my computer cannot Open Microsoft office and pdf documents due to error msi-dll

Question

My computer says windows Msi.Dll does not work or not design. therefore, I couldn't open word document, pdf, Excel...

I tried to repair by Sfc/ scannow. however, it said Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files but was unable to fix some of them. For online repairs, details are included in the CBS log file located at windir\Logs\CBS\CBS.log. For example C:\Windows\Logs\CBS\CBS.log. For offline repairs, details are included in the log file provided by the /OFFLOGFILE flag.

despite that I couldn't get online repair. What shall I do?

Answer 1

Hi Fikadu,

Please run winver.exe and note the OS build number. Post the information here.

Also, attach the C:\Windows\Logs\CBS\CBS.log in your next reply. This log contains the results of the recent SFC operation.

Answer 2

Run the Deployment Image Servicing and Management (DISM) tool first, then run System File Checker (SFC) again. DISM can repair the component store that SFC depends on, which is required when SFC reports it cannot fix some files.

1. Open an elevated Command Prompt
   • Type cmd in the Windows search box.
   • In the results, right‑click Command Prompt and select Run as administrator.
   • Approve the UAC prompt if shown.
2. Repair the Windows image with DISM
   • In the Command Prompt window, run:

          DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth
     

   • Wait for the operation to complete; this can take several minutes.
   • If Windows Update is not working and a different repair source is available (for example, a Windows installation folder on another drive or network share), use:

          DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth /Source:C:\RepairSource\Windows /LimitAccess
     

     replacing C:\RepairSource\Windows with the actual path to the repair source.
3. Run System File Checker again
   • After DISM finishes, in the same elevated Command Prompt run:

          sfc /scannow
     

   • Wait for it to reach 100% and confirm whether it now reports no integrity violations.
4. If SFC still reports unrepairable files
   • Review C:\Windows\Logs\CBS\CBS.log to identify which system files remain corrupted.
   • For any file that SFC cannot repair, manually replace it with a known good copy from another computer running the same version of Windows:
     1. Take ownership of the corrupted file:

                takeown /f <Path_And_File_Name>
        

     2. Grant Administrators full access:

                icacls <Path_And_File_Name> /grant administrators:F
        

     3. Copy in the known good file:

                copy <Source_File> <Destination>
        

        where <Destination> is the corrupted file path.
   • If manual replacement is not feasible or does not resolve the issue, a Windows reinstall using the built‑in recovery options may be required.

Once the underlying Windows system files (including msi.dll) are repaired, retry opening Office and PDF documents. If Office apps still fail, run an Office repair from Apps & Features or Programs and Features as needed.

---

References:

• Use the System File Checker tool to repair missing or corrupted system files
• System File Checker finds corrupt files after installing KB2821895