I am asked to log in every time I try to save

Question

every time I try to save a document, Word or Excel, I am asked to sign in. Then i get an error message! I really think there is no point in having an Office 365 subscription. I rather get a standalone version. Fed up!!

Answer 1

Hi, I'm John! I will help you with this.

First, I recommend to update everything. Go to Settings > Windows Update > Check for updates.

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Do you have a VPN enabled? If so, try disabling it temporarily and see if that makes a difference. You can check by going to Settings > Network & Internet > VPN or looking for a VPN app running in the background.

In the meantime, if you haven’t already already:

Forget and reconnect to your Wi-Fi network:

• Go to Settings > Network & Internet > Wi-Fi > Manage known networks.
• Find your current Wi-Fi network and click "Forget" next to it.
• Restart your main router/modem, then reconnect to the Wi-Fi and enter the password again.

Flush the DNS cache:

• Press Start and search for CMD.
• Right-click on Command Prompt and select “Run as administrator”.
• In the Command Prompt, type the following commands one by one, pressing Enter after each and wait:

ipconfig /flushdns

ipconfig /release

ipconfig /renew

netsh winsock reset

• Restart your PC and check if the issue persists.

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If issue still persists try to enable IPv4:

• Press Windows + R key to open Run dialog.
• Type this and press Enter: ncpa.cpl
• Right-click on your current Wi-Fi connection and select Properties.
• Double click Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4)
• Under "Use the following DNS server automatically," use these values: 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4
• Click OK to save and restart your PC and connection.

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If the issue persists, please provide more details by answering my questions.

Click "Add comment" below to let me know.

Regards,

John J.D.

Answer 2

I have OneDrive set to run automatically when I sign into Windows.

Answer 3

The repeated sign-in prompts and the error when saving are typically caused by a sign-in/activation problem or corrupted local Office identity data.

Use these steps in order:

1. Confirm the subscription and correct account
   • Go to https://account.microsoft.com/services and verify that the Microsoft 365 subscription is active and which email address it is under.
   • In Word or Excel, open any document and go to File > Account.
   • Under User Information, make sure the signed-in account matches the one that shows the active subscription.
   • If it does not, sign out of all accounts in that dialog, then sign back in with the correct one.
2. Clear cached Office identity and tokens on the PC
   • Close all Office apps.
   • Open Control Panel > Credential Manager > Windows Credentials and remove any entries related to Office/Microsoft 365 or old work/school accounts.
   • In Windows, open Settings > Accounts > Access work or school and disconnect any old organizational account that is no longer used with this PC.
   • Use File Explorer and delete the local authentication caches (these are safe to recreate):
     • %LocalAppData%\Microsoft\OneAuth
     • %LocalAppData%\Microsoft\IdentityCache
     • %LocalAppData%\Microsoft\TokenBroker
   • Restart Windows.
   • Open Word, go to File > Account, sign in again with the account that has the active subscription, and try saving a document.
3. If Office still shows activation or sign-in issues
   • Follow the activation troubleshooting steps for Microsoft 365:
     • Ensure only one copy of Office is installed on the PC.
     • Verify again that the subscription is not expired.
     • If needed, use the additional activation troubleshooting for Microsoft 365 described in the activation article.
4. If sign-in continues to fail
   • Run the Microsoft 365 sign-in troubleshooter on a Windows 10 or later PC to automatically test and repair common sign-in problems, as described in the install/troubleshooting article.

These steps remove stale identity data, ensure the correct account is used, and re-establish activation so Word and Excel stop asking to sign in every time and can save normally.

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References:

• Unlicensed Product and activation errors in Office
• Troubleshoot installing Office
• Can't sign in to microsoft 365 desktop apps - Microsoft Q&A
• How to fix the issue with MS Office asking you to log in every time you open an Office app - Microsoft Q&A