VB.NET and Microsoft Word problem: topic becomes read-only

[Guest]

I am opening a Word document with code like this:

Dim WordApp As New Word.Application
Try
WordApp.Documents.Open(CType("C:\Temp\mydoc.doc", Object))
etc. -- etc. -- etc.
Return True
Catch ex As Exception
Return False
Finally
Try
WordApp.Documents.Close()
WordApp.Quit()
Catch ex As Exception
End Try
End Try

This code works fine unless I crash somewhere in the etc part of the code
and the Finally never triggers properly. In this case, the file becomes
locked in a read-only mode. I can't delete it, edit it, or rename it
regardless of what I try short of rebooting. The only way I can get it
released is to reboot. Is there something that can be done to get it
unlocked without rebooting?

 

[Pritcham]

Hi

Is it possible to deal with it in your exception handling code
(assuming this gets called ok if the code 'crashes')? I.e. Close the
document and Word if an exception is caught?

Just an idea

Thanks
Martin

 

[Guest]

Right now, this is a problem during debugging. If I stop debugging somewhere
during the etc, etc, etc. I am stuck rebooting to get rid of my test file.
I was hoping for a way to avoid rebooting.

If I could only remember not to stop the debugging until after executing the
Finally........ That's another story. My memory for details like that
sucks. I suspect after a few reboots, my memory will suddenly get better.

In run time, I suspect your suggestion would work. Also, knowledge of how
to recover from such a file might prove useful sometime in the future. It
seems there should be a way to kill an orphan Word file like that without a
reboot.

 

[Pritcham]

Hi

Have you checked the running processes in Task Manager to see if
instance of Word that you fired up is still there - it may well be (as
it hasn't been shut down) and if that's the case, that ('hidden'
instance of Word) may be the reason that the file is locked as it's
already being modified.

Just an idea

Cheers