How to Solve “The Document Name or Path Is Not Valid” Issue Quickly?

“A couple of days back while editing a word document my computer got crashed. Fortunately, the document, which I was working was saved with Autorecovery, which I later saved with a new file name. Today, while opening the same word file, I was encountered with a prompt message, which states that “The document name or path is not valid.” I’ve ensured to check whether the path name is mentioned properly. I am not sure what could have gone wrong to occur this issue. Does anyone know about this? Please help me out to troubleshoot this error, thanks!”

There are numerous such users who are looking out to solve this issue. However, Autorecovery does not save the document, it is only capable to save the changes done to the document. Are you facing the same just like the above scenario? Unfortunately, even after trying several attempts, did you fail to recover data from the corrupt word file? Here is the blog exclusively to let users understand the process to fix “ The document name or path is not valid ” error in a comprehensive way.

What are the Symptoms that Can Cause this Error?

Well, coming to its symptoms there could be various issues that can cause Microsoft to prompt “ the document name or path is not valid in Word ” error message. So, let’s understand a few of them that are listed below,

• Whenever Microsoft Word 2002 or 2003 is crashed, the file which was already opened or has been working on it will no longer able to open.
• This is because the Word file is corrupted and the user when trying to access the file encounters with the same error
  This error occurs when dragging a file to the Word Link, such that when an image file is dragged to the TextBridge link in PaperPort
• At times, when a user downloads a large Word file, which is then saved on the desktop. But while trying to open the file, the users encounter this type of error message
• When the document is corrupted, mainly due to damage in the meta tags, etc. Then the user may have to face such similar instance

Tips & Tricks to Resolve When “The Document Name or Path is Not Valid.”

• When this issue occurs, then ensure that the latest Office service pack has been installed. This is because, the latest service packs for Office 2002 and 2003 contain a hotfix, which is capable to fix such issues.
• In case, if the Office versions are latest and still you are undergoing this issue. Then, try to open the Word document in the newer version. If it is possible, then try to open it on another computer with the latest patch of Word. As newer Word version will help to detect and repair the corruption that is occurred in the Word file
• If the above tricks failed to resolve the error, then open the corrupt file in WordPad>> Save as RTF>>Open the file in Word. Although, this can lose the format of the file, but will help to access the data that is present in the document. After which, you can save the file in .doc extension for future reference

An Instant Workaround to Fix “The Document Name or Path is Not Valid”

In many cases, most of the users failed to access the word document after implementing the above tips. As it can help you at certain times based on the level of corruption that is occurred in the word file, hence it is not a guaranteed solution. Therefore, the best solution to fix this issue is by using SysTools Word Repair Tool. It can efficiently work to repair corrupt DOCX file comprising of multiple pages within a short duration of time. It can quickly scan the damaged Word file and also provides an instant preview in dual modes i.e., Rich and Plain text. It ensures to save the recovered Word file maintaining the formatting, layout, fonts, etc.

Easy Working of Word Recovery Tool

• Once the software is launched, click on Add File(s) to select the corrupt DOCX file so as to fix “The document name or path is not valid” error
• After selecting the file, click on Repair where the tool initiates a complete recovery of the Word document
• It offers two different preview options after the repair process i.e., Rich Text and Plain Text view
• Now, the software provides an option to save the recovered DOCX file to the desired location, simply by selecting the Save button
• Finally, a user can seamlessly access the Word file by fixing “The document name or path is not valid” error with the help of this tool in a simplified way

Concluding Words

While working with Microsoft Word, users may have to face different objections. One such illustration can be “The document name or path is not valid” issue. Considering this prospect, we have discussed some tips to solve this issue. Even after implementing the manual tricks, still you are facing the same issue, then it is wise to opt the amazing third-party tool that is described in this blog.