"Must Load SHARE.EXE" Starting Word 6.0 Under Windows NT |
Q112498
6.00 6.00a 6.00c
WINDOWS
kbenv
The information in this article applies to:
-
Microsoft Word for Windows, versions 6.0, 6.0a, 6.0c, used with:
-
The Microsoft Windows NT operating system, version 3.1
SYMPTOMS
The following error may occur when you try to start Word 6.0
for Windows:
You must exit Windows and load SHARE.EXE in order to run Word.
CAUSE
There are three possibilities that may cause this error
occurring:
- The first hard drive on a Windows NT system is not available (that is,
not enabled or not formatted).
-or-
- The security applied to the first hard drive prohibits Word from
performing its file-locking test.
NOTE: Third-party software is available that provides write protection
for a hard drive. If this type of protection is being used, this error
can occur on a system using standard Windows 3.x.
-or-
- The root directory (C:\) is full and more files or directories cannot be
added. If the C: drive is FAT partition, there is a maximum of 512
files allowed in the root directory. If the drive is formatted for NTFS,
the limit is over 2,000 files.
When Word starts, it performs a test to check for the availability of
file-locking functionality (typically provided by SHARE.EXE or
VSHARE.386 under standard Windows or Windows for Workgroups, but built
into Windows NT). During this test, Word creates a small temporary file
in the current directory of the first hard drive (typically drive C). If
Word cannot create a temporary file in this directory, the test will
fail, and Word will assume that file-locking functionality is not
available.
NOTE: Because FAT- and HPFS-formatted partitions do not allow directory
or file-level security to be defined, this problem can occur only when
using a system where the first hard drive, if available, is formatted as
NTFS. (FAT = File Allocation Table, HPFS = High Performance File System,
NTFS = NT File System.)
Determining the Current Directory on Drive C
To determine the working directory setting, examine the properties of the
Word 6.0 for Windows program icon in Program Manager. If this setting
defines a directory on drive C, then this is the same directory that Word
will perform the locking test in.
If the working directory option indicates a directory on a drive other than
drive C and Windows NT is installed on drive C, then the current directory
for drive C will be the Windows NT directory (typically C:\WINNT).
If the working directory option indicates a directory on a drive other than
drive C and Windows NT is installed on a drive other than drive C, then the
current directory for drive C will be the root directory (C:\).
RESOLUTION
To avoid getting the error message indicating that SHARE.EXE must be
loaded, two solutions are available.
Method 1
Change the current directory of drive C.
Under a normal installation of Word 6.0 for Windows, the DOC-
PATH setting in the WINWORD6.INI file determines what the
current (working) directory for Word will be. But because Word
does not switch to this directory until after the locking test
is performed, it is safe to specify any directory as the working
directory in the Word icon properties window in Program Manager.
As long as DOC-PATH is specified in the WINWORD6.INI file, the
working directory option will be ignored once Word is fully
started.
Method 2
Change the rights of the current directory on drive C so that
users have write access.
Once the current directory on drive C has been determined, use
the Windows NT File Manager Security option to grant read and
write access to that particular directory.
If third-party software is used to protect drive C, change the
software setting to provide read and write access to the
protected C drive.
REFERENCES
"Microsoft Windows NT System Guide," "Securing Directories and Files,"
pages 90-104; "Program Manager," pages 37-52
Word Readme Help, "WINWORD6.INI Options"
Additional query words:
6.00a w_nt 6.00c winword word6