PUB: "Cannot Launch Server" Message w/Insufficient Disk Space

Q137771

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The information in this article applies to:

 - Microsoft Publisher 97
 - Microsoft Publisher for Windows 95
 - Microsoft Publisher versions 2.0, 2.0a
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SYMPTOMS
========

If you try to insert an OLE object into Microsoft Publisher and the
hard disk that contains your Temp folder is full, you may receive one of
the following error message:

   Publisher cannot launch or communicate with the OLE server
   program needed to complete this task.

   There may not be enough disk space, or there may be a problem with
   the server program. To make more disk space available, delete some
   unneeded files on your hard disk. If you suspect a problem with
   the server program, try reinstalling it. Then try this task again.

   Cannot Save Object. An OLE server cannot save an object you are using.
   Windows may be low on memory or disk space or the object may not be
   registered correctly.

CAUSE
=====

While this error is often caused by an OLE source application being
improperly or incorrectly listed in the Windows 95 Registry, it can also be
caused by low disk space.

Most OLE source applications create a temporary (.tmp) file when you start
them. If the OLE source application can't create the temporary file, it
fails to start and you get the error message.

RESOLUTION
==========

1. Determine the location of your Temp folder and the amount of space
   available:

   a. On the Help menu, click About Microsoft Publisher.
   b. Click System Info.
   c. In the Item list, check the TEMP directory entry at the bottom of the
      list.
   d. Check how much space is available on your drive(s).
   e. Exit Microsoft System Information.

2. Either delete unwanted files or change your TEMP environment variable to
   point to a drive that has more free space. To change the TEMP
   environment variable in Windows 95:

   a. Use a text editor such as Notepad to open the file called:

         c:\Autoexec.bat

      (If you don't already have one, create it in Notepad.)

   b. Add the following line to the Autoexec.bat file

         set temp=<drive letter>:\temp

      where <drive letter> is the drive that has the most available space.

   c. Save the file.

   d. Use a My Computer or Explorer Window to create the folder referenced
      in Step b above.

   e. Restart your computer.

NOTE: If you do not have an Autoexec.bat file, Windows sets the TEMP
environment variable to be C:\Windows\Temp.

STATUS
======

Microsoft is researching this problem and will post new information here in
the Microsoft Knowledge Base as it becomes available.

For additional information on this topic, please see the following articles
in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

     ARTICLE-ID: Q122188
     TITLE     : WordArt" "Unable to launch or communicate with server" Error

     ARTICLE-ID: Q138384
     TITLE     : "@" Character in Computer Name Causes OLE Error Messages

     ARTICLE-ID: Q142532
     TITLE     : OLE Problems Using Microsoft Service for NDS

     ARTICLE-ID: Q152765
     TITLE     : "Call to Undefined Dynalink" Errors in Word for Windows 95

Additional query words: 3.00 pub3 pub95 w_mspub OOD rips