How to Fix: Excel Stdole32.tlb Error (The Easy Way)

Infopackets Reader Paulina K. writes:

" Dear Dennis,

I am running Microsoft Office Home and Student 2007. Whenever I run Excel, it displays an error message 'stdole32.tlb' and nothing else. MS Office then launches the Microsoft Office installer (inside of the Excel window), which takes about 5 or more minutes to complete. Eventually I can start using the program, but the next time I run Excel I get the same 'stdole32.tlb' error message. I have tried to uninstall and reinstall Office but it doesn't work. I also tried to repair Office but that gave me the same stdole32.tlb error message. Can you please tell me how to fix the stdole32.tlb error in Excel? "

My response:

I asked Paulina if she would like me to connect with her using my remote desktop support service to have a closer look, and she agreed.

Below I'll discuss my findings.

How to Fix: Excel Stdole32.tlb Error (The Easy Way)

From what I read online it appears that the reason for the stdole32.tlb error message is due to a corrupt MS Office installation.

There are a number of so-called "fixes" online, but they either didn't work, or were very difficult to implement, requiring the user to navigate through the Windows Registry. The only thing that worked for me was to delete some registry keys, then reinstall Office. I've automated much of that using the command line using a script I wrote in order to save a lot of time and confusion.

To fix the stdole32.tlb error in Excel, do the following:

1. Click Start, then type in "cmd" (no quotes); wait for "CMD.EXE" or "Command Prompt" to appear in this list, then right click it and select "Run as Administrator".
    
2. Highlight the text below using your mouse:
   
   if not exist C:\HKU-Soft-MS-Office.reg (reg export "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office" C:\HKU-Soft-MS-Office.reg)
   reg delete "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office" /v "Excel" /f
   reg delete "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\8.0" /v "Excel" /f
   reg delete "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\9.0" /v "Excel" /f
   reg delete "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\10.0" /v "Excel" /f
   reg delete "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0" /v "Excel" /f
   reg delete "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0" /v "Excel" /f
   reg delete "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0" /v "Excel" /f
   reg delete "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0" /v "Excel" /f
   reg delete "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\Excel" /f
   if not exist C:\HKLM-Soft-WowNode-MS-Office.reg (reg export "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Office" C:\HKLM-Soft-WowNode-MS-Office.reg)
   reg delete "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Office" /v "Excel" /f
   reg delete "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Office\8.0" /v "Excel" /f
   reg delete "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Office\9.0" /v "Excel" /f
   reg delete "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Office\10.0" /v "Excel" /f
   reg delete "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Office\11.0" /v "Excel" /f
   reg delete "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Office\12.0" /v "Excel" /f
   reg delete "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Office\14.0" /v "Excel" /f
   reg delete "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Office\15.0" /v "Excel" /f
   reg delete "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Office\Excel" /f
   echo this is a dummy line
    
3. Right click over the above highlighted text, then select "Copy" from the dialogue menu.
    
4. Next, go to the administrative command prompt, then right click in the middle of the window and select "Paste". The text you copied in Step #2 should be output to the command line. Don't worry if you see error messages because the above fix works for Office 97 through Office 2013.
    
5. You can try running Office again at this point as this may have fixed the error. If it does not then you will likely need to uninstall and then reinstall Office now that the registry keys have been removed from the system.

If for some reason the fix backfires (it should not) you can undo the registry changes by double-clicking on the .REG files located in the parent directory of C drive (HKU-Soft-MS-Office.reg and HKLM-Soft-WowNode-MS-Office.reg).

I hope that helps.

Additional 1-on-1 Support: From Dennis

If all of this is over your head, or if you still can't fix the Excel stdole32.tlb error message, I can help using my remote desktop support service. Simply contact me, briefly describing the issue and I will get back to you as soon as possible.

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About the author: Dennis Faas is the owner and operator of Infopackets.com. With over 30 years of computing experience, Dennis' areas of expertise are a broad range and include PC hardware, Microsoft Windows, Linux, network administration, and virtualization. Dennis holds a Bachelors degree in Computer Science (1999) and has authored 6 books on the topics of MS Windows and PC Security. If you like the advice you received on this page, please up-vote / Like this page and share it with friends. For technical support inquiries, Dennis can be reached via Live chat online this site using the Zopim Chat service (currently located at the bottom left of the screen); optionally, you can contact Dennis through the website contact form.