Member Avatar for jime0726

A. I cant run word or excel cause it's asking me for some file to install from the cd, i put the cd in and it says something like invalid key.
B. I try to upgrade to Office 2003 and bypass that file, i do both upgrade and full install and neither one of them worked.
C. I then tried to uninstall 2000 to do just a fresh full install of 2003 and it goes through the process, i close add/remove programs, go back in and its still there.

any help is appreciated....Thanks!

running windows 2000 pro, sp 4

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by zygon

Dani AI

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Short, practical follow-up for (and anyone who hits the same symptoms): the combination of an undeletable “null” file, an installer asking for a specific .cab (x2550703.cab) and a failed Add/Remove uninstall usually means two things are happening together — a locked/invalid filesystem entry (or device-reserved filename) plus leftover Windows Installer state. The goal is (1) remove the bad file, (2) repair any filesystem problems, (3) clear Office 2000’s installer traces, then (4) run Office 2003 setup from a clean source. The steps below are practical and safe if followed carefully.

Try this sequence (run commands from an Administrator prompt; export/backup any registry keys before editing):

  • Boot Safe Mode, open a command prompt in the Office folder and show short names:

    dir /x "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office"
attrib -h -s -r "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office\<weirdname>"
del "C:\PROGRA~1\MICROS~1\Office\<SHORTNAME>"

    Use the short (8.3) name from dir /x to delete or rename a stubborn file. If deletion still fails, run chkdsk c: /f and reboot (fixes NTFS corruption).

  • If Safe Mode/CHKDSK do not remove the file, boot from a rescue/live CD or the Recovery Console and delete the file there (the OS won’t lock it during offline access).

  • Repair Windows Installer state: stop the Installer service and re-register it, then try a cleanup utility if available (back up first):

    net stop msiserver
msiexec /unregister
msiexec /regserver
net start msiserver

  • For the x2550703.cab prompt during Office 2003 setup: copy the entire Office 2003 CD to a local folder (e.g., C:\Office2003) and run setup from that folder. If setup asks for the .cab, search the copied folder with dir /s x2550703.cab and point the installer there. Also double-check the CD for scratches and that your product key matches the edition.

Notes/tips: ’s removal tool is a good first pass but won’t fix file-system corruption or registry/Installer cache problems; ’s comment about keys is a reminder to confirm the key matches your CD edition; and ’s suggestion to try alternate install media is sensible when the CD is damaged. If manual removal/cleanup fails, back up data and consider a repair/reinstall of Windows as a last resort.

Recommended Answers

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Member Avatar for antioed

Check out Eraser2K from MS:

Member Avatar for i686-linux

Usually a Microsoft product won't complain about the product key being invalid unless it is some type of pirated software. I am not making any acusations though, as we all know that software can be faulty at times. :) Whether it is or isn't pirated software is your personal business, but if it is pirated, then don't expect too much out of it. :-/

Member Avatar for jime0726

Thanks guys, I'm going to try that erase2k and see if that works. I actually also found that there is a null file in my office 2000 folder in program files. that file can not be deleted and thats the reason I cant remove it. Thanks for the help!

Member Avatar for jime0726

i tried the erase2k, i seemed to delete a decent amount, but when i tried to install my office 2003, it keeps getting stuck on the file x2550703.cab....says it cant find it on the cd and asks to point to that file. then i have to cancel it and it cant finish the install.

Member Avatar for zygon

try with xp cd, or choose the cd for complete installation of office

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