This page only applies to Microsoft Word on Windows when you get an error that says “Could not find a running Word instance”.

For general word processor troubleshooting see Word Processor Plugin Troubleshooting.

Perform the following steps:

1. Make sure neither Zotero nor Word are running as administrator (right-click → Properties → Compatibility).
2. If using OneDrive, save the copy of the document to your local hard drive, or try renaming the file to remove any spaces in the filename. OneDrive is known to interfere with the plugin for some people.
3. Make sure you have User Account Control enabled. You can change the UAC behavior by opening the Control Panel > System and Security > Change User Account Control settings. Make sure your level is at least “Notify me only when programs try to make changes to my computer (do not dim my desktop)” or higher, then restart your computer.

If none of these steps help resolve the issue, please create a new thread in the Zotero Forums for further troubleshooting help. Be sure to include a Report ID from Zotero, your operating system and Word versions, and the steps you've taken to try to fix the error.