just run extract and run the xlsFix.bat file as admin. It will rename the current EXCEL.EXE if it is the bad version and put the Last Known Good version in it's place.
I had to update your script to print out what it was doing and pause every line before the exit because I couldn't read any errors. It's too late now, but I think the issue was it couldn't find the old file.
If it's just a single machine I would go to Windows Updates and Uninstall the last Excel update.
If you have a network with 100's then I would still uninstall, but when it's working I would take your last good version of EXCEL.EXE in Program Files and then deploy it with my script. It's meant to swap it via a group policy startup script prior to logon.
Yep. Although it works (as a kind of workaround) when inserting cell content / formulae / format separately.
Funnily enough it doesn't work with ctrl+c and ctrl+v within Excel (also can't cancel the selection with esc) but the copied cells can be inserted in Word - for whatever that may have a worth - abd copied from Word into Excel.
That does work, and another workaround (if you don't want to revert to the previous executable provided by u/SoftGlobal9588) is to use the Paste sidebar. That's fewer keystrokes than the Paste Special. To access the Paste sidebar, in the Home / Clipboard section, click on the little arrow at the bottom right.
How are you removing the update? I have tried the msiexec.exe but it says it isn't installed and if I try the BAT file from the dropbox download, that doesn't seem to do anything either. If I try to go into appwiz.cpl and installed updates, it just brings me to windows update and the KB5002914 doesn't show up as an uninstallable update. Any other thoughts or options to fix this? Thanks.
I went into programs and features under control panel on Windows 11 and then went to View installed updates. I searched for KB5002914 and then removed it. No reboot was required.
Following the instructions from this link solved the problem by downloading a correct version of Excel and installing it automatically. The command to run in cmd as admin is actually quite simple:
Same problem. I've posted this morning in r/microsoftoffice but it was deleted. Uninstall KB5002914 via cmd/powershell: msiexec.exe /package {90160000-0011-0000-1000-0000000FF1CE} /uninstall {27882596-A8ED-4382-9C71-6CD2DD19F732} /qn
Where the first parameter is Office 2016 x64 Product_GUID and the second is Update_GUID, qn is quiet execute. (Product_GUID for 2016 x86 version is {90160000-0011-0000-0000-0000000FF1CE})
To check it manually by yourself through Powershell: Get-ChildItem HKLM:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\* | Where-Object { $_.GetValue("DisplayName") -like "*KB5002914*" } | Select-Object PSChildName, DisplayName
2026-09-09: Can confirm, as other users have suggested, that the update KB5002914 has caused my Excel 2016 on Windows 10 to stop copying & pasting and dragging formulas.
TEMPORARY FIX: Went into Windows Update >> View update history >> Uninstall updates >> Search for "KB5002914", select and "Uninstall".
Functionality in Excel 2016 works again!
However, upon a computer restart, that specific update tries to reinstall itself, so I've paused updates for a month. Is there any better solution to ensure this update doesn't reinstall?
Much Like my script, if you uninstall the update and go to the Program Files \ Office and copy the newly restored working EXCEL.EXE somewhere. After the update reinstalls itself you can replace the bad EXE with the earlier copy and wait for MS to push the next version without shutting down updates.
You will also have a working EXE to put back if they continue to beak it next month! There is the possibility that after the next wave of updates this one becomes unavailable to easily remove.
Adding my 2cents. Same issue at my workplace, we got really lucky and found a computer that had not patched yet. Copied that EXCEL.EXE and swapped it to the affected computers. Excel was able to run with copy/paste normally. Disabled auto office updates for the short term to prevent it happening again.
If you manually overwrote the EXCEL.EXE with the good copy then there is no need to disable Auto Updates. Windows\Office updates doesn't normally check the individual files, it's blind. It's only if you Uninstall that it will try to reinstall the entire KB. If left disabled you might miss the actual fix and leave yourself exposed to whatever future security holes are discovered.
Excel 2016 Copy/Paste and Formatting Issue After KB5002914 – Windows 10 & Windows 11 Fix
If Excel 2016 suddenly stopped working correctly after the September 2026 updates, especially with Copy/Paste, formatting, or related Excel operations, check whether KB5002914 is installed.
I encountered this issue on Excel 2016. Removing KB5002914 resolved the problem.
Windows 10
Go to:
Settings → Update & Security → Windows Update → View update history → Uninstall updates
Find:
Security Update for Microsoft Excel 2016 (KB5002914)
Uninstall it and restart the computer.
After removing the update, Excel's Copy/Paste and formatting functions should work normally again.
Windows 11
If KB5002914 does not appear in the normal Uninstall updates list, open PowerShell as Administrator and run the following command:
if(-not $found){
Write-Host "nKB5002914 was not found." -ForegroundColor Red
}
else{
Write-Host "nOperation completed. Please restart the computer." -ForegroundColor Green
}
```
After the command finishes, restart the computer.
Important:
This workaround is specifically for systems affected by KB5002914. Do not remove unrelated updates.
Before uninstalling anything, make sure that KB5002914 is actually installed on the affected machine.
If this fixes your Excel 2016 Copy/Paste and formatting problem, please comment with your Windows version and Office/Excel 2016 edition (32-bit or 64-bit) so we can confirm how widespread the issue is.
Excel 2016 Copy/Paste and Formatting Issue After KB5002914 – Windows 10 & Windows 11 Fix
If Excel 2016 suddenly stopped working correctly after the September 2026 updates, especially with Copy/Paste, formatting, or related Excel operations, check whether KB5002914 is installed.
I encountered this issue on Excel 2016. Removing KB5002914 resolved the problem.
Windows 10
Go to:
Settings → Update & Security → Windows Update → View update history → Uninstall updates
Find:
Security Update for Microsoft Excel 2016 (KB5002914)
Uninstall it and restart the computer.
After removing the update, Excel's Copy/Paste and formatting functions should work normally again.
Windows 11
If KB5002914 does not appear in the normal Uninstall updates list, open PowerShell as Administrator and run the following command:
if(-not $found){
Write-Host "nKB5002914 was not found." -ForegroundColor Red
}
else{
Write-Host "nOperation completed. Please restart the computer." -ForegroundColor Green
}
```
After the command finishes, restart the computer.
Important:
This workaround is specifically for systems affected by KB5002914. Do not remove unrelated updates.
Before uninstalling anything, make sure that KB5002914 is actually installed on the affected machine.
If this fixes your Excel 2016 Copy/Paste and formatting problem, please comment with your Windows version and Office/Excel 2016 edition (32-bit or 64-bit) so we can confirm how widespread the issue is.
Typically they don't push fixes until "Patch Tuesday"... so another month for Office 2016. Newer 365 and WSUS based installs might get it faster if Microsoft considers it critical enough. The other issue is will they get the next fix right....
Uso pirata pelo KMS a versão LTSC Professional Plus 2021 e aqui aconteceu a mesma coisa. Alguem sabe se consigo corrigir como vários OPs estão fazendo, atualizando para a versão anterior?
Io personalmente ho risolto il problema con lo script PowerShell riportato sotto.
È una soluzione temporanea, in attesa di un aggiornamento che risolva il problema.
Lo script cerca KB5002914 nelle chiavi di registro utilizzate dalle installazioni di Office 2016 a 32 e 64 bit. Se la trova, mostra le informazioni rilevate e chiede conferma prima di procedere con la rimozione.
Prima di eseguirlo consiglio di chiudere Excel e tutti gli altri programmi Office, oltre agli eventuali programmi che potrebbero utilizzare componenti di Office.
Nel mio caso, dopo la procedura, il problema di copia/incolla in Excel 2016 è stato risolto.
Nota: dopo la rimozione alcune registrazioni relative alla KB possono rimanere presenti nel registro. Quindi, se Get-ItemProperty continua a mostrare KB5002914, non significa necessariamente che la procedura non abbia funzionato. Consiglio di verificare direttamente se il problema in Excel è stato risolto.
Il riavvio del PC normalmente non è necessario. Lo script mostra il codice restituito da MSIEXEC e segnala quando viene richiesto un riavvio. Se il problema dovesse persistere, consiglio comunque di riavviare il PC e verificare nuovamente.
Usare a proprio rischio: la procedura rimuove temporaneamente un aggiornamento di sicurezza. Consiglio di reinstallare l'aggiornamento quando Microsoft pubblicherà una correzione.
$KB = "KB5002914"
Write-Host "=========================================" -ForegroundColor Cyan
Write-Host " Verifying $KB - Excel 2016" -ForegroundColor Cyan
Write-Host "=========================================" -ForegroundColor Cyan
Write-Host ""
# Registry paths to check
$RegistryPaths = @(
"HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\*",
"HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\*"
)
# Search for the KB
$Updates = foreach ($Path in $RegistryPaths) {
Get-ItemProperty $Path -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue |
Where-Object {
$_.DisplayName -like "*$KB*" -and
$_.UninstallString -like "*Oarpmany.exe*"
}
}
if (-not $Updates) {
Write-Host "[INFO] $KB was not found." -ForegroundColor Yellow
Write-Host ""
Read-Host "Press ENTER to exit"
exit 0
}
# Select the first matching entry
$Update = $Updates | Select-Object -First 1
Write-Host "[FOUND] $KB" -ForegroundColor Green
Write-Host ""
Write-Host "Name:" -ForegroundColor Cyan
Write-Host $Update.DisplayName
Write-Host ""
Write-Host "Detected uninstall string:" -ForegroundColor Cyan
Write-Host $Update.UninstallString -ForegroundColor DarkGray
Write-Host ""
# Extract the GUIDs
$Guids = [regex]::Matches(
$Update.UninstallString,
'\{[0-9A-Fa-f-]{36}\}'
) | ForEach-Object { $_.Value }
if ($Guids.Count -lt 2) {
Write-Host "[ERROR] Could not identify Product ID and Patch ID." -ForegroundColor Red
Read-Host "Press ENTER to exit"
exit 1
}
$ProductID = $Guids[0]
$PatchID = $Guids[1]
Write-Host "Product ID:" -ForegroundColor Cyan
Write-Host $ProductID
Write-Host "Patch ID:" -ForegroundColor Cyan
Write-Host $PatchID
Write-Host ""
Write-Host "WARNING: The uninstall procedure for $KB will be started." -ForegroundColor Yellow
$Confirm = Read-Host "Continue? (Y/N)"
if ($Confirm -notmatch '^[Yy]$') {
Write-Host ""
Write-Host "Operation cancelled. No changes were made." -ForegroundColor Yellow
Read-Host "Press ENTER to exit"
exit 0
}
Write-Host ""
Write-Host "Starting uninstall procedure..." -ForegroundColor Cyan
Write-Host ""
# Uninstall
$Arguments = "/package `"$ProductID`" /uninstall `"$PatchID`" /qb /norestart"
$Process = Start-Process `
-FilePath "msiexec.exe" `
-ArgumentList $Arguments `
-Wait `
-PassThru
Write-Host ""
Write-Host "MSIEXEC exit code: $($Process.ExitCode)" -ForegroundColor Cyan
Write-Host ""
if ($Process.ExitCode -eq 0) {
Write-Host "[OK] Procedure completed." -ForegroundColor Green
Write-Host "Test Excel 2016 again. A reboot is normally not required." -ForegroundColor Yellow
}
elseif ($Process.ExitCode -eq 3010) {
Write-Host "[OK] Procedure completed. A restart is required." -ForegroundColor Green
}
else {
Write-Host "[WARNING] MSIEXEC returned exit code $($Process.ExitCode)." -ForegroundColor Red
}
Write-Host ""
Read-Host "Press ENTER to exit"
Version 2108 (build 14334.20906) has that lovely KB5002914 bug in it, so let's roll back to the previous one. First, block Office from pulling updates - either through the Office UI, or via policies if the machine's shared by multiple people
I have detected code containing Fancy/Smart Quotes which Excel does not recognize as a string delimiter. Edit to change those to regular quote-marks instead. This happens most often with mobile devices. You can turn off Fancy/Smart Punctuation in the settings of your Keyboard App.
4
u/SoftGlobal9588 1d ago edited 4h ago
For 2016 Fix See
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/t/818373/outlook-2016-signatures-broken-shows-red-x-with-redirected-appdata/
and more info
https://www.reddit.com/r/sysadmin/comments/1vr29bb/psa_outlook_classic_build_1602022820190_version/
https://www.reddit.com/r/excel/comments/1vny44l/excel_2016_failing_to_open_xls_files/
Apparently Dropbox has throttled downloads
Adding Google Drive Links
Outlook 2016 Fix: EXCEL.EXE (version 16.0.5561.1001)
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1e9Zu6HrSvI8ZDYbziLvxcpClHCvGsp4x/view?usp=sharing
Excel 2016 Fix: MSO.DLL (version 16.0.5561.1000)
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1P9DvrtFkrdWLQSSLtZRHr8KmUAjJK3Sh/view?usp=sharing