Conversion of Microsoft Excel fails on Windows Server 2008
Last update: 4 August 2017
Summary
On Microsoft Windows Server 2008, the conversion of Microsoft Excel objects to PDF fails when no user is logged on at the conversion server.
Information
Microsoft Windows Server 2008 provides local printers only to logged on users (in Microsoft Windows Server 2003 local printers were available also without a logged on user). Therefore the conversion service user cannot use the Fabasoft Postscript printers and the conversion fails.
Solution
Please follow all these steps on the conversion server to resolve the issue. You should remove the conversion server from the Fabasoft conversion configuration before or do the steps in service time.
Stopping IIS and Office applications
- Stop IIS with IISRESET /STOP
- Stop all running Microsoft Office applications. You can do this by running a cmd shell and execute
- TASKKILL -F -IM winword.exe
- TASKKILL -F -IM excel.exe
Logon with conversion service user and configure Office
- Logon locally as conversion service user
If you get a notice that Windows is creating a temporary user profile, you should reboot the machine, log on as another user (not conversion service user) and start over at the first step.
- Start all Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, Powerpoint) and do all necessary configuration.
- If necessary, insert the SQLSecurityCheck and DefaultCPG keys to the registry.
- To double-check start all Microsoft Office again.
- Log off and re-logon with another user
- Double-check if the conversion user profile was created in the C:\Users directory
Set Fabasoft printers as default printers for the machine
- Logon with the conversion service user
- Check Windows printers. Fabasoft Conversion printers should have been created already.
- Open regedit.exe
- Export HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\Current Version\Devices
- Export Key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\Current Version\PrinterPorts
- In both exports, replace HKEY_CURRENT_USER by HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT don't miss the dot at .DEFAULT
- Import both registry files. This will make these printers default for new user profiles and service users without profile)
Set IIS to load user profile for conversion service user
- Open IIS
- Navigate to the Application Pools
- Open the "Advanced Settings" of the conversion services Application Pool(s)
- Set "Load User Profile" to True .
- Restart the machine.
Test the settings
- After the machine restart, do not log on.
- Try to convert Microsoft Excel obects.
Applies to
- Fabasoft eGov-Suite 8.0 SP1
- Microsoft Office 2007
- Microsoft Windows Server 2008
This Excel conversion behavior was fixed in later versions of Fabasoft Folio/eGov-Suite.