# MS Word is suddenly Read Only. Need answer fast **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 17, 2023, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ms-word-is-suddenly-read-only-need-answer-fast/984171 "2023-05-17T15:18:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2023, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ms-word-is-suddenly-read-only-need-answer-fast/984171/21 "2023-05-18T00:23:55Z")
> [@Dr.Drake](#): > > do not use your ridiculous hypervigilant settings for files originating on my own damp personal computer That could be your problem. Computers don’t work well when they get damp. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2023, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ms-word-is-suddenly-read-only-need-answer-fast/984171/22 "2023-05-18T00:47:57Z")
You might have the same problem I did – down at the bottom of your document are three icons – you can hover over them to see what they are. If you clicked “Read Mode”, you won’t be able to edit your own documents. Simply click one of the other icons. That’s all it took for me. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2023, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ms-word-is-suddenly-read-only-need-answer-fast/984171/23 "2023-05-18T00:51:06Z")
> [@echoreply](#): > > Something similar happened to a friend recently, because they had somehow logged out of their Microsoft account, I did get a notification that I needed to log into… Office 365? I entered the passcode it sent. This happens from time to time, but this is the first time I’ve been unable to edit my files. > [@peccavi](#): > > Did you create the form? No. It was made by someone at Big Multinational Credit Company. I’ve been using it for years. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2023, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ms-word-is-suddenly-read-only-need-answer-fast/984171/24 "2023-05-18T01:04:08Z")
I just started using the Microsoft 365 suite after using the Office 2013 suite for uhm, well 10 years. This doc I got from someone else, when I open it it says at the top that I’m in “Viewing” mode and there’s a yellow alert bar across the top that has a button in it that says “Enable Editing”. I clicked that and now I can edit. The yellow bar went away. But, that doesn’t help JLA. However, I went to the Help documentation and searched “Enable Editing” and this is what I get: > [@](#): > > Enable Editing: > > 1. Select the **File** tab and select **Info**. > 2. Select **Protect Document** \> **Enable Editing**. > > **Note:** If someone else created the document, they might not allow editing. You can ask the document owner to enable editing. Or, go to **File** \> **Save as** , save it with another name, and edit the new document. Since I clicked that “Enable Editing” button on the yellow bar, there’s a button in the top right of the Word interface that previously said “Viewing” but now says “Editing”. When I first opened the doc and it was View Only, when clicking on the “Viewing” button there was a dropdown that had “Editing” greyed out. Now that I’ve enabled editing, the button in the top right says “Editing” and the dropdown is active for all choices. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2023, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ms-word-is-suddenly-read-only-need-answer-fast/984171/25 "2023-05-18T01:32:57Z")
Just to reiterate: > [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > OK, I may have stumbled onto something. > > I opened the file I’d saved as ‘Test’. In the View tab, I saw Edit Document. I tried that, and was able to edit. I’ve only tried a couple of files, but it _looks_ like I can edit anything now. Thanks for the answers! ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2023, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ms-word-is-suddenly-read-only-need-answer-fast/984171/26 "2023-05-18T05:33:29Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > This doc I got from someone else, when I open it it says at the top that I’m in “Viewing” mode and there’s a yellow alert bar across the top that has a button in it that says “Enable Editing”. I clicked that and now I can edit. The yellow bar went away. That’s standard behavior for any document you download from email, say, and then open. Actually a feature, I think. I’m not sure, but I assume read-only mode also disables macros. My antivirus software removes them so I can’t tell. If Windows only had ls -l it would be all so much easier. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ms-word-is-suddenly-read-only-need-answer-fast/984171.md?page=1)