Forum Discussion
Numbering and bullets in Word docs keep disappearing
When working as a team on Word files within SharePoint, I constantly have problems with things like heading numbering disappearing (or changing from numbers to bullets), bullets going missing or bull...
We are experiencing the same problem on macOS. None of the hints in this threads has resolved the issue for us. The main issue is that the numbering template disconnects from the headings – again and again. Unbelievable that Microsoft does not fix the problem in several years.
- Experiencing the same issue on macOS. None of the suggestions in this thread have solved it. Frustrating that Microsoft hasn't fixed this problem despite its persistence for years.
It's inconceivable to me that such a basic feature can remain broken for this long when using Microsoft's own software with its own collaboration system, however if you look for the issue the only references you'll find to it are on forums like this which are only user to user. My guess is that they simply lack the institutional knowledge to fix something as old as Word when it doesn't play well with a newer system. I'm guessing it will never be fixed as they're pushing their web version which will suit the requirements of 80% of people.
AndrewB_33335 To solve the issue, we removed all the styles that were dissappearing, when some users entered the doc and their normal template conflicted with the word doc styles, in the Managing Styles. Easiest way we found was to switch autoupdate style and edit the style directly in the document text.
Removing access to users was not possible, so we flushed the doc cache and some users cache (in File > options). Turning autosave did help, but doc sync would still breakdown at times. The only solution would be to make one person the lead editor, and other users commentators. Guess google doc is better at sync than Microsoft/Azure...
- Having the same issue here. I'm on version 2308.
I tried saving my .dotx locally before creating the .docx from it, and it still happens. The "Automatically update document styles" option is unchecked.
My workaround is to re-attach the dotx, enable the "Automatically update document styles", then disable the option again. Pretty annoying.
I've had it happen to a file that only I ever opened. I always open it from my synced SharePoint folder; I never open through Teams or through the web app.aleblancnuv Thanks for keeping the issue alive. Our only hope now is that Microsoft sees how prevalent and catastrophic this issue is.
Your solution is workable, but it's only really effective when there are no other users in the document. Otherwise, in my experience, the template attachment loads asynchronously for the different users and the document is unstable. You can always get things set back to normal at the end; but in the meantime, the document is an unworkable mess for everyone actively participating in it. Of course, this discourages users from applying the styles and pre-loaded content (like tables, callout boxes, etc.) that you so painstakingly generated in your template! Simultaneous, multi-user collaboration is the lynchpin of SharePoint. If you can't keep a document stable, while also using a template, a major function of SharePoint collapses. This is especially dismaying and embarrassing when you're part of a large organization (hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of users) and you'd like to create organization-wide standards (which I have!), but you have to tell alllll of your users, "Now, bear in mind, this will look like total chaos while you're actually using the document..."
