Error 1606: Could not access network location

G'day.

Getting the above error when I try to install or repair MS Office from disc or when I try to install MS Office updates (download is successful and Windows updates are OK). It's been a problem for some months.

I see that most people with this error get a pointer to where the problem is and are able to fix it from the MS website - check Registry subkeys in User Shell Folders.

Mine doesn't give a pointer at the end, it just says "Error 1606: Could not access network location", followed by a square, a colon, and four more squares (like it doesn't know what to put or something).

I had a couple of trojans that chaslang helped me remove, and I have done all the recommended cleanups.

I checked the registry values against the MS list, and couldn't see much, although there is the following:

I had been advised that the "Recent" subkey might be the problem and that I should remove it, and that it would restore itself. It never did, so I re-entered it manually.

LocalAppData had a space in it: "Local AppData" (no space on the MS website), so I redid that key as well. However, after reboot, the one with the space was back and the one without was still there too. Also, the string between the % signs is in lower case in the automatically created subkey.

The word "Programs" is lower case in one of the subkeys - I presume that is not a problem.

These are the differences I could find.

When I try to repair Office through Add/Remove Programs, I get a "Windows Installer" panel, followed by an "MS Office Setup" panel, and then it goes to the error. There has been no change no matter what I have tried.

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Geoff

 

Oops . Running XP SP2 and MS Office 2003.
I did also try installing a new installer, but that didn't help either.
Geoff

 

Yahoo!
Found a solution - although you need the Office CD and you lose all your updates and settings in Office, but at least it works. The software at the following site removes Office and allows a fresh installation:
http://www.onlinecomputertips.com/troubleshooting/installer_cleanup.html

:-D ...............................:-D
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.......:-D..................:-D.......
.............:-D :-D:-D............

 

Re: Can't remove crypt.xpack.gen and patched.BU.6

G'day again.

No problem this time - hoping to help others maybe. (I already posted this msg once in a new thread, but it disappeared - pity - it's quite long, and I have to redo it.

Anyway, you may recall that one reason I wanted to get rid of the trojans that had been bugging me was that I was having issues installing Office 2003 updates, and I couldn't uninstall Office or repair it or anything - I kept getting a 1606 installation error.

Last night I found a workaround which has fixed the problem (I posted it in the software forum where I had posted my 1606 question). I found a program that removed Outlook, after which I was able to reinstall from the CD, and now everything's fine, except that I had to re-download and install updates, but that wasn't too bad, as most of them are now included in SP3 (108 MB), so there wasn't much to do - just time, on our slow broadband.

Having done that, I thought there might be an opportunity to learn something useful out of the situation - in particular, what caused the problem in the first place, and find a better (less drastic) solution - this may help others with the same problem (and there seem to be some).

The reason I am writing in this malware forum is that I am wondering if the problem was caused by malware. The reason I suspect it may be is that, towards the start of a log of a failed download attempt, I found a number of references that said "Opening existing patch 'C:\WINDOWS\Installer\d9d381.msp'", although with a different alphanumeric on the end of each.

The word 'patch' rang a bell, as I remember you talking about viruses patching other files, so I wondered if this could be the case here. There are no similar references in the log of the successful installation.

Also, the alphanumerics listed do not match any that are in the Installer folder now, after the successful installation (same CD used).

I have attached the first few pages of the failed and successful logs (the full logs were 10 MB each), as I thought you might like to have a look. What I am thinking is that it may have been possible to solve my problem by replacing the Windows\Installer folder, rather than removing the whole Office suite (that might particularly help those who don't have their CD).

I'd be interested in your comments.

Merci d'avance (thought it might be time for a bit of culture here),

Geoff

PS I wanted (and tried) to post this under a new thread, as it may be easier for others to find (hoping it's useful) - especially under a different subject name. You may wish to do that, if you think it would be helpful.

 

You could have visited this site http://support.microsoft.com/kb/313257 which may have helped as well. Good job on solving it yourself !!!

 

Thanks Vikingman.
That link seems to be heading in the right direction - a problem with the installer, but I wonder how it would apply to Office 2003 (which I have). It suggests downloading Office 2000 SR-1a Update. Is there an equivalent for Office 2003, I wonder? I haven't come across one, and I did do a bit of searching in Microsoft.
The other thing is, if there is something to install, would it do it successfully, as the Office installer wasn't working?
I'm pretty keen on getting to the bottom of this thing, because it has been a problem for months, and if others are having the same problem, a cure would be handy.
In view of this, I have posted on the malware forum, as I suspect malware may be involved - the post is actually on the tail of another post I had there relating to a couple of trojans I had (crypt.xpack.gen and patched.BU.6). Having looked at the MS link however, I am now not so keen on that explanation.
Currently waiting to see what chaslang has to say about it. You might care to have a look - I have attached before and after logs (for an unsuccessful and a successful install. There are some interesting differences).

 

Thanks chaslang.

I guess I spent a lot of time not knowing what the right question was. The 1606 error certainly didn't give me any help at all.

I am still wondering if there was a less drastic way of solving this problem, such as replacing the Installer folder. I can't try it now, of course, because mine is now working.