How to fix
McAfee Antivirus
on windows

“Every time now that I open a Word document, I get a box that comes up and says ‘The command cannot be performed because a dialog box is open. Click OK, and then close open dialog boxes to continue.’ How do I fix this problem? It never did that before.”

The message usually appears when older Microsoft Word versions such as Word 2003 or Word 2007 are opened on Windows 10, and it stops the document from loading normally. Word does not always present a visible dialog box that matches the warning, which makes the error feel confusing. The program is asking you to close a dialog that may not be obvious, while the real trigger is often happening behind the scenes in Word itself or in a security add-in.

That hidden mismatch is the reason the alert persists for some users after the system seems otherwise healthy. The document may still be on disk, Word may still launch, and the desktop may still respond, but the command that should open the file is blocked because Word thinks another window or prompt is active. In practice, that means the file does not open cleanly, and repeated attempts can produce the same warning every time the program starts or tries to process the document.

The issue is reported most often in setups where older Office builds meet a newer Windows environment, especially when security software has recently changed. The source material points to Windows 10 PCs running McAfee security software as a common setting for the problem, and it also notes that opening an older Word document can trigger the same failure. When the behavior repeats across documents, the problem usually sits in Word’s startup state, a template file, or an Office-related security scan rather than in the document itself.

The message can also surface when Word loads its startup components before the file reaches the editing window. In that case, the program is not refusing to open the document because it is damaged; it is pausing because something in the startup chain is making Word believe a dialog box still needs attention. That may happen after a security update, after an add-in change, or when Word’s own default template is carrying a broken startup instruction.

One cause is a recent McAfee security software update that inadvertently affects older versions of Microsoft Word. Security products commonly insert scanning hooks into application startup, and Office documents are a frequent target because they may contain macros or embedded content. If the scanner intercepts Word at the wrong moment, Word can interpret the scan state as a blocking dialog, which leaves the application waiting for user input that never appears. In older Office builds, that interaction can be enough to produce the exact warning shown in the source text.

Another cause is a corrupted or outdated Officeav.dll file, which the source identifies as the Norton AntiVirus Office plug-in. Add-ins like this extend Word’s behavior by loading alongside the program and watching file activity, but they also sit directly in the document-open path. If that file is damaged, mismatched, or left behind after an antivirus change, Word may try to communicate with a component that no longer behaves correctly. The result is not always a crash; sometimes Word simply believes an invisible dialog remains open and blocks the command instead.

A third cause comes from the Word template stored in the Startup folder. The source notes that a template containing an Autoexec macro can open a dialog box when Word launches. That matters because Autoexec code runs automatically before the user starts working, so a small prompt or misfiring macro can create a hidden modal state. Once Word believes that a dialog is active, every later command is treated as blocked until that startup sequence is cleared or replaced.

These causes all point to the same technical pattern: Word is not failing at the document level, but at the point where its startup environment is assembled. Antivirus plug-ins, automatic scans, and template macros all attach themselves early in the launch process, which makes them powerful but also fragile. When one of them leaves Word in a waiting state, the application can continue to look open while still refusing to complete the command that should load the file.

The operating context matters because Word is built around a modal interface, where certain actions pause the rest of the application until a response is received. Dialog boxes are part of that design. A file-open prompt, a save confirmation, a properties window, or an add-in message can all temporarily hold the program in place. Under normal conditions, that control system keeps Word organized and prevents conflicting actions, but when a dialog is invisible, misplaced, or generated by a faulty add-in, the same control system becomes the obstacle.

That is why the error can feel larger than the visible symptom. The visible symptom is only a warning about a dialog box, but the deeper issue may be a template, a plug-in, or a security scan that has inserted itself into Word’s launch sequence. Once one of those components misbehaves, every document can inherit the same blockage until the broken link is removed from the startup path.

Because the source material names three distinct causes and three distinct remedies, the safest approach is to remove the most likely startup conflict first, then clear the template layer, and finally eliminate the security component that is known to interfere with older Word versions. Here are 3 solutions to fix the command cannot be performed because a dialog box is open error.

Fix 1. Rename the Normal.dotm template

Renaming the default template clears a damaged startup file and forces Word to rebuild its standard configuration.

• Open File Explorer and go to Local Disk (C:).
• Open the View tab and enable Hidden items.
• Open the Users folder and then open AppData.
• Open Roaming, then open Microsoft, and then open Templates.
• Find Normal.dotm and rename it to Normal.dog.
• If renaming does not work, delete Normal.dotm.
• Close the open windows and start Word again.

Fix 2. Turn off Microsoft Office Automatic Scan

Disabling the scan removes the Office-level interception that can block older Word versions during startup.

• Start your Norton product and open Settings.
• If you use Norton 2012, open the Computer tab and select Computer Scans.
• If you use Norton 360, open Detailed Settings, then choose Antivirus, and open the Scans and Risks tab.
• Find Microsoft Office Automatic Scan.
• Move the On/Off switch to the Off position.
• Click Apply.
• Click OK or Close.

Fix 3. Remove McAfee Antivirus

Removing McAfee breaks the update-related conflict that the source material identifies as the main trigger for the warning.

• Open Settings or Control Panel on your PC.
• Open Apps or Programs and Features.
• Find McAfee Antivirus in the installed applications list.
• Select McAfee Antivirus.
• Click Uninstall.
• Follow the on-screen removal prompts.
• Restart the computer after the removal finishes.

Šaltinis: easeus.com