Overview
If the Virtual Cabinet Office add-in is not appearing (is missing / has dropped out), this is commonly caused by the add-in being disabled or unticked in Office settings. This article explains how to re-enable it.
If the Virtual Cabinet Office add-in is not appearing (is missing / has dropped out), this is commonly caused by the add-in being disabled or unticked in Office settings. This article explains how to re-enable it.
Symptoms
- The Virtual Cabinet tab or toolbar is not visible
- The add-in previously worked but has since disappeared
Resolution
Turning the Add-in Back On (If It Was Simply Turned Off)
If the VC Office Add-in has just been turned off, follow these steps in the affected Office program to turn it back on:
If the VC Office Add-in has just been turned off, follow these steps in the affected Office program to turn it back on:
- Go to File > More > Options > Add-ins.
- At the bottom of the window, use the dropdown to select COM Add-ins (in Excel this may initially show "Excel Add-ins" - change it to "COM Add-ins"), then click Go.
- In the new window, find the VC Add-in in the list.
- Tick the checkbox next to the VC Add-in and click OK.
- Wait for the Add-in to start up again, restarting the Office program if necessary.
Re-enabling the Add-in (If It Has Been Disabled)
If the Office program has disabled the VC Add-in rather than just turning it off, you'll need to re-enable it before it can be turned back on:
- Go to File > More > Options > Add-ins.
- At the bottom of the window, use the dropdown showing either "COM Add-ins" or "Excel Add-ins".
- Change the dropdown to Disabled Items and click Go.
- Highlight the VC Add-in and click Enable.
- Close that window, change the dropdown back to COM Add-ins, and click Go again.
- Find the VC Add-in in the list.
- Tick the checkbox next to the VC Add-in and click OK.
- Wait for the Add-in to start up again, restarting the Office program if necessary.
Clearing a Ghost Excel Process (Excel Only)
If the Virtual Cabinet tab is still missing in Excel after the above steps, a "ghost" Excel process may be preventing it from loading. This happens when Excel doesn't close down properly, causing Windows to think it's still open and forcing new Excel windows to open as sub-windows of the stuck process.
To resolve this:
- Right-click the Windows taskbar and select Task Manager, or press CTRL+SHIFT+ESC.
- On the Processes tab, order the list by name and locate the Microsoft Excel process (likely under "Background processes", but check "Apps" too).
- Highlight the Excel process and click End task.
- Reopen Excel - it should now start properly with the Virtual Cabinet tab accessible again.
Additional Notes
- If Virtual Cabinet does not appear in the COM Add-ins list, this may indicate the add-in needs to be reinstalled or repaired rather than re-enabled.
- If the issue persists after following these steps, please contact support for further assistance.