Word 2010 not creating normal.dotm

I'm trying to recreate a normal.dotm file because the old one has gotten corrupted. I've tried deleting the old one, messed with read-only setting in %appdata%\microsoft\template, and removed my workgroup template settings. But normal.dotm doesn't reappear. However, there seems to be a normal.dotm template associated with my new Word document.

Do you have any idea a) where word is getting the normal.dotm, and b) how to edit or recreate it?

I'm using Windows 7. The path to normal.dotm is default: %appdata%\Microsoft\templates.

1 Answer

1. Verify that Word is using the correct location. Open Word, go to File > Options > Advanced > File Locations... > User templates > Modify... The path should be identical to your %appdata%\Microsoft\Templates.
2. Your Word shortcut might be using a switch (e.g. /a prevents templates, /t overrides the template). Click Start, then Run, and type winword and press enter. Check if the template has been created.