Online clipart stopped working

[Sheridan]

Our Office 2016 'Insert online pictures' has suddenly stopped working for all the applications in the suite.

 

When a user clicks it they immediately see a message:

 

"You need an internet connection to insert online pictures.

While you are offline, you can insert pictures from your computer."

 

I'm assuming its a filtering issue, but we haven't changed anything on our Smoothwall, have MS changed the URLS for this? I can't see anything blocked in our smoothwall

[Sheridan]

Its the same for online video - but it comes up with the error immediately - and doesn't seem to have any errors on the smoothwall

 

I guess an MS update has borked this, yet again.

[Sheridan]

Well it looks like the old Windows 7 bug where it says there is no internet connection, even though there is. I've disabled the nlasvc probe and reset/rebooted but random machines (identical hardware) will show the exclamation mark. When thats showing then Office doesn't even attempt to connect and generates the error.

 

Looks like we're stuck with this bug for a long time yet.

[chazzy2501]

I fixed this, it is the allow "do not save encrypted pages to disk" in internet explorer. you may notice that the buttons around the online search alos don't load correctly

[Sheridan]

We get the same problem whether that is checked or unchecked (its unchecked by our GPP and has been for some time for another issue)

 

This is a really annoying problem, Office simply won't use online clipart because this crappy network awareness service doesn't work properly! But in a room of 20 identical PCs it will work on some, but not others

 

Even if I disable the ncsi probe (with GPO or registry settings) I still get the exclamation mark showing, which in turn breaks the Office clipart, despite everything resolving and internet is accessible.

[chazzy2501]

Oh goodness it is as you state, broken on mine as well! Office 2019 here but same difference.. I'd only just got this working.. .FFS

 

EDIT, just checked my VM which has yet to update and online pictures still work.

Edited March 19, 2020 by chazzy2501

[Sheridan]

Its a blo--dy nuisance. I've just tested on 2 PCs side by side. Both identical in every sense - one works, one fails. Disconnected and reconnected the network cable on the working one, and now it fails as well.

 

What sort of rubbish software are MS chucking out when Office fails like this, despite having a connection!