How to Unprotect a Word Document

It's a common and frustrating experience: you need to make a quick change to a Microsoft Word document, but you're blocked from typing. The file is locked, protected, or set to read-only, stopping your workflow in its tracks.

Fortunately, most types of document protection can be removed. This guide will walk you through identifying the specific type of protection on your Word document and provide clear, step-by-step instructions to unprotect a Word document. Whether you're dealing with a simple "read-only" flag or a completely forgotten password, a solution is available.

What Kind of Protection are You Seeing?

Before jumping to a solution, you need to diagnose the problem. The method you need to use depends entirely on how the document is locked. Take a quick look at your document and match it to one of the descriptions below.

• Is there a yellow banner at the top? If you see a message that says "Marked as Final," this is the simplest type of protection. Proceed to Solution 1.

• Does the file title bar contain "[Read-Only]"? This indicates a file-level restriction. Go to Solution 2 to learn how to remove it.

• Can you click around but can't type or change formatting? This is likely an editing restriction. Jump to Solution 3 to see how to disable it.

• Does Word demand a password as soon as you try to open the file? This is an encrypted document. The manual tricks won't work, so jump directly to Solution 4.

Solution 1: Remove "Mark as Final" Protection

The "Mark as Final" feature isn't a true security measure. Instead, it acts as a signal to others that the document is complete and should not be edited accidentally. Removing it is incredibly simple. When you open a document that is marked as final, you will see a prominent yellow banner at the top.

Step 1. Locate the "Mark as Final" banner at the top of your document.
Step 2. Click the button that says Edit Anyway.

That's it. The banner will disappear, and you will immediately be able to edit, format, and save the document as normal.

Solution 2: How to Change a "Read-Only" Document to Editable

A "Read-Only" status prevents you from saving changes to the original file. This can happen for two reasons: the file property is set to read-only, or the author recommended it be opened that way.

Step 1. Close the document in Microsoft Word.
Step 2. Locate the file on your computer. Right-click the file icon and select Properties on Windows.

Step 3. In the General tab and uncheck the Read-only box.
Step 4. Click OK or close the dialog box.

Solution 3: Disable "Restrict Editing" in Word

This is a common form of protection, limiting what users can do within the document. Here is how to remove it, both with and without the password.

3.1 If You Know the Password

If you have the password, removing the editing restrictions is the intended and easy process.

Step 1. With the document open, click on the Review tab in the top ribbon.
Step 2. Look for and click the Restrict Editing button. A new pane will open on the right side of your screen.
Step 3. At the very bottom of the "Restrict Editing" pane, click the button labeled Stop Protection.
Step 4. A small dialog box will appear asking for the password. Enter the password and click OK.

3.2 If You Forgot the Password

If you've forgotten the password, you have two main options: an automated software solution or a manual technical method .

3.2.1 The Automated Software Method

When you forgot the editing restriction password of your Word document, the most efficient way to unprotect it is using a professional password remover. One of those useful tools is TunesKit File Password Recovery that allows you to remove your editing restriction password from your Office files. You can get full access for your files in one click.

Step 1Choose the feature to remove password

Click the Try It Free button to download and install the TunesKit File Password Recovery software on your PC. Open it and then click the Excel/Word/PPT option. After that, click the Remove Office Restriction option.

Step 2Remove editing restriction password from Word

Click the + icon to add your target Word document to this tool. Click the Start Remove button to start the removal process.

3.2.2 The Manual Method (XML Edit)

This clever workaround involves editing the document's underlying code.

Step 1. Rename your document's file extension from .docx to .zip.
Step 2. Extract the contents of the .zip file into a new folder.
Step 3. Open the Word folder and find the file named settings.xml. Open it with a text editor like Notepad.
Step 4. Use the find feature (Ctrl + F) to search for the term w:documentProtection.

Step 5. Carefully delete the entire w:documentProtection tag, from its beginning "< w:documentProtection" to its end "/>".
Step 6. Save the settings.xml file.

Step 7. Select all the extracted files and folders, right-click, and choose Send to > Compressed (zipped) folder.
Step 8. Rename this new zip file's extension back to .docx. Your document is now unlocked.

Solution 4: For Documents That Require a Password to Open

The manual methods described above do not work for documents that require a password just to be opened. That type of password encrypts the entire file, and it cannot be bypassed with simple tricks. However, there are two methods that can help you unprotect the Word document with an open password.

4.1 If You Know the Open Password

You can manually unprotect your Word file if you remember the open password.

Step 1: Open the Word document and enter its open password when a prompt appears.
Step 2: Go to File > Info.
Step 3: Click the Protect Document drop-down arrow and then choose Encrypt with Password.

Step 4: There will be a dialog box that shows the password. Clear the password and click the OK button.

Step 5: Save the document. You will find that the protection password has been removed if you reopen the document.

4.2 If You Forgot the Open Password

If you forgot the open password on your Word document, it is impossible to unprotect it via Word. However, you can use TunesKit File Password Recovery to recover your password with ease. That tool offers three recovery modes to help you retrieve the open password on your Word document: Dictionary Attack, Combination Attack, and Brute Force Attack. Its success rate is higher than other similar tools.

Step 1Select the feature to recover open password

Open the software after you install TunesKit File Password Recovery. From the homepage, select Excel/Word/PPT. Next, click the Recover Office Password option.

Step 2Select a mode to recover password

Click the + icon to add your Word to this tool. On the right, select the mode you want to use to recover your file. Finally, click the Start Recover button to retrieve your password.

Step 3Unprotect the Word document

You will get your open password after the recovery process. After that, you can use the method in 4.1 to unprotect your Word.

Conclusion

Being locked out of a Word document is a roadblock no one needs. By correctly identifying the type of protection you're facing, you can apply the right solution and get back to work. If you know the password, the unprotection process will be simple. If not, TunesKit File Password Recovery would be your best choice to unprotect a Word document with a few clicks.