WD: Line Numbers Stop After Line 65534

ID: Q177002

The information in this article applies to:

SYMPTOMS

When you apply line numbers to a large document, and the line numbers reach 65534 on a page, line numbers are suppressed for the remaining lines. If your document continues to a new page, the line numbers reappear, but numbering is restarted.

CAUSE

By design, Word only numbers lines up to 65534. When your document exceeds 65534 total lines and continues on to additional pages, the line numbers start over again at line 1.

WORKAROUND

There is no workaround to allow Word to number lines beyond 65534. However, to force Word to display the restarted line numbers on the page that contains line number 65534, insert a continuous section break at the end of line 65534.

To insert a continuous section break, follow these steps:

1. Place the insertion point at the end of line 65534.

2. On the Insert menu, click Break.

3. Under Section Breaks, click to select Continuous, and then click OK.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in the Microsoft products listed at the beginning of this article.

MORE INFORMATION

To apply line numbers, follow these steps:

1. Open an existing document or create a new one.

2. On the File menu, click Page Setup.

3. Do one of the following:

   - Windows: On the Layout tab, click Line Numbers.

     -or-

   - Macintosh: Change Page Attributes to Microsoft Word, click Margins,
     and then on the Layout tab, click Line Numbers.

4. In the Line Numbers dialog box, click to select the "Add line numbering"
   check box, and then click OK.

NOTE: To continuously number each line of your document (without restarting at each page or section), click to select Continuous under Numbering. This allows Word to number your lines up to 65534. If your document exceeds a total of 65534 lines, Word automatically restarts the line numbers at 1.
Keywords          : wordnt word8 winword kbnumbering ntword macword 
Version           : MACINTOSH:6.0,6.0.1,6.0.1a; WINDOWS:6.0,6.0a,6.0c,7.0,7.0a; WINNT:6.0
Platform          : MACINTOSH WINDOWS winnt
Issue type        : kbbug
Solution Type     : kbfix

Last Reviewed: February 13, 1999