Office applications turns white after inactivity in RDP

Question

Hi everyone!

We have a RDS farm with multiple RDS Session Hosts, running Windows Server 2022 Datacenter and Office 2021 LTS. When logged in via RDP, the content in different Office applications disappears after a few seconds of inactivity. Sometimes it doesn't, but most of the times, it does. See screenshot:

As you can see, the left one turns grey, however the right one stays active. When you click the left window, the page appears again. This only seems to happen in an RDP-session and not locally on the RDS via console.

What we've tried so far:

• Install latest updates for Windows, Office and VMware
• Opened a Word-file from the local drive instead of fileserver
• Enabled and disabled Hardware Acceleration
• Tried another RDP-client, on a Mac instead of Windows client
• Safe mode of Word
• Set the video memory of the RDS Session Host on VMware to 256MB

If you have any suggestions or additional questions, please let me know. Thanks!!

Answer 1

Posting this in the main thread for more visibility, as it gets lost it other lower subcomments:

So the issue with inactive windows of Office apps like Outlook going blank white in RDP/Citrix sessions appears to be caused by InkObj.dll, located at "C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\microsoft shared\Ink" for x86 and "C:\Program Files\Common Files\microsoft shared\Ink" on x64. Taking ownership of and renaming or otherwise removing this .dll fixes the issue, however on 64 bit systems it breaks the Snipping Tool which also relies on this .dll file

Noticing that when InkObj.dll was not loaded that Outlook no longer showed the "Draw" feature, I stumbled upon a fix for the Office white screen problem that doesn't break the Snipping Tool: In Outlook (where we have had the problem) open up an email or compose a new one, then go File -> Options -> Customize Ribbon and disable the "Draw" ribbon feature under main tabs

With the Draw ribbon item disabled for open or composing windows, inactive windows no longer turn white. Can also confirm it's the same fix in other Office apps like Word

Answer 2

Hello there, Check if you have set any timeout sessions that is killing the office allocations. The settings of RDP session timeouts are located in the following GPO section Computer Configuration -> Policies -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> Remote Desktop Services -> Remote Desktop Session Host -> Session Time Limits. Similar discussion here https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/msoffice/forum/all/microsoft-office-white-screen/b1041f62-06b9-432f-902b-abd2c1337de4 Hope this resolves your Query !! --If the reply is helpful, please Upvote and Accept it as an answer--

Answer 3

We are a Microsoft SPLA partner a Remote Desktop hoster using (RDSH). We, too, have this problem. It plagues only some users. It appears to affect high-res users, mostly.

Please share a solution when found.

Answer 4

Hi Michel,

 

Issue reported: Microsoft Office applications turn blank grey or white after inactivity of few seconds in RDP using Windows Server 2022 with Microsoft Office 2021. Experiencing Microsoft Office applications turning blank, grey, or white after a few seconds of inactivity in a Remote Desktop environment (RDP) could be due to various factors.

Troubleshooting: Here are some steps you can take to troubleshoot and resolve the issue, we may have to reiterate some steps.

1. Check Graphics Settings: Ensure that the graphics settings on the RDP server are optimized for best performance. You can adjust these settings by right-clicking on the desktop, selecting "Display settings," and then adjusting the "Performance options" or "Hardware acceleration" settings.
2. Update Graphics Drivers: Outdated or incompatible graphics drivers can lead to display issues. Make sure you have the latest graphics drivers installed on both the server and the client machine.
3. Disable Hardware Graphics Acceleration: Sometimes, hardware graphics acceleration can cause compatibility problems in RDP sessions. In the Office application, go to "File" > "Options" > "Advanced" > "Display" and then disable the "Use hardware graphics acceleration" option.
4. Adjust Remote Desktop Settings: Check the Remote Desktop settings on both the server and the client. Ensure that you're using the appropriate display settings, such as "Full screen" or "Remote desktop size."
5. Check Remote Desktop Connection Quality: Poor network connectivity can lead to display issues. Make sure you have a stable and fast network connection between the client and the server.
6. Monitor System Resources: Insufficient system resources on either the client or the server can cause display problems. Monitor CPU, memory, and disk usage to ensure that there are no resource bottlenecks.
7. Check for Updates: Ensure that both Windows Server 2022 and Microsoft Office 2021 are fully updated with the latest patches and updates.
8. Test on Different Machines: Try accessing the RDP session from a different client machine to see if the issue persists. This can help determine if the problem is specific to the client machine.
9. Temporary File Cleanup: Clear temporary files and caches on both the client and server machines. Use tools like Disk Cleanup to perform this task.
10. Check Group Policy Settings: If the RDP environment is managed by Group Policy settings, ensure that there are no policies conflicting with the display settings of Microsoft Office applications.
11. Check Compatibility: Verify the compatibility of Microsoft Office 2021 with Windows Server 2022. It's possible that certain features of Office might not work optimally in this environment.

If the above mentioned troubleshooting resolves your problem, please update with your findings.

Thanks!

Answer 5

Still the same problem. The problem appears to be random, however, it does affect some users more than others.