What is the Microsoft Setup Bootstrapper?
On Microsoft Office 2013, 2016, and 2019, the BootStrapper is responsible for the initialization of an application built using the Composite Application Library. This relatively new technology was developed in order to simplify the dependencies needed during the installation process.
What is causing the ‘Microsoft setup boots-trapper had stopped working’ error?
We investigated this particular issue by looking at various user reports and the repair strategies that the most affected users have deployed in order to resolve the problem. Based on our investigations, there are several different culprits that are known to trigger this particular issue: If you’re currently struggling to resolve the ‘Microsoft setup boots-trapper had stopped working’ error, this article will present you with several troubleshooting steps that affected users have used to resolve this particular error message. Below you have several different repair methods ordered by efficiency and severity. Not every method will be applicable to your particular scenario, so please follow them in the order that they are presented and disregard those that can’t be replicated on your machine. Let’s begin!
Method 1: Uninstalling 3rd party antivirus (if applicable)
Some users have reported that in their case, the issue was resolved after they uninstall their 3rd party antivirus suite. As it turns out, there are several overprotective AV suites (McAfee, Avast, potentially more) that will block the updating feature of the Microsoft Office suite, which will end up triggering the ‘Microsoft setup boots-trapper had stopped working’ error. If this scenario is applicable to your situation, you might be able to resolve the issue by simply disabling the real-time protection of your security suite. Of course, the steps of doing this are specific to the AV suite that you’re using. But keep in mind that some users have reported that the issue was only resolved after they completely uninstalled their 3rd party antivirus from their system. If you’re prepared to go this far, follow this article (here) on uninstalling security programs and ensuring that any remnant files are also removed. If you’re still encountering the ‘Microsoft setup boots-trapper had stopped working’ error after dealing with your 3rd party security suite or this method wasn’t applicable, move down to the next method below.
Method 2: Using a Microsoft Fix-It Tool
Fortunately, Microsoft developed an automated tool equipped to resolve this particular error message (and a few others). Several affected users have reported that they managed to resolve the issue by running a Microsoft Fix It tool. This Fix-It will resolve various problems that end up blocking programs from being launched, installed or removed. You can use it on Windows 10, Windows 7 and Windows 8.1. If the issue is caused by corrupted registry keys or by files from uninstalled or existing programs, this tool might end up resolving the issue automatically. Here’s a quick guide on how to deploy this fix: If you’re still encountering the error even after using the Fix-it tool, jump down to the next method below.
Method 3: Uninstalling IoBit Software
Based on various user reports, there are multiple IoBit software products that are known to conflict with Microsoft Office and trigger the ‘Microsoft setup boots-trapper had stopped working’ error – IoBit Uninstaller and Advanced SystemCare are on top of this list. Several affected users have reported that the issue was resolved after they uninstalled the conflicting IoBit software. If you have multiple products from IoBit, the only way of fishing out the culprit is to uninstall every product until you notice that the issue has stopped occurring. Here’ a quick guide on doing this: If you’re still encountering the same error message, move down to the next method below.
Method 4: Re-enabling Task Scheduler via Registry Editor
Several users that we’re struggling to resolve the ‘Microsoft setup boots-trapper had stopped working’ error has reported that the issue was finally resolved after re-enabling the Task Scheduler. As it turns out, this error message is known to get thrown in those instances where the Task Scheduler is prevented from running. If this scenario is applicable, the quickest way to resolve the issue is to re-enable the Task Scheduler via Registry Editor. Here’s a quick guide on how to do this: If you’re still seeing the ‘Microsoft setup boots-trapper had stopped working’ error when trying to open a Microsoft Office application, move down to the next method below.
Method 5: Uninstalling Office Installation & deleting the AppCompatFlags key
Several affected users have reported that the issue was only resolved after they uninstalled their Office installation completely and used Registry Editor to delete a key called AppCompatFlags. After doing this and reinstalling the Microsoft Office suite, some users have reported that they were able to launch any Microsoft Office application without encountering the ‘Microsoft setup boots-trapper had stopped working’ error. Here’s a quick guide on how to do this
Method 6: Opening the Setup.exe in Compatibility Mode
Some users that have been encountering the ‘Microsoft setup boots-trapper had stopped working’ error when trying to install an older Office version (Office 2010, Office 2013) have reported that they managed to get around the issue by opening the installation executable (setup.exe) in Compatibility mode. Here’s a quick guide on how to do this:
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