I had this error on my Microsoft 365 applications. I followed the below troubleshooting steps, but none of them was helpful.
- Microsoft 365 Quick Repair
- Microsoft 365 Online Repair
- System Restore Points
- I created a new Windows 10 user Profile for the affected user.
As none of the above four solutions was successful. I tried logging in with a local system admin account and found all Microsoft 365 applications were working fine.
So, I deleted the current user profile and created a new one with the same name by following this article, How to Recreate a Corrupted User Profile in Windows 10.
But I found the same error Windows cannot access the specified device, path, or file. You may not have the appropriate permissions to access the item while opening any Microsoft 365 applications.
So, I tried to create a different user profile on the same device but found the same error for the newly created user accounts.
This gave me thought that this error was not related to the user profile, and I started to search for the troubleshooting steps online and followed the below troubleshooting steps from this blog:
- Disable antivirus software temporarily.
- Check the permission for the file or folder.
- Unblock the file.
- Check the location of the file.
- Recover the removed file or deleted file.
But unfortunately, none of the above five solutions helped me fix the Windows cannot access the specified device, path, or file. You may not have the appropriate permissions to access the item error on my device.