OfficeBackgroundTaskHandlerRegistration flashes a window every hour

Anonymous
2017-04-15T05:19:15+00:00

Is there a really, really good reason that the "OfficeBackgroundTaskHandlerRegistration" task (see it in Task Scheduler, Microsoft, Office) must run every hour?  This is what it says that it does: "This task initiates Office Background Task Handler, which updates relevant Office data."

I ask, because it runs officebackgroundtaskhandler.exe in such a way that it flashes a window (itself) on the screen. Only instantaneously to be sure, but it's noticeable, especially once you catch onto what's happening. You can run the task manually if you want to see it without waiting.

Why doesn't the task use one of the many tricks to hide a window from displaying?

Insider Fast on Win10.

Microsoft 365 Insider | Install, activate, and update | Windows

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Anonymous
2017-05-30T14:37:13+00:00

( Update 6/7/17 - PaulSey... )

The fix is now available in mainstream builds 16.8210.2075 released on 6/6/17

This issue is fixed starting with build 16.0.8201.2025 which is now available as the latest update for those participating in the Office Insiders Slow program. It will be included in a future update for those not participating in Insiders.

For more information on joining Office Insiders see the Office Insider page.

Thank you everyone for reporting this issue!

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  1. Anonymous
    2017-05-02T01:04:28+00:00

    +1 I also have this issue.

    Windows 10 w/ Office 365

    It also pulls me out of fullscreen applications when it happens, which is quite a big nuisance.

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  2. Anonymous
    2017-05-01T23:00:53+00:00

    I also have this problem.

    Recently, I've been having a lot of trouble with games that play on full-screen sudden;y flicking to the desktop view, and then back to a resized version of the game that I have to "alt+tab" to get back to the correct resolution.

    I've been trying to isolate which program has been doing it, as usually a black cmd box appears for only a millisecond or 2, never long enough for me to see the program name. Today though, the box stayed up, and i got the program name:

    officebackgroundtaskhandler

    I'm not 100% sure if it's what's causing the problem, but i wonder if maybe a caught it red-handed today.

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  3. Anonymous
    2017-05-01T19:20:39+00:00

    Any chance you could give us a workaround Greg? This thing is immensely frustrating, and I'm this close to uninstalling Office until I hear that this issue has been solved for good.

    Check the earlier part of the thread; edit the task to run under the system account, or edit the task to have it run only on login.

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  4. Anonymous
    2017-05-01T18:41:24+00:00

    Yup, experiencing this too. Had to screen record to find out what it was. It stays up for 1 frame of the recording, so a 60th of a second.

    https://gyazo.com/e2ebc0ea706a07e0dee5fddb3d095c83

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