PHPOffice/PHPWord · error · PhpOffice\PhpWord\Exception\Exception

The archive failed to load with the following error code…

Error message

The archive failed to load with the following error code: $openStatus

What it means

After the file-existence check, XMLReader::getDomFromZip() calls ZipArchive::open(). If it returns anything other than true (an integer ZipArchive error code such as ER_READ=5, ER_NOZIP=19, ER_INCONS=21), further ZipArchive calls would fatal, so the library throws with the numeric error code embedded in the message.

Solutions

Decode the numeric code in the message (e.g. 19 = ZipArchive::ER_NOZIP, 21 = ER_INCONS) to identify the cause.
Validate the archive before use: $z=new ZipArchive(); $z->open($path)===true, or check it's a real OOXML file (finfo mime zip + presence of [Content_Types].xml).
Re-upload/re-download the file if truncated or corrupt; reject legacy .doc files and use the appropriate reader.
Check file permissions and disk space if the file is a valid zip.

Example fix

// before
$zip = new ZipArchive();
$status = $zip->open($path); // returns 19, later fatal
// after
$zip = new ZipArchive();
$status = $zip->open($path);
if ($status !== true) {
    throw new RuntimeException("Corrupt or non-zip document ($status): $path");
}

Defensive patterns

Strategy: try-catch

Validate before calling

$zip = new ZipArchive();
if ($zip->open($path) !== true) {
    throw new InvalidArgumentException("Not a readable zip archive: $path");
}
$zip->close();

Try / catch

try {
    $reader->getDomFromZip($zipFile, $xmlFile);
} catch (\PhpOffice\PhpWord\Exception\Exception $e) {
    if (str_contains($e->getMessage(), 'failed to load with the following error code')) {
        $code = (int) filter_var($e->getMessage(), FILTER_SANITIZE_NUMBER_INT);
        throw new RuntimeException("Corrupt/non-zip document (ZipArchive code $code): $zipFile", $code, $e);
    }
    throw $e;
}

Prevention

Validate zip integrity with ZipArchive::open before processing user-supplied files
Detect actual file type via finfo rather than trusting extensions
Check uploads for completeness (size, checksum) at ingestion
Verify disk space and permissions when archives fail intermittently

When it happens

Trigger: getDomFromZip() given a file that exists but is not a valid zip: old binary .doc saved as .docx, truncated download, password-protected zip, empty/corrupt archive, or a file without read permission (ZipArchive can stat but not open it).

Common situations: Users renaming legacy .doc to .docx; interrupted uploads; encrypted office files; disk full or permissions preventing ZipArchive from reading; corrupted templates in storage.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of PHPOffice/PHPWord@aef95c0415 (2026-09-14). Data as JSON: /api/errors/15c4f63e6ef81f39. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at src/PhpWord/Shared/XMLReader.php:71

     * @param string $zipFile
     * @param string $xmlFile
     *
     * @return DOMDocument|false
     */
    public function getDomFromZip($zipFile, $xmlFile)
    {
        if (file_exists($zipFile) === false) {
            throw new Exception('Cannot find archive file.');
        }

        $zip = new ZipArchive();
        $openStatus = $zip->open($zipFile);
        if ($openStatus !== true) {
            /**
             * Throw an exception since making further calls on the ZipArchive would cause a fatal error.
             * This prevents fatal errors on corrupt archives and attempts to open old "doc" files.
             */
            throw new Exception("The archive failed to load with the following error code: $openStatus");
        }

        $content = $zip->getFromName(ltrim($xmlFile, '/'));
        $zip->close();

        if ($content === false) {
            return false;
        }

        return $this->getDomFromString($content);
    }

    /**
     * Get DOMDocument from content string.
     *
     * @param string $content
     *
     * @return DOMDocument

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