Formatting Issues

How to Fix Missing Copy Borders and Paste Options in Excel

Maira Mehtab Sep 27, 2026 871 views

Question details

Users experience a bug where the dashed selection border disappears immediately after copying a cell, and the system restricts available paste operations to 'Paste Values' only, dropping standard formatting options.

Product: Microsoft Excel 365
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Copying and pasting cell data and formatting within an active worksheet.
Observed behavior: The dashed copy border vanishes, and only 'Paste Values' is shown in the paste options menu. Restarting the application restores normal functionality, but the issue often returns.

Before you start

Save your current workbook progress, as troubleshooting this issue will require completely closing and restarting the Excel application.

Solution 1Recommended

Start Excel in Safe Mode and Disable Faulty Add-ins

Running Excel in Safe Mode bypasses active add-ins. If the copy and paste functions work correctly in this mode, a third-party add-in is likely conflicting with the clipboard.

Third-party add-ins or background utilities can sometimes monitor or interrupt the Office clipboard, forcing Excel to clear the copied data's formatting and leaving you with only basic text or values.

Launch Safe Mode

Hold down the 'CTRL' key on your keyboard and double-click the Excel shortcut. Click 'Yes' when prompted to start the application in Safe Mode.

Test Copy and Paste

Open a blank workbook, type data into a cell, and copy it. If the dashed border remains and full paste options are available, the issue is caused by an add-in.

Manage Add-ins

Go to 'File' > 'Options' > 'Add-ins'. At the bottom of the window, select 'COM Add-ins' in the Manage drop-down box and click 'Go...'.

Disable and Isolate

Uncheck all add-ins to disable them and click 'OK'. Restart Excel normally. Re-enable the add-ins one by one until the issue returns to identify the problematic add-in.

Add-in Removed: Once you have identified the conflicting add-in, leaving it disabled or permanently removing it will permanently restore your copy borders and paste options.

Solution 2

Install Available Office Updates

If the problem is related to a known bug in Microsoft 365, updating your Office suite to the latest version can apply the necessary patches.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Why does the dashed copy border disappear in Excel?

The dashed selection border usually disappears when another process interrupts the Office clipboard, an incompatible add-in resets the copy selection, or you perform an action (like typing in another cell) before pasting the data.

How do I get all my paste options back instead of just Paste Values?

If you only see 'Paste Values', it typically means the formatting data was lost from the clipboard. Check for active COM add-ins that might be interfering. Disabling them or restarting Excel usually restores the full paste menu.

Does clearing the Office clipboard help with missing paste options?

Yes, sometimes the Office clipboard gets full or stuck. You can clear it by opening the Clipboard pane on the Home tab (clicking the small arrow next to the Clipboard group) and clicking 'Clear All' to reset it.

Can another application running in the background cause Excel copy and paste issues?

Yes. Applications with heavy clipboard monitoring, such as remote desktop tools, clipboard managers, or even certain browser extensions, can occasionally strip formatting from copied Excel cells, leaving only plain values.

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