Many users have reported encountering issues while accessing personal macro workbook, such as personal macro workbook not opening, personal macro workbook not loading automatically, Excel personal macro workbook keeps getting disabled, etc.
Such issues may arise due to a problem with the directory where the personal workbook is stored. However, there are various other reasons that may lead to such issues. Below, we’ll discuss the reasons behind the personal macro workbook not opening issue and the solutions to troubleshoot and fix the issue. But before proceeding, let’s understand why personal macro workbook is used.
Why Personal Macro Workbook is used?
You can access macros in a specific Excel workbook. However, when you need to use the same macro in other Excel worksheets, then you can create a personal macro workbook. A personal macro workbook (Personal.xlsb) is a hidden workbook that is used to store all macros. It makes your macros available every time you open Excel.
Causes of Personal Macro Workbook not Opening Issue
You may encounter personal macro workbook is not opening issue when attempting to record macros. Some possible causes behind such an issue are:
- Personal macro workbook is stored at an untrusted location
- Location of xlsb is changed
- Personal macro workbook is hidden
- Personal macro workbook becomes corrupted
- Disabled items in add-ins
- Workbook is Read-only
Methods to Fix the “Personal Macro Workbook not Opening” Issue
Follow the given methods to fix the personal macro workbook is not opening issue:
Method 1: Check the Path of Personal.xlsb
The personal macro workbook (Personal.xlsb) file is stored in XLStart folder. It opens automatically when you open your Excel application. However, sometimes it fails to load automatically. It usually occurs when you try to open the file from an incorrect path. You can check the path of Personal.xlsb by following these steps:
- Open the workbook.
- Click on the Developer tab.
- Press Alt + F11 to open Visual Basic Editor.
- Go to View > Immediate Window.
- In Immediate Window, type the following code to know the location of the workbook:
?thisworkbook.path.
- Then, hit Enter.
- You will see the path of the personal macro workbook.
- Copy the path and paste it into Quick Access field in File Explorer.
Method 2: Unhide Personal Macro Workbook
If personal macro workbook is hidden, you may unable to see and open the Personal.xlsb file. To unhide the personal Macro workbook, follow the below steps:
- In Microsoft Excel, go to View and then click Unhide
- The Unhide dialog box is displayed. Click PERSONAL and then OK.
Method 3: Enable the Macro Add-ins
You may unable to open the previously recorded macros in your personal macro workbook if the macros are disabled. To check and enable the items, follow these steps:
- Go to File > Options.
- In Excel Options, click on the Add-ins
- Select Disabled Items from the Manage section and click on Go.
- The Disabled Items dialog box appears. Click on the disabled item and then click Enable.
Method 4: Change the Trusted Location
You may encounter the “personal macro workbook not opening” issue if the Personal.xlsb file is stored at an untrusted location. You can check and modify the path of XLSTART folder using the Trust Center window. Here are the steps:
- Open MS Excel. Go to File > Options.
- Click Trust Center > Trust Center Settings.
- In the Trust Center Settings dialog box, click on Trusted Locations.
- Verify the path of the XLSTART If it is untrusted or there is any issue, then click Modify and then click OK.
Method 5: Repair your Excel File
You may fail to open personal macro workbook if it is corrupted. To repair the corrupt workbook, you can use the built-in Open and Repair utility in MS Excel. To use this tool, follow these steps:
- Open your Excel application.
- Click File > Open.
- Browse to the location where the corrupted file is stored.
- In the Open dialog box, select the corrupted workbook.
- From the Open dropdown list, click Open and Repair.
The dialog box appears with the Repair and Extract buttons. Click Repair to retrieve all possible data or the Extract option to recover the data without formulas and values.
If the Open and Repair utility fails to repair the corrupted Excel workbook, then you can use a professional Excel repair tool, such as Stellar Repair for Excel. It can easily repair severely corrupted Excel (XLSX and XLS) files and recover all the components. You can download the free trial version of the tool to preview the recoverable data.
Closure
This article discussed the ways to fix the personal macro workbook not opening issue. In case you are unable to open the personal macro workbook because of corruption in the workbook, you can use the Open and Repair utility in MS Excel. If it fails, then you can use Stellar Repair for Excel to fix corruption in the Excel file and recover all its data with complete integrity.
Monika Dadool is a Senior Content Writer at Stellar with over 5 years of experience in technical writing.
7 min read
