Do you have an Excel file that won’t open due to corruption? Are you repeatedly encountering the same error message “the file is corrupt and cannot be opened” when trying to open it?
What’s worse! You don’t have a healthy backup of the Excel file from which to restore the data. If so, you can try repairing the corrupt file by using a few simple yet effective manual methods.
TIP: Performing the manual workarounds can take time and increases data loss risk. A preferable solution is to quickly fix corrupt Excel files by using a professional Excel repair software.
Manual Methods to Open a Corrupt Excel File
Given below is a list of step-by-step solutions which will help you manually open a corrupt Excel file.
Method 1: Repair Corrupt Excel File
When attempting to open a corrupt file, MS Excel automatically starts “File Recovery” mode to repair the file. But, if the recovery mode doesn’t start, try Excel’s built-in “Open and Repair” feature to manually repair the file.
To use this feature, perform the following steps:
Step 1: Open a Blank workbook in Excel, and then click File > Open.
Step 2: In the Open window, browse and select the corrupt file.
Step 3: Click the arrow that is beside the Open tab, and select Open and Repair.
Step 4: Implement the following sequentially:
- Click the Repair button. (This is to recover as much data as possible.)
- If the file still doesn’t open, click the Extract Data button. (This is to recover values and formulas from the Excel file if the repair process fails to recover the entire data.)
If using Open and Repair does not work, move to the next method.
Method 2: Disable the Protected View Feature
Microsoft Excel has a “Protected View” feature that stops users from opening potentially harmful files. You can disable this feature and try to open the file. To do so, follow these steps:
Step 1: Open a blank Excel file, click on File > Options.
Step 2: In the Excel Options window, select Trust Center, and then click Trust Center Settings.
Step 3: The Trust Center window will appear. Select Protected View in the left panel. Click OK.
Step 4: Untick the three boxes. Click OK.
Now check if you can open the corrupt file. If not, try implementing the next method.
Note: Repeat the steps and tick the three boxes before opening a new Excel file.
Method 3: Look for Automatically Recovered Excel File
If Excel’s “AutoRecover” feature is enabled on your computer, you can gain access to a copy of the Excel file corrupted or lost due to an application crash, power outage, or accidental deletion.
The “AutoRecover” feature saves Excel worksheets at a temporary location after certain time intervals. It saves the worksheets automatically and is turned on by default to reduce the chance of data loss.
Check if you can recover a corrupted Excel file by following these steps:
Step 1: In Excel, open a Blank workbook.
Step 2: Go to File and click Options.
Step 3: In the Excel Options dialog box, click Save, and then copy the AutoRecover file location.
Step 4: Open File Explorer window and paste the copied AutoRecover file location. Press Enter.
Step 5: A list of saved Excel files will be displayed. Choose the file you want to recover.
Also read: Excel AutoRecover not working, what is next?
TIP: Use Excel’s AutoBackup feature to reduce the chances of data loss by saving a previous version of your spreadsheet automatically.
Method 4: Set Calculation to Manual
Microsoft Excel has three calculation modes: Automatic, Automatic except for data tables, and Manual. Try changing Calculation options from Automatic to Manual. This will stop Excel from recalculating the data when you open the corrupted file.
Follow these steps to modify calculation options in Excel.
Step 1: Go to File, click New, and select Blank workbook.
Step 2: Click File and go to Options.
Step 3: In the Excel Options window, select Formulas andgo to Calculation options.
Step 4: Tick Manual and click OK.
Step 5: Go to File > Open. Locate and open the corrupted Excel file.
It is likely that the methods listed above could not resolve the issue. These methods may prove helpful when the corruption occurs while the file is in use, e.g., if the application hangs, stops responding, or the system shuts down abruptly. A better way to comprehensively deal with corrupted Excel files is by using a trusted Professional Excel File Repair Software.
Use an Excel File Repair Software
If the above manual methods fail, you can repair the corrupt Excel file by using Stellar Repair for Excel software. It helps repair corrupt Excel (xls, xlsx, and xlsm) files easily and effectively.
Some key features of Excel Repair software are as follows:
- Fixes all errors in the MS Excel file
- Repairs multiple damaged Excel files in a go
- Recovers chart, chart sheet, table, cell comment, image, formula, and sort & filter
- Preserves properties and cell formatting of Excel worksheets
- Shows previews of recoverable Excel file data before saving
- Recovers all data components from the corrupt files and saves them in a new blank Excel file.
- Compatible with Excel 2019, 2016, 2013, 2010, 2007, and lower versions.
Read this: How to repair corrupt Excel file using Stellar Repair for Excel?
Conclusion
You can try the methods discussed in the blog to open a corrupt Excel file if you do have a backup. Disabling the protected view feature or setting calculation settings to manual can help you open the file. If the issue persists, try repairing the corrupted Excel file using the Open and Repair utility. However, it may not be able to fix a severely corrupted workbook. In such a case you should use Stellar Repair for Excel. This nifty tool can help you repair a corrupt Excel file with 100% integrity.
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