Problem Opening Files in Excel

Sometimes, temporary files and folders stored in the C:\Users\UserName\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Excel folder can cause issues when trying to open a workbook file in Excel. You can back up the contents of this folder and then clear the folder to improve performance when opening a workbook.

To improve Excel performance when opening a workbook:

1. Close all applications and restart your computer once.

   This is to ensure that there are no hidden instances of Excel running in the background.

2. After the reboot, create a folder on your computer (for example, in the Desktop or the Documents folder) and give is a descriptive name (for example, Excel AppData Backup).

3. Open Windows File Explorer, then select the View menu, and then select the check box to show Hidden items.

4. Navigate to:

   C:\Users\User_Name\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Excel

   Replace User_Name with your Windows login user name.

5. Use Windows Cut and Paste to move all the files and folders from the directory you created in the previous step to the backup folder that you created in step 2.

   The C:\Users\User_Name\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Excel folder should be empty.

6. In File Explorer, go to the View menu and clear the Hidden items check box.

7. Close File Explorer, and then start Excel.

8. Try opening the files that you were having problems opening earlier.