Fixing Startup problems

This article was used by Microsoft to create a set of automatic fixes (Microsoft FixIt). See:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/919196

Unfortunately, many Excel users sometimes start experiencing startup problems with their Excel: File not found errors, compile errors, GPF's, Excel refusing to load, etcetera.

This is a list of things-to-try when Excel exhibits (startup) problems.

Errors when Excel starts

Try opening Excel without any addins or hidden workbooks

Use the Automation switch to start Excel without loading addins or workbooks from the XLSTART folder:

Click Start, Run,
"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office\Excel.exe" /Automation

Quotes mandatory, Note you may have to change the path.

If your error disappears, either an add-in or a (hidden) workbook that is loaded upon Excel's start bothers you.

Locate the offending file using the following steps:

Excel Add-ins.

Tools, Add-ins
note which are checked
Uncheck all (but one)
Restart XL
If no error, check the next one and repeat from step 4

Got the error? uncheck the one you last checked.

Com Addins

Another type of addins are COM addins.

Rightclick a commandbar and choose customise
Click the commands tab
Find an entry in the tools section called "COM addins"
Drag to any toolbar or menu
Close customise dialog and click that menu item
Uncheck all shown COM addins

If your problem still persist, some COM addins are not shown in the userinterface and can only be unloaded from the registry. Check the registry, at this location:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\Excel\AddIns\

Warning: Backup your registry before making ANY changes!!!

Not an add-in? It will be a (hidden) workbook then.

Check workbooks that load at startup.

Find your XLSTART folder (On WIndows XP it may be a path like this:
C:\Documents and Settings\Username\Application Data\Microsoft\Excel\XLSTART
Move all files out of it;
Open them one by one (in Excel) and find the one with the error;
Move the others back.

Repeat the above for the folder listed in Tools, Options, General, "Alternate Startup file location" or "At startup, open all Files in:" (The text depends on your version of Excel).

Open Excel in Safe mode

Start, Run,
"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office\Excel.exe" /Safe

The safe switch ensures Excel starts without opening any addins or using your menu customisations. If this works, chances are that your toolbar customisation file is corrupt. Locate all files with extension .xlb and rename the extension(s) to something like .old
Now try and start Excel again.

Removing Excel's registry entries

Sometimes all actions listed above don't help to resolve the problem. For various users, removing Excel's main registry entry in Windows Registry solved the problem.

Warning: All cautions about tampering with the registry apply!!

As a last resort, remove the entire root folder of Excel from the registry (it should be recreated when you launch Excel). This is the registry key to remove:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Excel

First find this key and export it to your desktop by right-clicking on the "Excel" entry in the folder tree and selecting Export.

Exporting Excel's main entry in the registry

When the export is done, right-click the entry in the tree again and choose Delete:

Deleting the Excel registry key

Now restart Excel and see if that has helped.

Files will not open from explorer

Reregister Excel with Windows

Start, Run,
"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office\Excel.exe" /Regserver

This generally fixes trouble with opening Excel files from the desktop or by (double)clicking them in Explorer.

Ignore other applications

Check in Tools, Options, General tab whether "Ignore other applications" is set. Uncheck it.

Trouble caused by antivirus software

NAV has shown to cause "Excel caused an invalid page
fault in module VBE6.DLL".
You might try disabling the Office plug in of NAV.

Trouble caused by corrupt temporary files

Try cleaning your TEMP folder:

In Windows 95/98 and ME

Delete all files in C:\Windows\Temp

In Windows NT/2000/XP

Find and Select C:\Documents and Settings\<user>\local settings\temp
and delete all files in there.
When a workbook contains controls from Excel's control toolbox temporary files are created in that folder. If such a temporary file is somehow corrupted it may prevent the workbook it belongs to from working normally and sometimes even causes Excel to crash.

Tip: Select Start, run and type %temp% and hit OK to directly open your temp folder.

Disabled files

Excel XP and 2003 have some new features, which may disable certain files when Excel thought them to be the cause of a crash.

If you have had a problem with opening a file, Excel may have labeled it as suspect.
In Excel, select Help | About Microsoft Excel.
Click the button near the bottom labeled "Disabled Items..."

If the offending file is listed, select it and click Enable. The file you just enabled may of course cause Excel to crash again, click here to find some pointers on how to open corrupt Excel files.

Links

Do you have one particular file that causes trouble? Check out this page.

Microsoft has recently added two pages on this subject, both with so-called "Fix-it" solutions for several elements stated above.

Excel 2003 and older:

How to troubleshoot startup problems in Excel

Excel 2007:

How to troubleshoot Excel 2007 startup problems

Here is some information on startup switches:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;en-us;211481

Here's what other people have to say about this subject:

http://www.cpearson.com/excel/StartupErrors.htm

http://www.contextures.com/xlfaqApp.html

Comments

Showing last 8 comments of 116 in total (Show All Comments):

Comment by: jack (11/23/2009 11:30:30 PM)

I Want to use excel in vb but i have install excel in server not in my system.

How to access that excel in my system without install excel in my system.

Can Any one help me..

Comment by: Jan Karel Pieterse (11/24/2009 3:14:00 AM)

HI Jack,

I'm sorry, but in order to be able to use Excel you must install it on your system.

Comment by: Kevin (1/14/2010 8:36:02 PM)

I been having trouble printing in Excel 2007. In files created in Excel 2003, the print range prints fine. But when we converted to 2007, it is chopping items over 100 rows. Not sure why? There are no macros or anything. I can't figure this out.

Comment by: Jan Karel Pieterse (1/15/2010 7:46:09 AM)

Hi Kevin,

Are you sure the proper range is set to print?
This may also be related to having a different printer driver, rather than just a different Excel version. Try if setting the print settings in Excel 2007 fixes things.

Comment by: Kevin (1/15/2010 9:25:47 AM)

No I believe it is a spooling issue. When I print preview or send to PDF / Onenote it only sends some of the print range (about 85 rows of data).

I am truly puzzled. I changed printers / drivers to no avail.

Comment by: Jan Karel Pieterse (1/16/2010 11:42:20 AM)

Hi Kevin,

Can you email me the file (just one sheet which shows the problem may suffice, replace sensitive data with random text please)?

Comment by: Ron Sullivan (1/24/2010 10:27:58 AM)

Comment:

Ref “Microsoft Visual Basics – License information for this component not found.”

Many thanks for your excellent tips. For your information I use MSO2003ProSP3 and Excel suddenly gave me the dreaded "MVB License information for this component not found" etc. With your guidance I was able to work through your instructions and located the problem at “Check workbooks that load at startup” - D:\Documents Settings\Username\Application Data\Microsoft\Excel\AltStart (not XLSTART) which contained an "OfficeReady Stuffit" sub-directory. I renamed the directory "\1Altstart" and the problem vanished. I must admit that the latest version of "Smith Micro Stuffit 2010" has caused a few hiccups with Office 2003 and they have intimated that it might cause problems with a few of the office components including using Word with Outlook. I will have to see if they have any upgrades or get them to deal with this problem.

Hope this helps any other users with this problem.

Comment by: Luis (2/3/2010 1:20:35 PM)

Removing the Add-ins worked like a charm!!!
Thanks a lot!