Max file size for Excel to open??

[E-Double]

We have a user who is trying to import 600MB (yes Megabytes) of data into an
Excel speadsheet. The person said that they got an error message when trying
to do this the first time, but does not remember what the error message
stated. So we tried it again and it apparently is populating the book but
takes hours. Is there a maximum file/data size that one should try and
import/open in Excel? And also, are there any 'tricks' to enhance the
performance of Excel when attempting such a process? TIA ...

 

[Jim Thomlinson]

At 600 MB you are probably better off using a database than XL. XL is just
not built to handle that size...

Check out this link for info on memory and such...
http://www.decisionmodels.com/index.htm

 

[Fabien Delpierre]

Excel isn't really designed to process that much data, but I don't believe
there is any hard limit when it comes to file size.
Excel 2003 (and earlier versions) can use only up to 1 GB of memory, while
Excel 2007 can use as much as Windows can allocate.
The only other limits you may be hitting here are the ones such as number of
rows/columns.

To facilitate such a process, the only thing I'd say you can do is make sure
the file you are importing from is on the local computer.

If your data allows for it, consider using Access. You can work with Access
data directly within Excel without having to actually import the data into
Excel.

 

[E-Double]

Perfect, thanks ! You are correct about the database thing, I did not even
think of that.

e.