Password protected XLSX - File is corrupt and cannot be opened.

[Art]

I've had problems with three spreadsheets created in Excel 2008 becoming
corrupt. I seem to be able to recreate the problem. All were created using
Excel 2008 and saved as file type .XLSX (Excel Workbook). Two files with
this problem were password protected (open password). One file didn't have
any password at all. One of the files (requiring a password) I access
everyday for the past few months with no problem, but now it is corrupt.
Another file became corrupt shortly after I created it and saved it.

The error on opening the files presented by Excel is:
"The file is corrupt and cannot be opened." followed by "Excel cannot open
this file. The file might have been damaged or modified from its original
format".

The files are on a shared SMB network drive formatted FAT32. All devices
(Macbook Pro and SMB drive are connected to the same network switch using a
wired connection. We don't have problems with any other files that are
frequently used on the drive including many Word 2008 files.

Probably because the three password protected files are password protected,
I've had no luck trying to recover the files by open or "open and repair"
using Excel 2008, Excel 2007, Numbers, OpenOffice 3.0, etc. The corruption
errors appear after the password is entered.

I don't trust Excel 2008 at this point. Any suggestions are appreciated.

Thanks,
Art

Excel 2008 (12.1.4)
OS X 10.5.5

 

[Pat McMillan]

Art -- Is there any way you can share any of these files with me (and their
passwords, just in case we're able to get them to open)? The corrupted file
that was not password protected would be valuable too.

Also, since you can reproduce the problem, would you be able to send me the
exact steps you use to get into the state where the file becomes corrupted.
As you point out, these problems are serious, so we'd love to get to the
bottom of them. Feel free to contact me directly.

Thanks,

Pat McMillan
(e-mail address removed)

 

[Katie]

I've had the exact same problem with an un-password protected xlsx file which
I created with Excel 2007. It isn't shared across any drives though. Excel
2007 refuses to re-open it, open with repair doesn't work either. I get the
same error message described by Art.

Thanks,
Katie

 

[KayCee]

I have two password protected files that are doing the same thing. These are
very important files and I really need to get these open. HELP!!! nothing I
have tried has worked. I tried doing a system restore, I tried doing an open
and repair through excell, and nothing.

 

[Pat McMillan]

When you say you tried to open and restore the files through Excel, do you
mean Windows Excel? If so, which version did you use? And what exactly
happened when you tried to repair the files?

If you're able to share the files (and passwords) with me I could
investigate.

Thanks,

Pat McMillan
(e-mail address removed)

 

[KayCee]

Thank you for the quick response.

I have Office Professional Plus 2007 which means I have Excel 2007. All my
spread sheets were saved with the extension xlsx.

I tried to open the file today and it came up with the error "File is
corrupt and cannot be opened". This has only happed to the two files I have
password protected. I am able to copy the file and move the file to a
different drive but it doesn't have any affect on the problem.

I went to Excel 2007 and went to open and then at the bottom by the open
button there is a down arrow where you can click on "open and repair" which I
did. Again, no affect. I am still unable to open these two files.

On another site the tech said it was something to do with the "
%appdata%\microsoft\crypto\%userid%" file, but I haven't been able to get an
answer as what the fix is.

A different site said to go to c:\Documents And
Settings\Yourusername|Application Data\Microsoft\ and change the name of the
"crypto directory" which I have done and it still has no effect.

I am lost! This information is very. HELP

 

[Pat McMillan]

Thanks. I didn't realize you were using Windows Excel. This forum is for Mac
Excel, which is different in many ways from Windows Excel. This is
definitely true of password protection, at least when comparing Windows
Excel 2007 with Mac Excel 2008 (the latest versions on each platform). Have
you tried to post this question to the Windows Excel newsgroup
(microsoft.public.excel)?

Thanks,

Pat