Microsoft KB Archive/97044

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Last reviewed: September 12, 1996

Article ID: Q97044 The information in this article applies to:
 * Microsoft Excel for Windows, versions 4.0 and 4.0a

SYMPTOMS
In Microsoft Excel version 4.0 for Windows, when you attempt to open a shared document, if another user is using Microsoft Excel (or if another copy of the program is open) and this second open copy of the document is locked by the Open As Read-Only dialog box, you may receive the following error message

Cannot access where is the name of the file that you want to open.

CAUSE
When you open a file in Microsoft Excel in read-only mode, that file is locked for as long as the Open As Read-Only dialog box is open. When you open the same file in Microsoft Excel on another workstation or in a second instance of Microsoft Excel, you are not able to access the file.

WORKAROUND
You can open the file as soon as the Open File As Read-Only dialog box is closed in the first instance of Microsoft Excel.

Note that this behavior does not occur in Microsoft Excel version 5.0.