Microsoft KB Archive/124180

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XL5 Err Msg: "File Format No Longer Supported" Creating Add-in

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The information in this article applies to:


 * Microsoft Excel for Windows, versions 5.0, 5.0c
 * Microsoft Excel for Windows, version 7.0

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SYMPTOMS
In Microsoft Excel, when you create an add-in, you may receive the following error message:

File format no longer supported

When you choose OK, you receive the following error message:

Document not saved

CAUSE
This behavior occurs when you create an add-in with the same name as an existing add-in and you choose to overwrite the existing add-in while a module that references this add-in is open. For example, if you reference BOOK1.XLA in a module in BOOK2.XLS, you cannot create a new add-in called BOOK1.XLA while BOOK2.XLS is open.

Note that this behavior occurs only if the add-in that you are creating contains different information than the existing add-in, even if it is just a modified version of the existing add-in. Because you cannot open an add- in for editing, creating an add-in with the same name as an existing add-in is the only way to "modify" the add-in.

If you open an add-in file either by using the Open command, or by using a Visual Basic procedure, and you then use the Make Add-In command to create an add-in with the same name as the open add-in, you receive the following error message:

Cannot save this file with the same name as an open document

To stop this error message from being displayed, close Microsoft Excel.

WORKAROUND
To avoid receiving this error message when you create an add-in file, close any workbooks that contain a module that references the add-in that you are creating.

MORE INFORMATION
In Microsoft Excel versions 5.0 and 5.0c, you cannot open an add-in for editing. When you open an add-in file while holding down the SHIFT key, you receive the following error message:

Cannot open Microsoft Excel 5.0 Add-In for editing. Please edit the source document instead.

After you edit the source document, you can use the Make Add-In command (Tools menu) to update the add-in file with your changes. However, if a module that references the add-in is open, you receive the error messages described above.