XL97: Path/File Access Error in Macro Under Windows NT

ID: Q160544

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Excel 97 for Windows

SYMPTOMS

When you run a Visual Basic for Applications macro that uses the Name statement in Microsoft Excel 97 under the Microsoft Windows NT operating system, you may receive the following error message:

   Run-time error '75':
   Path/File access error

CAUSE

This problem occurs when the following conditions are true:

You use the Name statement in the macro to rename a directory.
-and-
The directory you want to rename contains a file that you set equal to a variable by using the Dir function.

For example, the problem occurs if you create a file called Text.xls in the MyDocs folder on your computer, and you use the following two lines in a macro:

   X = Dir("C:\MyDocs\Test.xls")
   Name "C:\MyDocs" As "C:\YourDocs"

NOTE: This problem does not occur in Microsoft Windows 95.

WORKAROUND

Microsoft provides programming examples for illustration only, without warranty either expressed or implied, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability and/or fitness for a particular purpose. This article assumes that you are familiar with the programming language being demonstrated and the tools used to create and debug procedures. Microsoft support professionals can help explain the functionality of a particular procedure, but they will not modify these examples to provide added functionality or construct procedures to meet your specific needs. If you have limited programming experience, you may want to contact the Microsoft fee-based consulting line at (800) 936-5200. For more information about the support options available from Microsoft, please see the following page on the World Wide Web:

   http://www.microsoft.com/support/supportnet/refguide/

To work around this problem, reset the pointer to another folder by using a "dummy" variable. The following lines of code illustrate how to do this:

   X = Dir("C:\MyDocs\Test.xls")
   Y = Dir("C:\*.*")
   Name "C:\MyDocs" As "C:\YourDocs"

In this macro, the variable Y resets the current directory. You can use any variable, and the variable may point to any directory (that exists on the hard disk) except the directory you want to rename.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in the Microsoft products listed at the beginning of this article.

REFERENCES

For more information about the Name statement click the Index tab in Visual Basic for Applications Help, type the following text

   name statement

and then double-click the selected text to go to the "Name statement" topic.

Additional query words: XL97 folder

Keywords          : kberrmsg kbdta kbdtacode KbVBA 
Version           : WINDOWS:97
Platform          : WINDOWS

Last Reviewed: May 18, 1999