XL: Errors Saving File to Earlier Formats

ID: Q136733

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Excel for Windows 95, version 7.0
Microsoft Excel for Windows, version 5.0, 5.0a, 5.0c
Microsoft Excel for the Macintosh, version 5.0, 5.0a
Microsoft Excel for Windows NT, version 5.0
Microsoft Excel 97 for Windows
Microsoft Excel 98 Macintosh Edition

SYMPTOMS

When you save a workbook in Microsoft Excel, you may receive one of the following error messages:

   Cannot write record (Cell:<cellref>), Continue reporting each error?

   -or-

   A formula in cell <cell address> could not be converted because it
   contains a function that is not available in the file format to which
   you are saving. If you continue to save, the formula result will be
   saved, but the function itself will be converted to an error value.
   Do you want to see additional erros as they occur is you can fix
   them later?
   Continue to report each error?

CAUSE

This error message may occur if both of the following conditions are true:

The file is being saved in a Microsoft Excel version 4.0 or earlier format
```
    -and-
```
There are functions in the workbook that use arguments that are not available in the Microsoft Excel format you are saving to.

For example, if you are using the formula "=VLOOKUP(1,B1:C5,2,TRUE)" (without the quotation marks) in a version 5.0 or 7.0 worksheet, and you try to save the worksheet as a Microsoft Excel 4.0 worksheet or workbook, you will receive the error message. Only the result of the function will be saved with the file. This error occurs because there isn't a fourth argument to the VLOOKUP function in Microsoft Excel versions 4.0 and earlier.

WORKAROUND

To work around this problem, change all of the formulas that have functions with arguments not found in earlier versions to the appropriate format for the earlier version.

MORE INFORMATION

There are many functions that have changed since Microsoft Excel version 4.0, and there are some new functions both in Microsoft Excel version 5.0 and 7.0. The following table lists the worksheet functions that have either changed since version 4.0 or were not part of the version 4.0 list of worksheet functions.

                           Changed since      New since
   Function                version 4.0        version 4.0
   ------------------------------------------------------

   SQLREQUEST()                                 x
   SUBTOTAL()                                   x
   DAYS360()                   x
   WEEKDAY()                   x
   YEARFRAC()                  x
   AMORDEGRC()                                  x
   AMORLINC()                                   x
   COUNTBLANK()                                 x
   HLOOKUP()                   x
   VLOOKUP()                   x
   COUNTIF()                                    x
   POWER()                                      x
   ROMAN()                                      x
   ROUNDDOWN()                                  x
   ROUNDUP()                                    x
   SUMIF()                                      x
   CONCATENATE()                                x

REFERENCES

Microsoft Excel Version 7.0

For more information about worksheet functions in Microsoft Excel, click the Index tab in Microsoft Excel Help, type the following text

   worksheet functions, index of functions

and then double-click the selected text to go to the "Worksheet Functions Listed by Category" topic.

Microsoft Excel Version 5.0

For more information about new and changed worksheet functions, click the Search button in Help and type:

   new worksheet functions

Additional query words: 7.00

Keywords          : kberrmsg
Version           : WINDOWS:5.0,5.0a,5.0c,7.0,97; MACINTOSH:5.0,98
Platform          : MACINTOSH WINDOWS
Issue type        : kbprb

Last Reviewed: January 6, 1999