XL: "Check the Spelling of the File" Error Opening File

Last reviewed: February 5, 1998
Article ID: Q179678

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Excel 97 for Windows
Microsoft Windows 95
Microsoft Excel 98 Macintosh Edition
Macintosh Operating System, version 8.0

SYMPTOMS

In the versions of Microsoft Excel listed at the beginning of this article, when you attempt to open a workbook, you may receive the following error message:

   '<File name>' could not be found. Check the spelling of the file name,
   and verify that the file location is correct.

   If you are trying to open the file from your list of most recently
   used files on the File menu, make sure that the file has not been
   renamed, moved, or deleted.

In the error message, <File name> contains one or more underscore characters (_) or question marks (?).

CAUSE

This problem may occur if the following conditions are true:

The file name of the workbook contains one or more Unicode characters. Usually, this occurs only if the workbook has been saved from a foreign- language version of Microsoft Excel that supports Unicode characters in file names.
```
    -and-
```
You are running Microsoft Excel under an operating system that does not support Unicode characters in file names, for example:
- The U.S. English language version of Microsoft Windows 95
```
      -or-
```
- The U.S. English language edition version of the Macintosh operating
```
     system
```

Note that because Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 supports Unicode characters in file names, this problem does not occur when you run programs under Microsoft Windows NT 4.0.

WORKAROUND

To work around this behavior use the following appropriate work around.

Method 1: Under Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 or DBCS Microsoft Windows 95

If you are using a computer running either Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 or a version of Microsoft Windows 95 that supports Unicode characters in file names, you can use Microsoft Windows Explorer to rename the workbook so that its name does not contain Unicode characters. After you rename the workbook, you can open it in Microsoft Excel.

Method 2: Under U.S. English Language Version of Microsoft Windows 95

If you are running a non-Unicode version of Microsoft Windows 95, you cannot use Microsoft Windows Explorer to rename the workbook. To rename the workbook, follow these steps:

Open the workbook in the version of Microsoft Excel that created the workbook.
On the File menu, click Save As. Change the name of the workbook so that it does not contain any Unicode characters.
Click Save.

After you save the workbook with a name that does not contain Unicode characters, you can open the workbook in Microsoft Excel.

Method 3: Under a Non-Unicode System for the Macintosh Computer

If you are running on a Macintosh computer under an operating system that does not support Unicode, you cannot use the Finder to rename the workbook. To rename the workbook, follow these steps:

Open the workbook in the version of Microsoft Excel that created the workbook.
On the File menu, click Save As. Change the name of the workbook so that it does not contain any Unicode characters.
Click Save.

After you save the workbook with a name that does not contain Unicode characters, you can open the workbook in Microsoft Excel.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in the Microsoft products listed at the beginning of this article. We are researching this problem and will post new information here in the Microsoft Knowledge Base as it becomes available.

MORE INFORMATION

Because their alphabets use characters that are not in the standard ASCII character set, the following foreign-language versions of Microsoft Excel support Unicode characters in file names:

   Japanese
   Chinese
   Korean
   Arabic
   Hebrew
   Thai
   Vietnamese

When you save a workbook in any of these versions of Microsoft Excel, you have the option of including Unicode characters in the name of the workbook. If you do this and you then attempt to open the workbook on a computer running an operating system that does not support Unicode, you may encounter the following problems:

In versions of Microsoft Windows 95 that do not support Unicode, the Unicode characters in the workbook file name are displayed as underscore characters. In addition, you cannot open the workbook.
If you attempt to rename the workbook, you receive the following error message
```
      Cannot rename <Filename>: Cannot find the specified file.
      Make sure you specify the correct path and filename.
```
and the workbook is not renamed.
In versions of the Macintosh operating system that do not support Unicode, the Unicode characters in the file name are displayed as question marks. You cannot open the workbook, and you cannot rename the workbook.
In Microsoft Windows NT 4.0, the Unicode characters in the workbook file name are displayed as square characters. However, you can open the workbook, and you do not receive an error message when you rename the workbook.

Additional query words: XL97 dbcs double-byte character set japan china
saudi arabia egypt korea israel traditional simplified
Keywords : xlloadsave kberrmsg
Version : WINDOWS:97; MACINTOSH:98
Platform : MACINTOSH WINDOWS
Issue type : kbbug

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Last reviewed: February 5, 1998
© 1998 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Terms of Use.