Excel file repair guides

Guides for repairing damaged Excel workbooks (.xlsx, .xlsm, .xls), recovering data from corrupt files, and fixing common opening errors.

Excel Repair: A Complete Guide to Recovering Damaged Spreadsheets

A practical reference for repairing damaged Excel files. Covers common causes, repair strategies, tool options, and when a workbook is beyond saving.

Excel Crashes When Opening a File
Excel crashing on file open is usually an add-in conflict, a graphics driver issue, or a damaged Office install. Diagnose and fix in order.
Excel File is Unusually Large and Performance is Poor
Excel workbooks bloat from accumulated formatting, oversized used ranges, and embedded media. Diagnose the cause and shrink the file in place.
Excel File Opens But Shows Empty Sheets
Why Excel opens to a blank window or empty workbook, and how to recover the data. Covers hidden windows, DDE settings, and damaged shared strings.
Excel File Won't Open: Diagnosis and Fix Path
Step-by-step recovery for Excel files that refuse to open. Covers Open and Repair, LibreOffice fallback, Protected View blocks, and structural rebuilds.
Excel Shows ##### in Cells After Recovery
After recovering an Excel file, cells display ##### instead of values. The data is intact — column widths just need to be restored.