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shared excel file "locked for editing"

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9 replies

by dave the it guy

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I have a shared excel doc that two users on my Windows 2000 LAN need to access at the same time. I have set up a sharepoint and have supplied Full Access share and NTFS permissions to the file. Both users have this file open on their desktops all day and both make changes to the file. Everything was working fine until one day, out of the blue, they both received error messages on morning indicating that the file was in use and "locked for editing" and that they could only open a read-only copy of the file. Neither of them had the file open. When I checked the server - there was no indication that the file was in use anywhere else on the network. A reboot of the server fixes the problem, but this is the third time it has happened in the past 2 months and I don't like rebooting our primary file server in the middle of the day to fix the problem - any suggestions?

9 replies

by jack

What version of Office are you running? Be sure to install the latest service pack for Office and if that doesn't help there is an article (sorry not sure which one) on Microsoft's knowledge base with this exact problem and the fix. I remember a couple of months ago after reading the article I had to call Microsoft Support and they provided me with a patch. Free of charge.

Giacomo

by jeaster

If the user are using the file simultaneously, it must be a shared file (as in flagged for sharing in MS Excel). However, in order to get that proble, someone/thing must be unsharing the file (in Excel). I have seen related problems like this if someone does not exit excel before completely before they log out.

by dave the it guy

That is possible, but I am thinking that it is more likely that a connection to the server was lost while the file was open, and that is why the file got stuck. If the client has the file open and a connection to the server is lost, the client still thinks the file is open. When the server becomes available again and the file is saved, the server doesn't know the file was open in the first place and I think this causes the problem - thoughts?

by jschein

open the file - be the only one opening it... goto tools, share workbook.... check the box for multiple users... probably what the previous poster said - people do go in and unshare it sometimes by accident and sometimes on purpose.

by dave the it guy

The file is marked as a shared file - only two users have access to this file, and they both know that they both need it. One of them wouldn't know how to unshare the file - the other one knows how - but knows he is not supposed to unshare it.

by blaznt

If the file is locked you can unlock it by going to
Manage Computer
System Tools
Shared Folders
Open Files
Find the file and right click on it and choose Close Open File

by dave the it guy

Done that several times. The file does not show up as an open file the "open files" folder, yet the file still behaves as if it is open.

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