The first thing you should do here is to close all programs that are using the Excel file you are attempting to open. Please ensure the .xls file is not opened in other workbooks, add-ins, or apps.

Right-click the Excel file that you cannot open and select Properties. When the Properties dialog shows up, switch to the Security tab. Hit the Edit button to change permissions.

Export repaired Excel file. Solution 3: Modify file permissions. Another way to solve the “ Excel cannot open the file ” problem is to make sure you have the necessary permissions on the file. Here is ...