subject: How To Tackle unable To Read File. Error While Opening A Workbook [print this page] A MS Excel workbook gets corrupted when some portions of its file structure get damaged. After the corruption of workbook, it may not open anymore. When a workbook gets corrupted, it cannot be opened anymore. In other words, the contents or data stored in the workbook becomes inaccessible after workbook corruption. To surmount the hazards of workbook corruption, it is always recommended to backup your data. However, if you have not backed up your data, then you can only access the workbook data by repairing it using an excel repair software.
Picture a situation Suppose, you have a workbook that contains a list of your bank details. On trying to open the workbook, you observe that the process fails to do so and instead pops up an error message:
Unable to read file.
When you click 'OK' in this error message, you do not see the Document Recovery task pane and the does not get recovered. The outcome of the whole process comes out to be disastrous as all your valuable bank details stored in the workbook gets inaccessible.
Cause:
This error message appears when various portions of the file structure get damaged, which may lead to workbook corruption.
What happens is when MS Excel detects the damage and starts Excel in the safe mode to fix the damage. Then, Excel restarts itself in a minimal-load mode after detecting the remaining damage in the document. But, the second attempt to restart fails and the above mentioned error message appears.
Resolution:
Microsoft suggests to obtain Office XP Service Pack 3 to resolve the problem. But, sometimes the problem does not get resolved even after installing the Service Pack. This happens if the workbook is severely damaged or corrupted. In such a case, you need to use a powerful excel repair software to repair excel file. These are reliable applications that incorporate advanced scanning algorithms to scan and repair the damaged or corrupted workbook with ease. These tools restore the workbook at any user specified location without altering the original settings and contents of the file. In addition, these utilities provide rich graphical user interface that makes them easy to use and understand.