# How di I stop a new copy of Excel loading for every file? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 4, 2010, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198 "2010-08-04T22:24:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2010, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198/1 "2010-08-04T22:24:21Z")
Whenever I open a new spreadsheet file, it opens a new copy of Excel. This is no good as I cannot create cross-references between sheets when they are in separate copies of Excel. How do I get it to open the workbook in the same copy of Excel that is already open? And apparently I cannot edit the title. “do” ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2010, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198/2 "2010-08-04T22:58:33Z")
Check your settings in Tools, Options, General, “At Startup, open all files in”. ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2010, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198/3 "2010-08-04T23:02:52Z")
> [@t-bonham@scc.net](#): > > Check your settings in Tools, Options, General, “At Startup, open all files in”. I don’t see such an option (this is Office 2010), but doesn’t that just set the directory that Excel will look at when you do File -\> Open? ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2010, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198/4 "2010-08-04T23:29:09Z")
> [@t-bonham@scc.net](#): > > Check your settings in Tools, Options, General, “At Startup, open all files in”. I don’t think that’s it. On my system, running Excel 2003, the help for that option describes it as, “At startup, Excel will automatically open files from the folder you specify here. Type the full path to the folder in the text box to indicate the location of the files.” ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198/5 "2010-08-05T00:23:53Z")
I’ve got Excel 2010 Beta on this other system and on it, this is what I had to do. Select the File menu. Click on Options. Go to the Advanced tab. Uncheck “Show all windows in the Taskbar” under the Display settings. ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198/6 "2010-08-05T01:22:34Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I’ve got Excel 2010 Beta on this other system and on it, this is what I had to do. Select the File menu. Click on Options. Go to the Advanced tab. Uncheck “Show all windows in the Taskbar” under the Display settings. That doesn’t help, I’m afraid. I don’t know if it is relevant, but the spreadsheets I am trying to open are in SharePoint. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198/7 "2010-08-05T01:30:22Z")
It might be relevant. Can you try to open two Excel documents that are both stored locally? Does it work then? ---
**Author:** ![yoyodyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a9a28c/32.png) [@yoyodyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yoyodyne)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198/8 "2010-08-05T01:40:09Z")
Excel is still a multiple document application. When you open two workbooks by double-clicking on them or using File, Open in Excel, they are both opened in the same instance of Excel. The two taskbar icons just shows you have two workbooks open, not two copies of Excel. Look at the Excel application Minimize, Maximize, Close icons at the top right. Just under them you’ll have another set for the workbooks. If you toggle the Maximize button it will show you both workbooks in the same window. ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198/9 "2010-08-05T02:03:17Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > It might be relevant. Can you try to open two Excel documents that are both stored locally? Does it work then? Yes. ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198/10 "2010-08-05T02:07:57Z")
> [@yoyodyne](#): > > Excel is still a multiple document application. When you open two workbooks by double-clicking on them or using File, Open in Excel, they are both opened in the same instance of Excel. The two taskbar icons just shows you have two workbooks open, not two copies of Excel. > > Look at the Excel application Minimize, Maximize, Close icons at the top right. Just under them you’ll have another set for the workbooks. If you toggle the Maximize button it will show you both workbooks in the same window. No it doesn’t. I double-click on the first spreadsheet and it loads Excel - I get the initial splash screen. I double-click on the second spreadsheet and I get another splash screen and another instance of Excel loads. Task Manager shows two Excel applications. I click on the Close “x” and just one of them closes. Clicking the maximize button just maximizes one of them. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198/11 "2010-08-05T02:28:53Z")
> [@amarone](#): > > > [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > > > It might be relevant. Can you try to open two Excel documents that are both stored locally? Does it work then? > > Yes. It’s weird that you’re seeing different behavior for local Excel files vs ones from Sharepoint. I don’t have Sharepoint here so I can’t test it, but ironically [this](http://social.answers.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/excslcreate/thread/3903c644-021f-441c-8eab-0b8ea78d94ee) is a Microsoft forum thread from someone who wants the workbooks to open in separate windows but they are not. ---
**Author:** ![yoyodyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a9a28c/32.png) [@yoyodyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yoyodyne)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198/12 "2010-08-05T02:29:52Z")
In Options, Advanced, the General section, is “Ignore other applications that use Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE)” checked? If so, uncheck it. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198/13 "2010-08-05T02:30:16Z")
> [@amarone](#): > > No it doesn’t. I double-click on the first spreadsheet and it loads Excel - I get the initial splash screen. I double-click on the second spreadsheet and I get another splash screen and another instance of Excel loads. Task Manager shows two Excel applications. I click on the Close “x” and just one of them closes. Clicking the maximize button just maximizes one of them. What if you go to File, Open in Excel once the first document is open and try to open the second one? ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198/14 "2010-08-05T03:15:24Z")
> [@yoyodyne](#): > > In Options, Advanced, the General section, is “Ignore other applications that use Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE)” checked? If so, uncheck it. It was unchecked. I have managed to get both files opened in the same instance of Excel. I opened the first from SharePoint as normal. Then I used File-\>Open and typed in the full path to the SharePoint site, folder and file name. Tomorrow I will see if I can edit them and get them back into SharePoint properly. This used to work on Vista/Excel 2007. I am having the problems with a new Windows 7/Excel 2010 computer. ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198/15 "2010-08-05T03:16:24Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > > [@amarone](#): > > > > No it doesn’t. I double-click on the first spreadsheet and it loads Excel - I get the initial splash screen. I double-click on the second spreadsheet and I get another splash screen and another instance of Excel loads. Task Manager shows two Excel applications. I click on the Close “x” and just one of them closes. Clicking the maximize button just maximizes one of them. > > What if you go to File, Open in Excel once the first document is open and try to open the second one? Oops - just seen this. Good idea - see my previous post. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198/16 "2010-08-05T03:23:33Z")
You must be using a Windows PC instead of a Mac. ---
**Author:** ![yoyodyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a9a28c/32.png) [@yoyodyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yoyodyne)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198/17 "2010-08-05T23:12:50Z")
> [@amarone](#): > > > [@yoyodyne](#): > > > > In Options, Advanced, the General section, is “Ignore other applications that use Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE)” checked? If so, uncheck it. > > It was unchecked. > > I have managed to get both files opened in the same instance of Excel. I opened the first from SharePoint as normal. Then I used File-\>Open and typed in the full path to the SharePoint site, folder and file name. Tomorrow I will see if I can edit them and get them back into SharePoint properly. > > This used to work on Vista/Excel 2007. I am having the problems with a new Windows 7/Excel 2010 computer. I have Windows 7/Excel 2010 as well. It must be the SharePoint. What happens if you open two workbooks on your local drive? ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2010, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-di-i-stop-a-new-copy-of-excel-loading-for-every-file/549198/18 "2010-08-05T23:40:02Z")
> [@yoyodyne](#): > > > [@amarone](#): > > > > It was unchecked. > > > > I have managed to get both files opened in the same instance of Excel. I opened the first from SharePoint as normal. Then I used File-\>Open and typed in the full path to the SharePoint site, folder and file name. Tomorrow I will see if I can edit them and get them back into SharePoint properly. > > > > This used to work on Vista/Excel 2007. I am having the problems with a new Windows 7/Excel 2010 computer. > > I have Windows 7/Excel 2010 as well. It must be the SharePoint. What happens if you open two workbooks on your local drive? They load in the same instance of Excel, so it is definitely related to SharePoint. But it used to work with Vista/2007, and I don’t think the SharePoint settings have been changed.