My password protected Excel file will not load

Question

I am trying to open a password -protected Excel file on web based MS365 and it will not load the prompt for me to enter the password. It has a message that the file is loading but it never does.

Answer 1

Hi Michael Pervere,

Use Desktop Excel: If you have any access to the desktop version of Excel, consider opening the file on the desktop application. It seems like on the desktop version you will be asked for a password. In the web version, it does not ask for a password.

Clear Cache & Cookies: Browser problems can sometimes get in the way. Clear your cache and cookies, then try refreshing the page.

Try Incognito Mode: Launch Excel Online in an incognito window and try to open the document from there.

Upload the File Again: If the file is on OneDrive or SharePoint, try downloading and then uploading it again to see if it helps resolve the problem with extensions.

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Answer 2

Hi @Michael Pervere

I understand you're still experiencing this frustrating issue where your password-protected Excel file won't load in web-based Microsoft 365 (Excel for the web), and the password prompt never appears. 

I wanted to let you know that I've attempted to reproduce the issue you're currently experiencing. However, as a moderator, I may not have all the necessary resources at my immediate disposal to fully troubleshoot or resolve it completely from my end at this stage. Therefore, I'd like to suggest trying a few methods outlined below and it would be very helpful if you could provide some more specific details: 

• Use the Desktop Version of Microsoft Excel: In many cases, Excel for the web does support opening password-protected Excel files, but it's not always stable. Please try to use Excel Desktop version. 
• Clear Cache & Cookies: Select “...” in the upper right corner. Select “Settings” and go to “Privacy, Services and Search”. Find the “Clear Cache Data” option, select it and clear the content accordingly. 
• Please try to open this file on another device to see if the issue is specific to your current device or if it's related to the file itself. 
• Try Incognito or Private Mode: Open your browser in its private Browse mode (e.g., "Incognito" in Edge). 
• If this file was uploaded to OneDrive or SharePoint, please check your local copy and then try re-uploading the file 

 Please provide me with more information so I can assist you as effectively as possible.  Appreciate your patience and understanding. Have a great day! 

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Answer 3

For a totally unexplained reason today I was able to access the password-protected file. The password prompt appeared as it had always done when I clicked on the file to open it. I had previously tried all the suggestions listed earlier in this chain to overcome the issue, except using the desktop version of Excel which I don't possess. None of them worked.

I'm grateful that the issue is now resolved (hopefully forever). Before that I had discovered a workaround that involved uploading the file to my Google account and opening it there. It worked fine for viewing it but there was no ability to edit it

Thanks for your support with this.