Word / Excel 2016 won't open old files

Created by Chris Sandu, Modified on Wed, 19 Feb, 2025 at 4:06 PM by Chris Sandu

MIS Department Policy & Procedure

Document Name:	Word / Excel 2016 won't open old files	Document Type:
Written by:		Date/Revision Date:

If you have a user that is trying to open a very old Word or Excel file but they are getting an error message saying they can't open it -OR- it's in Protected View and they need to be able to edit the file, you have to edit the File Block Permissions for their Word and/or Excel install. (I have only seen this error if they are trying to open a file in the 2002-2004 era.)

Here's what you do from Word - Excel is similar:

File, Options

Trust Center

Trust Center Settings (button)

File Block Settings

Uncheck the following and then click OK.