SharePoint files unable to open in desktop app: Troubleshooting walkthrough

SharePoint has a fantastic set of capabilities for sharing and managing documents. You can share a document with both internal and external people inside your company or organisation. You may also organise documents by putting them in folders, editing file metadata directly in SharePoint, and deleting them. You can even sync SharePoint and conduct a parallel session on your PC and your online storage bank. However, some users have complained that SharePoint would not open a file or document in the desktop apps.

In this blog, we will cover a multitude of different reasons why a file or document may not open in the desktop application, as well as solutions to those issues. Follow the step by step process below to see how you can fix SharePoint files not being able to open in the desktop app.

SharePoint files unable to open in desktop app (how to fix):

1. First sign in to Office 365.
2. Use the app launcher and navigate to “SharePoint,” and click on it.
3. In SharePoint go to the Site where your files are located.
4. In the menu bar click on “Documents.”
5. Click on the specific folder within your document library.
6. Choose the file not opening and click on “Download.”
7. To open the folder where the file is placed, click “Save” and then “Open folder” in your browser.
8. Click “Open With” after right-clicking the file in the desktop folder.
9. Select the app that you wish to utilise. If the file hasn’t been assigned yet, a window will appear asking you to do so.
10. Check the option that says “Always use this app to open.”
11. Finally, Close the programme and double-click the file to verify whether it launches the right application.

• Get SharePoint from $6.00 per month with Microsoft 365 Business Basic.

Unregistered paths are common in files, preventing them from being accessed with any local or internet disc, such as SharePoint. While SharePoint will make every effort to open the local disc folder, if the registered software has not been correctly allocated, it will fail. This isn’t always the case with Office-based applications like Word or Excel, but you may apply the procedures above to assign a new portal to open and then retry file sync to check if the file opens.

We’ve also created a video to help guide you through the steps:

Compatible with Windows, Mac OS, and Android.	FROM $6.00 user/month

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Your SharePoint files are unable to open in the desktop app due to a corrupt patch

It might be a corrupt file or the format is incompatible with any of your programmes if the file previously opened but no longer does. Make an attempt to open a file after it has been saved to check that it was saved successfully. If you’re sharing a file with others, make sure everyone uses the same file format. If you open a spreadsheet as a .xls file, make sure you save it as a .xls file.

Preventing SharePoint file corruption is essential

File corruption is frequent when a file is stored on a USB device that is disconnected while the device is open in Windows. The Windows taskbar’s Safely Remove Hardware indication may assist you to avoid deleting files. If you don’t see the symbol, click the up-arrow in the notification box to show hidden icons.

The amount of new information in the recovered file is governed by how frequently an Office programme saves the recovery file. If the recovery file is only saved every 15 minutes, for example, your recovered file will not include the previous 14 minutes of work completed prior to the power loss or other issue. To be extra cautious, enter a little number in the minute’s box, such as 5 or 10. This way, you’ll never lose more than 5 or 10 minutes of work.

How to prevent SharePoint file corruption:

• Download a file from SharePoint using the Download option to see if it’s corrupted. Then open it in Word or Excel from the C: drive location where it was stored.
• If you still can’t access the document, use the Open and Repair recovery option in MS Office programmes to get it open again. To open the window shown below, go to the File tab and click Open.
• With a single click, choose the corrupted file.
• To expand the menu directly below, click the little arrow to the right of the Open button.
• From the drop-down menu, choose Open and Repair.
• You may also repair a damaged MS Word document by going to this website, selecting the document using the Choose file button, and then clicking the Secure Upload and Repair option.
• Open this URL in a browser to fix an Excel document. Select the Excel document using the Choose file button, then click the Secure Upload and Repair button.

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SharePoint files are unable to open in your desktop app due to unsupported formats

Newer Office versions provide capabilities that were not available in prior editions. Previous versions can read documents written by newer versions, while newer versions can’t read older versions’ documents. Excel 2016, for example, saves files in.xlsx format, but Excel 2003 can only read.xls files. When sharing files in SharePoint, make sure your users have the latest versions of Microsoft Office. You may utilise the online link to download the most recent version of Microsoft 365 to your desktop if you use it.

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Examine your Microsoft Office workplace account if SharePoint files don’t open in your desktop app

Sometimes an inhouse error with your Microsoft program may result in your Office account not being able to be fully be synced correctly. So making sure your Office account is fully up to date is essential for things such as file management and sharing. Follow the guide below to see how you can examine your Office account.

Examine your Microsoft Office workplace account:

• Open the client programme for Microsoft Word or Excel.
• At the upper left of the window, click the user account name.
• Then select “Sign out” from the drop-down menu.
• If you have more than one account, choose one to sign in with. Sign in with an account that corresponds to the one you use in SharePoint.
• Alternatively, you may need to select “Add Account” to add a SharePoint account. Press the “Sign in” button after entering your SharePoint account information.

It’s important to note that your SharePoint account should be the same as your Microsoft Office client account. It’s possible that SP won’t open Excel and Word files since you’re using separate accounts for SharePoint and MS Office.

Some customers have reported that after renewing their MS Office subscriptions, they are required to connect their SharePoint Online accounts again. This is where you can access and modify your Microsoft Office account.

These are some of the fixes that may allow you to open Word and Excel files straight from SharePoint’s document libraries once again.

How to fix SharePoint files unable to open in your desktop app

Step by step breakdown:

• First sign into Office 365.

Use your account details or if you have a current Skype account with the Office account in question, you can use this.

• Use the app launcher and navigate to “SharePoint,” and click on it.

You can access the SharePoint application however this is for individuals who only have a SharePoint plan, A larger group of individuals have SharePoint in Office 365.

• In SharePoint go to the Site where your files are located.

In this example the site above called “Blog Demo” will be used to create the preview.

• In the menu bar click on “Documents.”

A document library is a safe storage location for files that you and your co-workers can quickly locate, collaborate on, and access from any device at any time. For example, a document library on a SharePoint site can be used to hold all materials relevant to a given project or customer.

• Click on the specific folder within your document library.

In this case the folder called “Demo folder 1” was used to create the preview.

• Choose the file not opening and click on “Download.”

• To open the folder where the file is placed, click “Save” and then “Open folder” in your browser.

• Click “Open With” after right-clicking the file in the desktop folder.

• Select the app that you wish to utilise. If the file hasn’t been assigned yet, a window will appear asking you to do so.

• Check the option that says “Always use this app to open.”

• Finally, close the programme and double-click the file to verify whether it launches the right application.

You can use the table below to check what the common Windows filetypes are. Please note that this is not an exhaustive list of filetypes, and certain filetypes can be opened with various applications.

Extension	Format
aac, adt, adts	Windows audio file
accdb	Microsoft Access database file
accde	Microsoft Access execute-only file
accdr	Microsoft Access runtime database
accdt	Microsoft Access database template
aif, aifc, aiff	Audio Interchange File format file
aspx	ASP.NET Active Server page
avi	Audio Video Interleave movie or sound file
bat	PC batch file
bin	Binary compressed file
bmp	Bitmap file
cab	Windows Cabinet file
cda	CD Audio Track
csv	Comma-separated values file
dif	Spreadsheet data interchange format file
dll	Dynamic Link Library file
doc	Microsoft Word document before Word 2007
docm	Microsoft Word macro-enabled document
docx	Microsoft Word document
dot	Microsoft Word template before Word 2007
dotx	Microsoft Word template
eml	Email file created by Outlook Express, Windows Live Mail, and other programs
eps	Encapsulated Postscript file
exe	Executable program file
flv	Flash-compatible video file
gif	Graphical Interchange Format file
htm, html	Hypertext markup language page
ini	Windows initialization configuration file
iso	ISO-9660 disc image
jar	Java architecture file
jpg, jpeg	Joint Photographic Experts Group photo file
m4a	MPEG-4 audio file
mdb	Microsoft Access database before Access 2007
mid, midi	Musical Instrument Digital Interface file
mov	Apple QuickTime movie file
mp3	MPEG layer 3 audio file
mp4	MPEG 4 video
mp4	MPEG 4 video
mpeg	Moving Picture Experts Group movie file
mpg	MPEG 1 system stream
msi	Microsoft installer file
mui	Multilingual User Interface file
pdf	Portable Document Format file
png	Portable Network Graphics file
pot	Microsoft PowerPoint template before PowerPoint 2007
potm	Microsoft PowerPoint macro-enabled template
potx	Microsoft PowerPoint template
ppam	Microsoft PowerPoint add-in
pps	Microsoft PowerPoint slideshow before PowerPoint 2007
ppsm	Microsoft PowerPoint macro-enabled slideshow
ppsx	Microsoft PowerPoint slideshow
ppt	Microsoft PowerPoint format before PowerPoint 2007
pptm	Microsoft PowerPoint macro-enabled presentation
pptx	Microsoft PowerPoint presentation
psd	Adobe Photoshop file
pst	Outlook data store
pub	Microsoft Publisher file
rar	Roshal Archive compressed file
rtf	Rich Text Format file
sldm	Microsoft PowerPoint macro-enabled slide
sldx	Microsoft PowerPoint slide
swf	Shockwave Flash file
sys	Microsoft DOS and Windows system settings and variables file
tif, tiff	Tagged Image Format file
tmp	Temporary data file
txt	Unformatted text file
vob	Video object file
vsd	Microsoft Visio drawing before Visio 2013
vsdm	Microsoft Visio macro-enabled drawing
vsdx	Microsoft Visio drawing file
vss	Microsoft Visio stencil before Visio 2013
vssm	Microsoft Visio macro-enabled stencil
vst	Microsoft Visio template before Visio 2013
vstm	Microsoft Visio macro-enabled template
vstx	Microsoft Visio template
wav	Wave audio file
wbk	Microsoft Word backup document
wks	Microsoft Works file
wma	Windows Media Audio file
wmd	Windows Media Download file
wmv	Windows Media Video file
wmz, wms	Windows Media skins file
wpd, wp5	WordPerfect document
xla	Microsoft Excel add-in or macro file
xlam	Microsoft Excel add-in after Excel 2007
xll	Microsoft Excel DLL-based add-in
xlm	Microsoft Excel macro before Excel 2007
xls	Microsoft Excel workbook before Excel 2007
xlsm	Microsoft Excel macro-enabled workbook after Excel 2007
xlsx	Microsoft Excel workbook after Excel 2007
xlt	Microsoft Excel template before Excel 2007
xltm	Microsoft Excel macro-enabled template after Excel 2007
xltx	Microsoft Excel template after Excel 2007
xps	XML-based document
zip	Compressed file

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That’s it for this Blog thank you for taking time out to read our content, please feel free to email our team about how it went if you followed the steps or if you need more help with the questions we answered in this Blog.