Excel files not updating on the Server

[Joe Murphy]

This is a very strange one.

10 pc network (Windows 2000 Server - All clients Windows 98/2000 ) with
Access,
Accounts & Time Management databases.
The customer also uses Word, Excel,Powerpoint etc.

Everything updates fine on the Server except the Excel files.

If a user adds data to an existing Excel file on the "H Drive" & goes back
to
that same file the next day on the "H Drive" the information is not there??
They have lost the work.
In the meantime the users are having to save to their local
C drives.

They have thousands of Excel files so it would be difficult to recreate all
the documents.

Again I emphasise that Word documents, databases etc save the changes fine.
No work is lost

I have checked the server for viruses & spyware but found nothing.
The Event log shows up nothing.

I am considering setting up the Server from scratch with a new Hard Disk but
am afraid
I may carry over the problem.

Any ideas??

Pleaseeeeeeee

 

[Dave Peterson]

I've never seen excel do this on its own.

But I have seen users do file|saveAs instead of File|Save.

And xl2k was the first version to use the activeworkbook's folder in that
dialog.

xl97 would suggest saving to the user's default folder.

If it's possible, I'd try to sit with a user and watch what they do. Lots of
times these problems don't happen when someone is watching.

(If you can't do it physically, maybe a netmeeting to watch???)

 

[Joe Murphy]

The users are experienced in Excel.
They have been using it for years so they know how to save properly.
I've watched them & they are doing it correctly.
Any other ideas?
Do u recommend any other newsgroups where this problem might be better
suited?

Joe

 

[Myrna Larson]

Excel's Save process works like this:

a) new version is saved under a dummy name
if there were no errors in step a), then
b) delete original file
c) rename the new version correctly

Are you accumulating strangely named files on the network server that would
suggest an error occurring in step a) of the above sequence?

The users are experienced in Excel.
They have been using it for years so they know how to save properly.
I've watched them & they are doing it correctly.
Any other ideas?
Do u recommend any other newsgroups where this problem might be better
suited?

Joe

 

[Dave Peterson]

I can't think of another newsgroup that would be able to help--I'm still
hesitant to believe it's excel's problem. Maybe a windows or networking
newsgroup???

And just to add to Myrna's reply.

If you see a bunch of 8 character filenames (with no extension) in that same
folder, then it could be a permissions (to the network share/folder).

But I've never seen excel do this without issuing a warning message to the user.

(Antivirus software also gets blamed for this behavior.)

The users are experienced in Excel.
They have been using it for years so they know how to save properly.
I've watched them & they are doing it correctly.
Any other ideas?
Do u recommend any other newsgroups where this problem might be better
suited?

Joe