MacXL: "Out of Memory" Error Message When You Open Previously Created File (268410)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Excel 2001 for Mac
  • Microsoft Excel 98 Macintosh Edition
This article was previously published under Q268410

SYMPTOMS

When you open a document created with Microsoft Excel 2001 for Mac or Microsoft Excel 98 Macintosh Edition, you may receive the following or similar error message:
Not enough memory
The file does not open.

CAUSE

The file requires more memory than is currently allocated to Excel. When the file was created, temporary memory outside of the memory allocated to Excel was used.

WORKAROUND

To work around this problem, increase the memory allocation for Excel by following these steps:
  1. Quit Excel.
  2. Using the Finder, locate and click to select the Excel program icon.
  3. Press COMMAND+I to open the Microsoft Excel Info dialog box, and then, if necessary, click Memory on the Show menu.
  4. Increase the Preferred Size by several thousand kilobytes (KB).

    NOTE: Excel has a memory requirement that is unlike other programs on the Macintosh. Microsoft recommends that the size of the preferred memory you allocate to Excel be an exact multiple of the suggested size. For example, if the suggested size is 6,344, you might set the preferred size to 12,688 or to some higher exact multiple. Most Macintosh programs do not require an exact multiple of the suggested size be set.For additional information about adjusting memory settings for applications on the Macintosh, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

    141682 How to Change Memory Allocations for Macintosh Programs

  5. Repeat steps 1 through 4 until you can open the file, or you have assigned all available memory to Excel.

    NOTE: You can check to see how much memory is available by clicking About This Computer on the Apple menu while the Finder is active.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article.

MORE INFORMATION

You may have enough memory to open the file, but you then get an "out of memory" error message when the file is recalculated. This issue also requires allocation of more memory to Excel.
Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:9/11/2002
Keywords:kberrmsg kbprb KB268410
©2002 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.