BUG: Excel 2002 Does Not Update DDE Connections After the Open or Save Dialog Box Is Displayed (314619)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Excel 2002
This article was previously published under Q314619

SYMPTOMS

When you display the Open or Save dialog box in Excel 2002, the workbook may fail to update Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE) connections after you have closed the dialog box.

CAUSE

The DDE server sends an update to Excel while the dialog box is displayed, and Excel mistakenly closes the DDE channel.

RESOLUTION

A supported hotfix is now available from Microsoft, but it is only intended to correct the problem that is described in this article. Only apply it to systems that are experiencing this specific problem. This hotfix may receive additional testing. Therefore, if you are not severely affected by this problem, we recommend that you wait for the next Excel 2002 public update that contains this hotfix.

To resolve this problem immediately, contact Microsoft Product Support Services to obtain the fix. For a complete list of Microsoft Product Support Services phone numbers and information about support costs, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://support.microsoft.com/contactus/?ws=support

NOTE: In special cases, charges that are ordinarily incurred for support calls may be canceled if a Microsoft Support Professional determines that a specific update will resolve your problem. The typical support costs will apply to additional support questions and issues that do not qualify for the specific update in question.

The English version of this fix should have the following file attributes or later: 
   Date         Time    Size       File name     
   -------------------------------------------------------
   15-JAN-2002  20:19   5,215,780  Xl10qfe_q314619.msp
After the fix is installed, the following files will have the listed attributes or later: 
   Date         Time   Version     Size        File name     
   --------------------------------------------------------
   11-JAN-2002  16:59  10.0.3708   9,169,224   Excel.exe

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in Excel 2002.

MORE INFORMATION

This does not occur in earlier versions of Excel.

The problem does not occur with internal cell links, but can occur between two instances of Excel if one of those instances is acting as a DDE server. The problem is more acute if a real-time DDE server is used to feed automatic updates.

Steps to Reproduce Behavior

NOTE: For the sake of simplicity, this example uses manual updates between two instances of Excel.
  1. Start Excel 2002, and then type 123 in cell A1 of the new workbook.
  2. Save the workbook as C:\Mytest.xls, and then close the workbook.
  3. Create a new workbook, and then type the following DDE link in cell B1:
    =Excel|'C:\MyTest.xls'!'R1C1'
  4. Press ENTER to calculate the cell. If you are prompted to start the DDE server (Excel.exe), click Yes. You now see two instances of Excel. If you change the value for A1 in Mytest.xls, cell B1 in the new workbook is updated.
  5. In the new workbook, click Open on the File menu.
  6. While the dialog box is open, switch to Mytest.xls and change the value in cell A1.
  7. Switch back to the new workbook and close the dialog box. Note that cell B1 does not update after you close the dialog box, and changes that you make to cell A1 in Mytest.xls no longer update cell B1 unless you manually reestablish the DDE connection by editing the formula in cell B1.
Modification Type:MinorLast Reviewed:10/12/2005
Keywords:kbHotfixServer kbQFE kbbug kbDDE kbfix kbOfficeXPPreSP2fix kbQFE KB314619
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