XL2002: The CPU Usage Is 100 Percent When You Copy a Large Sheet in Excel (324051)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Excel 2002
This article was previously published under Q324051
IMPORTANT: This article contains information about modifying the registry. Before you modify the registry, make sure to back it up and make sure that you understand how to restore the registry if a problem occurs. For information about how to back up, restore, and edit the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

256986 Description of the Microsoft Windows Registry

SYMPTOMS

If you use the following method to copy a whole sheet in Excel 2002, the CPU utilization may reach 100 percent, and it may take a long time to complete the requested action:
  1. Right-click a sheet in Excel 2002.
  2. Click Move or Copy.
  3. Click to select the Create a Copy check box.
  4. Click OK.

CAUSE

This problem occurs because Microsoft Excel first saves the sheet in BIFF format to a memory-based docfile, and then loads it back through the regular load code when it copies all of the sheet. This process should work well, but when the sheet is large, the system needs to repeatedly reallocate and copy memory as the docfile grows (up to 40 or more megabytes (MB) in memory). This is what causes the requested action to take a long time to complete.

RESOLUTION

Service Pack Information

This problem is corrected in Office XP Service Pack 3.To resolve this problem, obtain the latest service pack for Microsoft Office XP. For additional information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

307841 How to obtain the latest Office XP Service Pack

Hotfix Information

A supported hotfix is now available from Microsoft, but it is only intended to correct the problem that this article describes. Apply it only to systems that are experiencing this specific problem.

To resolve this problem, contact Microsoft Product Support Services to obtain the hotfix. For a complete list of Microsoft Product Support Services telephone 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 usual 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
   ------------------------------------------------
   28-Aug-2002  14:11  12,429,096  Excel.msp
   28-Aug-2002  14:34  14,102,528  Excel_admin.msp
After the hotfix is installed, the English version of this fix will have the file attributes (or later) that are listed in the following table. The dates and times for these files are listed in coordinated universal time (UTC). When you view the file information, it is converted to local time. To find the difference between UTC and local time, use the Time Zone tab in the Date and Time tool in Control Panel. 
   Date         Time     Version      Size       File name     
   -------------------------------------------------------
   23-AUG-2002  15:59:05 10.0.4420.0  9,173,576  Excel.exe
To turn on this fix, you must add a registry key. Follow these steps to add a registry key.

WARNING: If you use Registry Editor incorrectly, you may cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that you can solve problems that result from using Registry Editor incorrectly. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.
  1. Start Registry Editor (Regedt32.exe).
  2. Locate and then click the following key in the registry:

    HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\10.0\Excel\Options

  3. On the Edit menu, click New DWord Value, and then add the following registry value:

    Value name: QFE_Boise
    Value data: 1

  4. Quit Registry Editor.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article. This problem was first corrected in Office XP Service Pack 3.
Modification Type:MinorLast Reviewed:10/17/2005
Keywords:kbHotfixServer kbQFE kbofficexppresp3fix kbbug kbfix KB324051
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