Linked workbook does not open when you click a hyperlink in an Excel 2010 workbook

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Symptoms

Consider the following scenario:

You enable the ForceShellExecute registry entry in Windows.

Note The ForceShellExecute registry entry appears in the following location:
32-bit: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\9.0\Common\Internet "ForceShellExecute"=dword:00000001
64-bit: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Office\9.0\Common\Internet "ForceShellExecute"=dword:00000001

You click a hyperlink in a Microsoft Excel 2010 workbook. The hyperlink links to another workbook.

In this scenario, the linked workbook does not open. Additionally, the pointer remains a busy pointer.

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Resolution

To resolve this issue, apply the following hotfix:

2597142 Description of the Excel 2010 hotfix package (x86 Excel-x-none.msp, x64 Excel-x-none.msp): February 28, 2012

Registry key information

Important This section, method, or task contains steps that tell you how to modify the registry. However, serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Therefore, make sure that you follow these steps carefully. For added protection, back up the registry before you modify it. Then, you can restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up and restore the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

322756 How to back up and restore the registry in Windows

After you install the hotfix package, follow these steps to enable the hotfix:

Click Start, click Run, type regedit in the Open box, and then click OK.
Locate and then select the following registry subkey:
32-bit: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\9.0\Common\Internet
64-bit: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Office\9.0\Common\Internet
On the Edit menu, point to New, and then click DWORD (32-bit) Value.
Type ForceShellExecute, and then press Enter.
In the Details pane, right-click ForceShellExecute, and then click Modify.
In the Value data box, type 1, and then click OK.
Exit Registry Editor.