Files with ActiveX Controls that are saved in Office 2007 format change to images when opened in Office 2003 with the compatibility pack installed

ActiveX controls such as a Textbox or a Check box will change to an image if a file is saved in an Office 2007 format and then opened in Office 2003 with the compatibility pack installed.

This issue occurs whether the files were originally created in Office 2007 or if the files were created in Word 2003 with the Compatibility Pack installed and saved in the 2007 format.

The ActiveX controls work properly if opened in Office 2007.

For Excel, the following warning appears when a file with ActiveX controls is opened in 2003 with the compatibility pack installed.

�This file was created in a newer version of Microsoft Excel. The file has been converted to a format you can work with, but the following issues were encountered. The file has been opened in read-only mode to protect the original file.

- Uninitialized ActiveX controls will not be opened in this version of Excel.�

In PowerPoint, the warning when opening the file is:

�This file was created in a newer version of Microsoft Office PowerPoint. The file has been converted to a format you can work with, but the ActiveX controls have been converted to static objects.�

In Word, there is no warning when the file is opened and the ActiveX controls are changed to images.

 

This issue is by design.

On systems that will be opening the files in Office 2003, save the file in Office 2003 formats (.xls, .ppt or .doc.)

ActiveX contents in the file during conversion cannot be automatically trusted. If the ActiveX controls were automatically loaded, there is not a way to allow users to disable the controls.

The converter pack cannot convert the controls without loading them. Since that would mean implicitly trusting them or opening them as enabled,  the ActiveX controls will not be loaded in  the conversion environment.

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