Description of the Excel 2003 post-Service Pack 2 hotfix package: November 10, 2005

Microsoft has released the Microsoft Office Excel 2003 post-Service Pack 2 hotfix package for Microsoft Office Excel 2003.

• The issues that the hotfix package fixes.
• The prerequisites for installing the hotfix package.
• Whether you must restart your computer after you install the hotfix package.
• Whether the hotfix package is replaced by any other hotfix package.
• Whether you must make any registry changes.
• The files that the hotfix package contains.

This article describes the Excel 2003 issue that is fixed in the hotfix package that is dated November 10, 2005.

Issues that the hotfix package fixes

This hotfix package fixes the following issue that was not previously documented in a Microsoft Knowledge Base article:

• In Excel 2003, you open a workbook that was created in an earlier version of Microsoft Excel, such as Microsoft Excel 2000. The workbook contains list boxes or combo boxes that are linked to ranges in a worksheet. When you try to open the workbook, the workbook does not open. Additionally, you receive the following error message:
  Microsoft Office Excel has encountered a problem and needs to close. We are sorry for the inconvenience.
  When you view the data in the error report, the report contains an error signature that is similar to the following error signature:
  Collapse this tableExpand this table

  Application name	Application version	Module name	Module version	Offset
  Excel.exe	11.0.6355.0	Fm20.dll	11.0.6254.0	0005c49a

This problem was first fixed in a hotfix that is now contained in a service pack. If you installed the latest Office 2003 service pack, you do not have to install the hotfix.

Service pack information

This problem is corrected in Office 2003 Service Pack 3. To resolve this problem, obtain the latest service pack for Office 2003. For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Hotfix information

A supported hotfix is available from Microsoft. However, this hotfix is intended to correct only the problem that is described in this article. Apply this hotfix only to systems that are experiencing this specific problem. This hotfix might receive additional testing. Therefore, if you are not severely affected by this problem, we recommend that you wait for the next software update that contains this hotfix.

If the hotfix is available for download, there is a "Hotfix download available" section at the top of this Knowledge Base article. If this section does not appear, contact Microsoft Customer Service and Support to obtain the hotfix.

Note If additional issues occur or if any troubleshooting is required, you might have to create a separate service request. The usual support costs will apply to additional support questions and issues that do not qualify for this specific hotfix. For a complete list of Microsoft Customer Service and Support telephone numbers or to create a separate service request, visit the following Microsoft Web site: Note The "Hotfix download available" form displays the languages for which the hotfix is available. If you do not see your language, it is because a hotfix is not available for that language.

Prerequisites

The following list contains prerequisites for the hotfix package:

• The optimized version of this hotfix is a post-Microsoft Office 2003 Service Pack 2 hotfix. To install the hotfix, you must have Office 2003 Service Pack 2 installed. For more information about Office 2003 Service Pack 2, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
  887616� Description of Office 2003 Service Pack 2
• The full-file version of this hotfix is also the administrative version of this hotfix. You can install this version of the hotfix on a computer that is running Office 2003 with Service Pack 2 installed or Office 2003 with Service Pack 1 installed. However, we have tested this hotfix more extensively on Office 2003 with Service Pack 2 than we have on Office 2003 with Service Pack 1. If you install this hotfix on a computer that is running Office 2003 with Service Pack 1, some file conflicts might occur. We support this configuration, but we do not recommend this configuration.

Restart information

You do not have to restart your computer after you apply this hotfix.

Hotfix replacement information

This hotfix is not replaced by any later hotfix.

Registry information

You do not have to create any registry keys or modify any registry keys to use any hotfixes that this package contains.

Hotfix file information

This hotfix may not contain all the files that you must have to fully update a product to the latest build. This hotfix contains only the files that you must have to correct the issues that this article lists.

The global version of this hotfix uses a Microsoft Windows Installer package to install the hotfix. The dates and times for these files are listed in coordinated universal time (UTC) in the following table. When you view the file information, the date 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.

Download information

Microsoft Windows Installer .msp file information

After the hotfix package is installed, the global version of this hotfix package has the file attributes, or later file attributes, that are listed in the following table.Additional notes:

• For more information about how to install this hotfix, see the Readme.txt file that is included in the hotfix package.
• For more information about the differences between the two .msp files, see the "Strategies for Updating Office 2003 Installations" topic. To see this topic, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
  http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/ork2003/HA011525741033.aspx

For more information about the terminology that Microsoft uses for software that is corrected after the software is released, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: