Office Documents Open in Internet Explorer

• Microsoft Internet Explorer versions 3.01, 3.02, 3.02a, 4.0, 4.01 for Windows 95
• Microsoft Internet Explorer versions 3.01, 3.02, 3.02a 4.0, 4.01 for Windows NT 4.0

SYMPTOMS

When you click a HyperText Markup Language (HTML) link to a Microsoft Office file (such as a Microsoft Excel document), Internet Explorer may open the file in the browser instead of opening it in the appropriate Office program.

CAUSE

This behavior occurs when Internet Explorer is configured to host documents for Office programs that are installed on the computer. Internet Explorer is configured in this manner by default.

RESOLUTION

To configure Internet Explorer to open Office files in the appropriate Office program instead of in the browser, follow the steps in the appropriate section below. If you are running Windows 95, follow the steps in the "Windows 95" section. If you are running Windows NT, follow the steps in the "Windows NT" section.

Windows 95

1. Double-click My Computer.

2. On the View menu, click Options.

3. Click the File Types tab.

4. In the Registered File Types box, click the specific Office document type (for example, Microsoft Excel Worksheet), and then click Edit.

5. Click the Open Web Documents In Place check box to clear it (in Internet Explorer 4.0 or 4.01, click the Browse In Same Window check box to clear it), and then click OK.

   NOTE: This check box is not available if you are running Internet Explorer version 3.0. If you are running Internet Explorer 3.0, upgrade to Internet Explorer 3.02 or later. For information about obtaining the latest version of Internet Explorer, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

         http://www.microsoft.com/ie/download
   

Windows NT

WARNING: Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious, system-wide problems that may require you to reinstall Windows NT to correct them. Microsoft cannot guarantee that any problems resulting from the use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use this tool at your own risk.

1. Start Registry Editor and locate the following registry key:

         HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes
   

   To start Registry Editor, click Start, click Run, type "regedt32.exe" (without quotation marks) in the Open box, and then click OK.

2. Under this key, locate the appropriate subkey for the specific Office document type. The following table lists the appropriate subkey for several common Office document types:

         Document type                               Subkey
         ----------------------------------------------------------------
         Microsoft Access 7.0 database application   Access.Application.7
         Microsoft Access 97 database application    Access.Application.8
         Microsoft Excel 7.0 worksheet               Excel.Sheet.5
         Microsoft Excel 97 worksheet                Excel.Sheet.8
         Microsoft Word 7.0 document                 Word.Document.6
         Microsoft Word 97 document                  Word.Document.8
         Microsoft PowerPoint 7.0 presentation       PowerPoint.Show.7
         Microsoft PowerPoint 97 presentation        PowerPoint.Show.8
   
      To locate the appropriate subkey for a document type that is not in
      this table, find the subkey for the extension associated with the
      document type. The (default) value for that subkey contains the name
      of the appropriate subkey for that document type.
   
      For example, the .xls extension is associated with Microsoft Excel
      worksheets. Under the .xls subkey, the (default) value contains the
      string "Excel.Sheet.5." Therefore, the Excel.Sheet.5 subkey is the
      appropriate subkey for the Microsoft Excel Worksheet document type.
   
   

3. After you identify the appropriate subkey, click the subkey, click Add Value on the Edit menu, and then add the following value:

         Value name:  BrowserFlags
         Data type:   REG_DWORD
         Value:       8
   
   

4. Click OK, and then quit Registry Editor.