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Home → Troubleshooting → All Products: Startup → "Could not contact the Microsoft Excel application"

2.39. "Could not contact the Microsoft Excel application"

Applies to:  All Palisade software 5.5.1 and later

Tambien disponible en Español: "No se puede iniciar el programa Microsoft Excel"

When I try to launch @RISK, StatTools, or any of the tools, I get this error message:

Could not contact the Microsoft Excel application

What is wrong?

• If you're getting this message the first time you try to run the Palisade software, your deployment of Microsoft Office may be a problem. The Palisade software must be installed on the same computer as Excel. Deployment as Office Web Apps, Office On Line, Pocket Office, Office Mobile, Office On Demand, or Office 2010 Click-to-Run may be a problem.
• Have you previously run the software successfully with this copy of Excel? If so, Windows may have got into a state where the messages from Palisade software to Excel are not being answered. Restart Windows to clear the problem condition.
• Has Excel disabled one of the Palisade files? (When Excel crashes, it sometimes marks all open add-ins as disabled.) Click File » Options » Add-Ins. Scroll the list at the right to the bottom, and look at Disabled Application Add-Ins. (Important: Disabled, not Inactive.) Something beginning with Pal or Risk is probably one of ours, but not all of our add-ins follow that pattern; if you're not sure about one, please ask Palisade Technical Support. To re-enable a disabled add-in, change Manage: from "Excel Add-ins" to "Disabled Items" and click Go, then select the item and re-enable it. Close the small Disabled Items window, click OK to close Excel Options, then close Excel itself.
• Are there a lot of files in your temporary folder? This sometimes confuses Excel. See Cleaning Your Temp Folder.
• Have you upgraded your Microsoft Office or uninstalled a version of Office? Office may have left one or more "orphan" keys behind. You can delete these keys by following the procedure in Removing Outdated References to Office from the System Registry.

Last edited: 2019-11-18