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Question

Excel Stuck in Print-style View

  • April 28, 2025
  • 1 reply
  • 37 views

When some of our users open an Excel file in Box, the first time it opens in the browser it will show the expected view. The excel file will be normal size, it will have the sheet tabs at the bottom, etc.

However, when the browser tab is refreshed, or if the same file is opened from a browser bookmark, then the excel file will be shown in a different view. This view almost looks like a print preview. It has the different sheets separated on the left and the current sheet is showing the whole excel table zoomed way out so it fits on a single page.

The only way to reliably get the excel file to open in the good / first view is by opening it from its folder in Box.com. It will be usable in that view until the tab gets refreshed, at which point the view changes to the broken print preview style.

We have tried multiple browsers including Edge, Safari, Chrome, and Firefox. I tried hitting Ctrl + F5 to clear any stuck cache that might be interfering. And the users confirmed it is happening to different people, including on Safari on macOS.

My best guess is that this is some bug with Box, except it's not hitting everyone and I can't recreate it on my machine with a different Excel file.

 

Thoughts?

1 reply

Jey Bueno Box
  • Community Manager
  • April 29, 2025

👋 Hi ​@mleclaire, welcome to the Box Community! Thank you for bringing this to our attention.

 

It sounds like what you're seeing is the Excel Workbook Gallery. I recommend checking with Microsoft regarding this behavior, particularly in relation to online integration and workbook settings.


In the Box web app, you can use the "Open with" function to choose either Microsoft Excel Online (to edit the file in your browser) or Microsoft Excel (to open it on your desktop). This helps ensure the file opens in editing mode, rather than in a print-style or read-only view.


Also, if the bookmarked link is a shared URL, please make sure the file is not in a read-only viewer mode. Or you can bookmark the folder where the file lives, then access the file instead of using the direct file link.


If you continue to experience issues, please let us know, and we’ll reach out to our Product Support team for further investigation.

 

Have a great day! 😊