When we cannot open Excel attachments in Outlook 2003 there are a few possible solutions that we can try.

Symptoms usually consist of an error message similar to

Can’t open this item. Can’t create file permission denied.

Make sure your computer’s hard drive is not full, this will stop any applications creating temporary files which will prevent documents being created or opened. If this is the case generally Windows will have notified you prior to this when disk space was getting low.

Did you know Microsoft Excel creates a hidden temporary file location?

When the amount of files with duplicate names becomes greater than 99 then this can prevent Excel files being opened or even saved from Outlook, it can even prevent files from opening period.

If your Outlook or Excel is having these problems then more than likely it will be this.

To resolve this firstly we need to find the hidden directory, its directory name usually contains OLK and most of the time it can be found in the temporary files directory of the users profile, but for a more definitive way to pinpoint the location, run Regedit from the Start > Run menu

Now simply search for the OutlookSecureTempFolder

Once you find this copy it you will be able to see the actual location of this hidden directory, copy and paste the path into the

Start > Run menu, then hit enter, this will then open the hidden location.

Next delete all files found in here.

Launch Outlook / Excel and retry.

Another reason when we Cannot open attachments from Outlook is the result of not having permission to create the temp file to the particular location, this can happen if your computer security has been modified to prevent access.

Cannot open Excel attachments use the search for more information

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