XL97: "Microsoft Excel Cannot Access..." Opening Excel File from Web Server

When you open a Microsoft Excel 97 for Windows file from a Web server, you may receive the following error message: There are several possible reasons:

• The file name or path does not exist
• The file you're trying to open is being used by another program. Close the document in the other program, and try again.
• The name of the workbook you're trying to save is the same as the name of another document that is read-only. Try saving the workbook with a different name.

Note that <URL> in the first sentence of the message resembles the following: If you click OK, the file is opened normally.

This problem may occur if the following conditions are true:

• You are using Microsoft Internet Information Server as your Web server. -and-
  
  
• The Web server is using Basic (Clear Text) authentication to authenticate users. -and-
  
  
• You are using a version of Microsoft Internet Explorer that is listed at the beginning of this article.

To correct this problem, obtain Microsoft Excel 97 Service Release 2 (SR-2).

For additional information about SR-2, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Microsoft Excel 97 for Windows. This problem was corrected in Microsoft Office 97 Service Release 2 (SR-2).