How to fix Cannot save Excel file to a Network Drive

everal users have claimed that whenever they try to save Excel file to the network drive they get prompted with the following error message:

Your changes could not be saved because of a sharing violation

Your changes could not be saved, but were saved to a temporary document. Close the existing document, then open the temporary document and save it under a new name.

If you are also one of those thousands of users who are struggling hard to get past this annoying error, then you have reached at the right platform. Here in this tutorial we will try to share all the related information for resolving the error. So without any further delay let’s get started with the discussion.

Why I am having Cannot save Excel file to a Network Drive

There are number of reasons that leads to the above mention error and we have collected all the potential reasons, you can check below:

Reason 1: It is quite possible that the file may already be used by another application.

Reason 2: Your drive space may be exhausted that’s why you are unable to save

Reason 3: The file path character has crossed the maximum limit

Reason 4: The connection to the network drive is lost

Reason 5: Interference of the Antivirus installed on your PC

Reason 6: Excel file exists with the same name that is read-only

Reason 7: The file name or path no longer exists and is already modified or deleted

Reason 8: If the Excel Workbook file is shared among different users and if another user is accessing it at the same time then you are likely to face the above mention error

Reason 9: You don’t have Delete and Modify rights for the appropriate folder on the network drive

Try these fixes for Cannot save Excel file to a Network Drive

Method 1: Restart your Computer

First of all we recommend you to restart your PC, restarting the PC will remove glitches/bugs from your computer. To do so follow the below mention instructions:

Step 1: Open the Start Menu by pressing Windows keys >then click on the Power Options tab

Step 2: Finally choose Restart to reboot your PC

Method 2: Turn Off Windows Defender

As we have earlier mentioned that antivirus software are likely to create issues, so it is better to disable them temporarily. To do the same follow the below mention guidelines:

Step 1: On your keyboard press Windows + I keys together to open Window Settings >then search for ‘Windows Security Settings’ and access it

Step 2: After that go to Virus & Threat Protection >Manage Settings

Step 3: Finally disable all the features available and restart your PC

Method 3: Update Microsoft Excel

In this method we suggest you to update Microsoft Excel if you have not updated it from long time. Updating Microsoft Excel will refresh the app and will also remove bugs.

Follow the below mention steps to update Microsoft Excel:

Step 1: Open Microsoft Excel and access the File tab>then go to Accounts

Step 2: Finally click on Update Options and choose Update Now or Enable Updates and re-launch Excel.

Method 4: Save Workbook on Local Hard Disk

Several users have claimed that saving the file to the local hard drive worked for them. So you can also try to save the workbook on the local hard disk. And then share the file through any kind of USB drive or online sharing medium. The user just has to save it in such a folder that has sufficient permissions.

Method 5: Change Subkeys in Registry Editor

Here in this method we suggest you to change the subkeys in Registry Editor. To do the same follow the below mention instructions:

Step 1: In the Windows Search bar type in Run and press Enter key>In the prompted window, type in regedit and tap on OK

Step 2: After clicking on OK, the Registry Window will open>in the address window, enter the following address:

Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Excel\Options

Once you type this address will take the user to a new folder name Option

Step 3: Then right-click on the Options folder and then go to New and click on DWORD (32-bit) Value

After clicking on OK, a new value will be there alongside the previous ones.

Now rename the value just by right-clicking the mouse and then double-click to open a new window.

Step 1: In that Window, input in the Valid Data filed

Step 2: Tap on OK after this

Once you have set the values then check if the issue resolved or not.

Method 6: Repair Microsoft Office

In this method we suggest you to repair Microsoft Office and to do the same follow the below mention guidelines:

Step 1: Navigate to Start Menu and go to Settings>In the Settings window, tap on the Apps option

Step 2: In the Apps and Features window, search for the Office in the search bar>then click on the version of the MS Office installed on your PC and then click on Modify

Step 3: Now in the Apps & features Window, search for the Office in the search bar>and then click on the version of MS Office installed on your computer and tap on Modify

Step 4: After tapping on Modify, a new window will open named How would you like to repair your Office Programs after that choose Quick Repair and then tap Repair

Step 5: After repairing the Excel application through settings check if the issue resolve or not.

Method 7: Contact Network Administrator

If you are still struggling with Cannot save Excel file to a Network Drive then try to modify the network administrator.

Ask the Administrator to assign proper rights of deletion and modification to the folder present over the network drive.

Method 8: Open Excel in Safe Mode

Several users have claimed that opening the Excel in Safe Mode resolved their issue so we suggest you to launch Excel in Safe Mode:

Step 1: Use Win + R keys to open Run dialog box>then type in excel/safe and press Enter

Microsoft Excel will open Safe Mode.

Method 9: Reinstall Microsoft Excel

If none of the above mentioned methods works for you then we suggest you to reinstall Microsoft Excel and to do so follow the below mention instructions:

Step 1: On your system, navigate to the Control Panel and tap on Uninstall a Program >then look for Microsoft Excel after that right-click on it

Step 2: Finally, select Uninstall and follow the prompts and then reinstall the app

That’s all about Cannot save Excel file to a Network Drive. We really hope that you liked the blog and it was helpful for you.