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Excel 2007 high cpu usage, format cell, wrap text

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Michael S. Wall

unread,
Sep 14, 2007, 3:22:00 PM9/14/07
to
I have a user who reported this, and we have verified the behavior on
different computers. She has a spreadsheet with 10,000 rows and about 50
columns. When she highlights the whole spreadsheet, and selects Format
cells, wrap text ,the cpu levels rise to 100% in Excel 2007 and the process
takes about 5 minutes before it returns to normal. The user perception is
that the system is locked up. With Excel 2002, she was not having the same
experience. The process took about 20 seconds to complete. We duplicated
this behavior on two test computers. Is there anything that can be done to
fix this?

She has a P4 3.0 ghz system with 1gb RAM and an 80 gb hard drive.

Duke Carey

unread,
Sep 14, 2007, 3:30:02 PM9/14/07
to
When you select the whole worksheet in Excel 2007 you are selecting about
1,000 times as many cells as in 2002. It's gonna take a lot longer.

Solution: DO NOT SELECT THE WHOLE WORKSHEET.

That's never been a good idea.

If the data cells are all contiguous, select any cell in the range and press
Ctrl-* then format those cells

Michael S. Wall

unread,
Sep 14, 2007, 4:30:01 PM9/14/07
to
Thank you for the suggestion. I tried it, but I am still seeing the same
behavior. The actual spreadsheet is 65,000 rows and goes out to column R.
It did not take this long in Office 2002.

Mr. Low

unread,
Sep 14, 2007, 10:30:01 PM9/14/07
to
Hello Michael,

Try the free full system scan at the folowing URL at MS Website

http://onecare.live.com/site/en-us/default.htm

This would take about 1 hour or sighly more..

After that, try to increase the virtual memory of your PC to its maximum
permissible size. This is necessary as Excel 2007 uses a lot of page memory.

This can be done by going to Control Panel >System >Advance > Performance>
Click at setting > Virtual Memory > Click at Change > Custom Size > Set >
Initial Size : 4090 MB , Maximum Size : 4095 (The system could tell you what
is your maximum size as you increase it) > Click OK and reboot your PC.

I hope it helps

Thanks

Low

--
A36B58K641

Michael S. Wall

unread,
Sep 17, 2007, 11:30:01 AM9/17/07
to
I increased the virtual memory up to as high a 6144. I could see no
difference in performance. It originally had 2338 allocated. I went to 4096,
5120, and 6144. There was no difference in performance at each of those
levels.

Mr. Low

unread,
Sep 17, 2007, 11:50:34 AM9/17/07
to
Hello Michael,

Have you try Check Disk and correct disk error by going to My Computer >
Drive C > Tool > Properties > Check Now > Tick both options ?

After that please try to run the free full system scan at the folowing URL
at MS Website http://onecare.live.com/site/en-us/default.htm . Both will
take about 1.5 to 2 hours.

After that reboot your PC.

I hope that this would help.

Jon Peltier

unread,
Sep 17, 2007, 12:52:47 PM9/17/07
to
You're discovering that it's not necessarily a function of the capabilities
of the machine you're running. This is what most of the anecdotal evidence
suggests. Thus, I don't think Mr Low's suggestions will be too helpful.

- Jon
-------
Jon Peltier, Microsoft Excel MVP
Tutorials and Custom Solutions
Peltier Technical Services, Inc. - http://PeltierTech.com
_______


"Michael S. Wall" <Michae...@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:EFDC3806-A692-4933...@microsoft.com...

Michael S. Wall

unread,
Sep 17, 2007, 1:40:04 PM9/17/07
to
I agree. I don't see the point in running the scan. This has been tried on
multiple computers. It is not a drive problem or computer problem or a page
file problem.

The same spreadsheet did not cause this problem in Excel 2002. I have tried
saving the spreadsheet in the .xlsx format, but that didn't make a
difference. The only things about the spreadsheet that stand out to me are
the following:

The spreadsheet was created from a data connection to an Oracle database
There are filters in place on each of the columns
It looks like the column widths have been auto-adjusted

I have tried removing the data connection and filters, and returning the
column widths to the default setting, but that did not have any impact on
this particular problem.

Creating the same size spreadsheet consisting of a long string in each cell,
and then trying to format the cells to wrap text does not produce the same
behavior. It formats in about 20 seconds.

Mr. Low

unread,
Sep 17, 2007, 7:16:00 PM9/17/07
to

Perhaps this is a programing problem, that MS developers might need to look
into it and find some fixes.

You may need to bring it to their attention at
:http://blogs.msdn.com/excel/contact.aspx

ritasnodgrass

unread,
Oct 16, 2009, 2:34:11 PM10/16/09
to
Did you ever find a solution for this issue? I have a user with the exact same problem.

MichaelSWal wrote:

Excel 2007 high cpu usage, format cell, wrap text
14-Sep-07

Previous Posts In This Thread:

On Friday, September 14, 2007 3:22 PM
MichaelSWal wrote:

Excel 2007 high cpu usage, format cell, wrap text

On Friday, September 14, 2007 3:30 PM
DukeCare wrote:

RE: Excel 2007 high cpu usage, format cell, wrap text


When you select the whole worksheet in Excel 2007 you are selecting about
1,000 times as many cells as in 2002. It's gonna take a lot longer.

Solution: DO NOT SELECT THE WHOLE WORKSHEET.

That's never been a good idea.

If the data cells are all contiguous, select any cell in the range and press
Ctrl-* then format those cells


"Michael S. Wall" wrote:

On Friday, September 14, 2007 4:30 PM
MichaelSWal wrote:

RE: Excel 2007 high cpu usage, format cell, wrap text


Thank you for the suggestion. I tried it, but I am still seeing the same
behavior. The actual spreadsheet is 65,000 rows and goes out to column R.
It did not take this long in Office 2002.

"Duke Carey" wrote:

On Friday, September 14, 2007 10:30 PM
lsk214 wrote:

RE: Excel 2007 high cpu usage, format cell, wrap text
Hello Michael,

Try the free full system scan at the folowing URL at MS Website

http://onecare.live.com/site/en-us/default.htm

This would take about 1 hour or sighly more..

After that, try to increase the virtual memory of your PC to its maximum
permissible size. This is necessary as Excel 2007 uses a lot of page memory.

This can be done by going to Control Panel >System >Advance > Performance>
Click at setting > Virtual Memory > Click at Change > Custom Size > Set >
Initial Size : 4090 MB , Maximum Size : 4095 (The system could tell you what
is your maximum size as you increase it) > Click OK and reboot your PC.

I hope it helps

Thanks

Low

--
A36B58K641


"Michael S. Wall" wrote:

On Monday, September 17, 2007 11:30 AM
MichaelSWal wrote:

RE: Excel 2007 high cpu usage, format cell, wrap text


I increased the virtual memory up to as high a 6144. I could see no
difference in performance. It originally had 2338 allocated. I went to 4096,
5120, and 6144. There was no difference in performance at each of those
levels.

"Mr. Low" wrote:

On Monday, September 17, 2007 11:50 AM
lsk214 wrote:

RE: Excel 2007 high cpu usage, format cell, wrap text
Hello Michael,

Have you try Check Disk and correct disk error by going to My Computer >
Drive C > Tool > Properties > Check Now > Tick both options ?

After that please try to run the free full system scan at the folowing URL
at MS Website http://onecare.live.com/site/en-us/default.htm . Both will
take about 1.5 to 2 hours.

After that reboot your PC.

I hope that this would help.

Low

--
A36B58K641


"Michael S. Wall" wrote:

On Monday, September 17, 2007 12:52 PM
Jon Peltier wrote:

Re: Excel 2007 high cpu usage, format cell, wrap text


You're discovering that it's not necessarily a function of the capabilities
of the machine you're running. This is what most of the anecdotal evidence
suggests. Thus, I don't think Mr Low's suggestions will be too helpful.

- Jon
-------
Jon Peltier, Microsoft Excel MVP
Tutorials and Custom Solutions
Peltier Technical Services, Inc. - http://PeltierTech.com
_______


"Michael S. Wall" <Michae...@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:EFDC3806-A692-4933...@microsoft.com...

On Monday, September 17, 2007 1:40 PM
MichaelSWal wrote:

Re: Excel 2007 high cpu usage, format cell, wrap text


I agree. I don't see the point in running the scan. This has been tried on
multiple computers. It is not a drive problem or computer problem or a page
file problem.

The same spreadsheet did not cause this problem in Excel 2002. I have tried
saving the spreadsheet in the .xlsx format, but that didn't make a
difference. The only things about the spreadsheet that stand out to me are
the following:

The spreadsheet was created from a data connection to an Oracle database
There are filters in place on each of the columns
It looks like the column widths have been auto-adjusted

I have tried removing the data connection and filters, and returning the
column widths to the default setting, but that did not have any impact on
this particular problem.

Creating the same size spreadsheet consisting of a long string in each cell,
and then trying to format the cells to wrap text does not produce the same
behavior. It formats in about 20 seconds.


"Jon Peltier" wrote:

On Monday, September 17, 2007 7:16 PM
lsk214 wrote:

Re: Excel 2007 high cpu usage, format cell, wrap text


Perhaps this is a programing problem, that MS developers might need to look
into it and find some fixes.

You may need to bring it to their attention at

Thanks

Low


--
A36B58K641


"Michael S. Wall" wrote:

EggHeadCafe - Software Developer Portal of Choice
ASP.NET Read Pop3 Email
http://www.eggheadcafe.com/tutorials/aspnet/4b2941c6-fb99-4745-8437-3a2e28b778c4/aspnet-read-pop3-email.aspx

naz uddin

unread,
Dec 8, 2010, 11:10:47 AM12/8/10
to
Turn off the automatic calculation

Office Button -->Excel Options --->Formulas-->Set to Manual

you might need to turn back on after though

> On Friday, September 14, 2007 3:22 PM MichaelSWal wrote:


>>>>>>>>>> On Friday, October 16, 2009 2:34 PM Rita Snodgrass wrote:

>>>>>>>>>> Did you ever find a solution for this issue? I have a user with the exact same problem.
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> MichaelSWal wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> Excel 2007 high cpu usage, format cell, wrap text
>>>>>>>>>> 14-Sep-07
>>>>>>>>>>

>>>>>>>>>> Previous Posts In This Thread:
>>>>>>>>>>

>>>>>>>>>> MichaelSWal wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> Excel 2007 high cpu usage, format cell, wrap text

>>>>>>>>>> DukeCare wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> RE: Excel 2007 high cpu usage, format cell, wrap text
>>>>>>>>>> When you select the whole worksheet in Excel 2007 you are selecting about

>>>>>>>>>> 1,000 times as many cells as in 2002. it is gonna take a lot longer.

>>>>>>>>>> You're discovering that it is not necessarily a function of the capabilities
>>>>>>>>>> of the machine you are running. This is what most of the anecdotal evidence
>>>>>>>>>> suggests. Thus, I do not think Mr Low's suggestions will be too helpful.


>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> - Jon
>>>>>>>>>> -------
>>>>>>>>>> Jon Peltier, Microsoft Excel MVP
>>>>>>>>>> Tutorials and Custom Solutions
>>>>>>>>>> Peltier Technical Services, Inc. - http://PeltierTech.com
>>>>>>>>>> _______
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>

>>>>>>>>>> MichaelSWal wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> Re: Excel 2007 high cpu usage, format cell, wrap text

>>>>>>>>>> I agree. I do not see the point in running the scan. This has been tried on


>>>>>>>>>> multiple computers. It is not a drive problem or computer problem or a page
>>>>>>>>>> file problem.
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> The same spreadsheet did not cause this problem in Excel 2002. I have tried

>>>>>>>>>> saving the spreadsheet in the .xlsx format, but that did not make a


>>>>>>>>>> Submitted via EggHeadCafe
>>>>>>>>>> Microsoft LINQ Query Samples For Beginners
>>>>>>>>>> http://www.eggheadcafe.com/training-topic-area/LINQ-Standard-Query-Operators/33/LINQ-Standard-Query-Operators.aspx

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