How to open two excel files in two excel windows using multiple monitors in Windows 7.
Currently it opens multiple files on top of each other on the same one monitor.


I found this article in a blog it says

"The snap feature that you are looking for will not work unless you open two instances of Excel. This is because Excel Unlike Word is not a True SDI Application. Microsoft is aware of the Issue however there is no resolution to the problem but the workaround"

Don't know if i get you're question right. But i'll give it a shot.

I assume you defined the two monitors as an extended desktop. You can start excel for the first time and open a sheet and move the window to the first screen. Next you start another instance of excel open the worksheet and move it to the right sheet (you can only move a sheet to another monitor when it's size is not on "full screen".

The alternative way is open two excel sheets in one excel instance. Next you choose the tab "View" and click the "all window" option, then you can select that all the open windows should appear next to eachother. When you make your Excel instance a big as you're desktop (across two screens) you can see both of the excel sheets in one instance.

Works on office 2007, haven't tried in on 2003 but i assume it is possible.

Goodluck !

I just did a test on my multiple screens, it worked. To do this, simply open Excel by double clicking the icon on your desktop and open the first Excel file you want to use. Minimize this window and move it to the right screen. Then go back to the desktop, double click the Excel icon once more, another separate Excel window will open. Open the second Excel file from within the separate window and move it to the left screen. You can open as many files and separate windows as you need using this method.

If you do not have an Excel shortcut on your desktop but would like one, find Excel in the Programs list. Right click it, point to Send To and then click Desktop. A shortcut will be placed on the desktop.

Excel 2007 provides a simple solution for users who want to open all Excel files in separate windows. To access this setting, open Microsoft Excel. Click the Office Button and then click Excel Options, which is down at the bottom right side of the menu. Select Advanced, which is on the left, and then scroll down to Display. Select the Show All Windows in Taskbar checkbox and then click OK.

Best Regards
Dale

Hi,

 

Thanks this worked, but I launched the second Excel instance from my Start Menu, didn't need a desktop shortcut.

 

To Dale:

Your comment is *entirely* NOT what the user wants to know (nor I).

The question could not have been simpler: How does a user open two excel documents.

Your solution is show different windows in the taskbar???

To Pieter:

The whole problem is how to open TWO DIFFERENT excel documents individually.  Did you even try this before posting -- it's not possible.  Your solution is to do just do it???

All the other responses here are useless as well.

I can never understand in forums when users don't understand how to answer a question, but then respond with a solution for a different question.

We want to know HOW TO OPEN TWO SEPARATE EXCEL DOCS.  If you don't know how to do it, simply don't respond, and that saves tonnes of users from fiddling around trying to read all these comments from people who decided to comment, but NOT answer the question.

 

Calm down a bit there...  Forums are free advice...

The methods that were already described in this thread absolutely can be used to open two different excel documents, each in their own respective screen on a dual-screen computer system.

You simply open two instances of excel, drag one to each monitor and then use the "Open" command to open the spreadsheet you want in that instance of Excel.  It's simple and it does work.

Now, if you want to change the way Excel behaves, so that it no longer opens new documents in the same WINDOW you can do that too by following the directions in this article:

http://techrepublic.com.com/5208-6230-0.html?forumID=101&threadID=234896&messageID=2510797

 

 

No, Justmesayin is completely right.  The answer given is completely not helpful to me or anyone else who actually wants to know the real answer to the question.  I doubt anyone who posted here even tried to find a way around this themselves but instead justed openly guessed, or didn't read the question.

Well, I have to admit the information on this was usefull to me and realized there was more that I needed to learn so I have two other ways to help that may be useful

First my users wanted to open more than one excel app for each screen but also to twart any problems if a spreadsheet failed and they had to close the entire program for the other sheets that were not saved.  So naturally the users experience counts in my book and to try to help them out I created a shortcut on their desktop in Win7 and changed the shortcut key to Ctl+Alt+O so that when they needed multiple copies of excel they just needed to use the shortcut key to open a new excel program before they open up the file in question.  At that point they could use the list of last open files and keep this going for the user.

The second one was more easy in that I created a shortcut to the file they open on a daily basis and added the the root of where to find the application first followed by the link to the file where it was located on the share.  However if the files are changing this is not good.  It only works if the user spreadsheet is the same day after day.

http://en.kioskea.net/faq/10635-windows-7-create-a-custom-keyboard-shortcut-for-your-applicatio

Here is where I got how to use the Windows keyboard to setup the link.

Hope this helps and thanks for the other info as well.  I did not know about the multiple tabs to appear on the desktop since mine was not enabled it does show me the files now instead of trying to look for them in the view.  Office 2010 is no exception and its cumbersome to view the other files unless you know how to look for them.  So in reference the user wins.  It should be easy!

I agree with justmesayin. People shouldnt post unnecessary and irrelevant answers even though they are free advice forums.

Coming back to the original question (first one on the top by Christina Yapp)

http://www.lytebyte.com/2008/05/13/how-to-open-two-excel-files-side-by-side-in-separate-monitors/

Use this to open 2 excel files in 2 separate windows in a dual monitor setup on Windows 7 using Excel 2010. I think this could also apply to Excel 2007 too and also on a vista setup if i am not wrong, but i havent tried it on vista nor on Excel 2007.

Hope this helps.

I agree with you.  When a you double-click on an Excel file (such as in Windows Explorer), that file opens.  Double-click on another Excel file and that file does not open in as a separate "instance of Excel.  It opens in the window the first file is in.  Try to move one of those files to a second monitor - it won't move.  As someone mentioned earlier (or in a different forum?), this works fine in MS Word, but it does not work for Excel because it is not a true SDI application.

I guess we are stuck opening the Excel application multiple times and opening the files individually within each window.  Then, we can "Restore Down" each file and move them about the monitor and across multiple monitors.

EVERYBODY in this post gave wrong reply!!!!!!!

 

THE MAIN QUESTION IS;

 

IN WINDOWS 7 how we can use two excel files in dual monitors seperately!

 

YES! There is a solution in WinXP but We are asking for Windows 7 OK!

 

If anyone can do this, please put some screenshoots and show the way step by step..

 I know exactly what you're asking, I haven't tried it with Windows 7 and 2010, we had the problem with 2007 and XP, used these free reg hacks to get it done. But I am going to test this with 2010 and Windows 7, see if the right click method still works.

 http://www.online-tech-tips.com/ms-office-tips/how-to-open-a-new-instance-of-excel-2007-workbooks/

 I have an account on Experts-Exchange, I may look there as well, it's a real p*&^ off, MS should have this built in. I know exactly what your issue is, we have it as well.

 

 

 http://www.brighthub.com/hubfolio/lamar-stonecypher/blog/archive/2010/08/11/opening-two-instances-of-word-2010-in-windows-7-64-bit.aspx

 Kind of funny now that I think about it, almost seems obvious. Though I suspect it won't go over to well with two email attachments but for the most part, this will do and it works I tested it.

 

Reduced everthing I read to these 2 short and easy to remember methods:

• SHIFT + Left Click on the Excel shortcut will to open another instance of excel which you can then move to another monitor. 

 OR

• RIGHT click on the Excel icon pinned to taskbar and LEFT click Microsoft Excel 2010 will also open another instance.

You still have to then open the spreadsheet you want but its a simple solution.   Works in Office 2010 with Windoes 7 64bit. 

 

 

My issue with this is, yes you can open two separate instances of Excel 2007 and 2010 open at the same time using this method. However if you have to compare data between the two workbooks, then you're out of luck. Features like the powerful VLOOKUP will only work within the same instance of Excel, from my experience it will not work across each instance. I have situations on a daily basis where I have to compare cell values all the time on very large spreadsheets. I would love to have different\same spreadsheets open within the same instance of Excel on each on my monitors so that I can easily see and compare these workbooks. It would make life so much easier (Which is suppose to be the point of technology...right?) than having to try to use the View "Features" that MS has given to view each spreadsheet on one monitor. I will try the option of enlarging a single instance across both monitors that "Pieter Janssen" posted first to see if this will do. MS should have included a "Pop Out Window" feature that will allow you drag this new window to another monitor. Sigh...

Prior to Windows 7. I would open 2 instances of Excel and move one onto my extended screen. (Doesn't matter how you do it (from the Start menu or a Shortcut). Whichever Excel you were "in" when you opened a new document would be the screen in which the document would display. This is without going through Excel to File>Open and selecting your document. Obviously opening a document that way would display the document in that given screen. But before you could be in say the 2nd instance of Excel and click on an attached document from an e-mail and it would open in that screen, Then you could click in the first instance of Excel and open a different attachment and it would show it on opposite screens.

After I upgraded to Windows 7, no matter which screen I am clicked in, All my documents open in the first instance of Excel. The only way I can get a document to display in the second instance is if I go through File>Open and select my document. This is a problem for me because I review a lot of documents that are e-mailed to me - and I don't necessarily need to save them. Therefore I can't open through my documents.

Not sure if this is what the original question meant - but this is a problem that I am having - so any ideas would be helpful. Thank You.

On Tue, 31 May 2011 13:27:19 +0000, Dunnk wrote:

Prior to Windows 7. I would open 2 instances of Excel and move one onto my extended screen. (Doesn't matter how you do it (from the Start menu or a Shortcut). Whichever Excel you were "in" when you opened a new document would be the screen in which the document would display. This is without going through Excel to File>Open and selecting your document. Obviously opening a document that way would display the document in that given screen. But before you could be in say the 2nd instance of Excel and click on an attached document from an e-mail and it would open in that screen, Then you could click in the first instance of Excel and open a different attachment and it would show it on opposite screens.

After I upgraded to Windows 7, no matter which screen I am clicked in, All my documents open in the first instance of Excel. The only way I can get a document to display in the second instance is if I go through File>Open and select my document. This is a problem for me because I review a lot of documents that are e-mailed to me - and I don't necessarily need to save them. Therefore I can't open through my documents.

Not sure if this is what the original question meant - but this is a problem that I am having - so any ideas would be helpful. Thank You.

Hold down the Ctrl key when you open the second instance of Excel.

I had 2 Excel's open - and I was able to drag the documents from the document screen into whichever Excel I wanted to view it in. Thanks!

On Tue, 31 May 2011 19:32:54 +0000, Dunnk wrote:

I had 2 Excel's open - and I was able to drag the documents from the document screen into whichever Excel I wanted to view it in. Thanks!

You're welcome. Glad to help.

Hey all,

 

First let me say, I am not on a Mac, that is a family nickname.

 

I am having the same problem that has been described here using dual monitors and opening mulitple session of Excel.  The probelm for me come that I had a lot, and I mean a lot of excel shortcuts on my desktop that use often, so opening a new instance of Excel and file/open is option but longer.  I was hoping for a shorter way. :)  I know those extra clicks are killer! LOL

 

Any Help would be great.

 

Matt

The best thing that's worked for me is to use the "Send To" menu to open new instances of Excel for my dual-monitor Excel use.  With this technique, you right-click on an excel spreadsheet file, hover on "Sent To" in the context menu, and select "Excel" and it opens in a new window. Works with Excel 2007/2010 in W7.

To make Excel be an option in the "Send To" context menu, it's explained in this blog:

http://fielddata.blogspot.com/2011/07/opening-excel-20072010-in-new-windows.html

The only thing that doesn't work for me is when I'm opening Excel attachments from emails since the "Send To" option isn't available from my email program.

Colin

I know this post is old and that you are frustrated so hopefully my response helps.  To open 2 DIFFERENT excel documents (in different Excel windows) that can be seen on multiple monitors, read the all the steps below first than do them exactly as described and it should work.   Good luck!!!

 

1. Left click on your start menu (windows symbol, bottom left) -> All Programs -> Microsoft    office -> Excel

2. Repeat step 1 you should have seen Excel pop up twice.

3. Drag the blank excel document you see to another screen - You should now see 2 blank excel documents, one on each screen.

5. From the blank Excel document on your left screen left click the Office icon (or shortcut if you have it), find the first document you want to open and select it by left clicking the document.

6. From the blank Excel document on your right screen left click the Office icon (or shortcut if you have it), find the second document you want to open and select it by left clicking the document.


Hopefully this helps.  It should.  The key is opening 2 blank documents in Excel first then opening the documents from each Excel window that you want to work with.  Opening the files by double-clicking the files in their home folder will not work.


You can also open the 2 blank Excel documents from double clicking your desktop icon.  Another neat trick someone mentioned was opening the first document via the start menu or desk top than on the bottom task bar hover your mouse over the Excel icon and click your mouse wheel.  Again though, to view on 2 monitors you need to open the documents you are viewing FROM Excel, not from the file directly.

Hi Gang,

I know this is an older stream, but I have the exact same problem, but in PowerPoint.

The solutions suggested here DO work for me in Excel, but not with PowerPoint.

Anyone have a solution to the same issue?

(i.e. - opening two .ppt presentations into two separate PowerPoint windows on two different monitors, in one machine?)

Thanks!

.James.

Hi Gang,

I know this is an older stream, but I have the exact same problem, but in PowerPoint.

The solutions suggested here DO work for me in Excel, but not with PowerPoint.

Anyone have a solution to the same issue?

(i.e. - opening two .ppt presentations into two separate PowerPoint windows on two different monitors, in one machine?)

Thanks!

.James.

Hi There,

 

I had the same problem, have only scanned the results below, saw someone loosing his calm a wee bit, if the question is how to open two seperate files, one on one moniter and one on the other? its simple, I had the same problem 10 mins ago.

Basically open one of the documents (from your desktop or file location) lets say file 1 (list1) and drag it to the left screen the simply open the start menu and open excel on the opposite screen (things will automatically open on the last screen it was displayed so you may have to open it from the start menu then drag it to the right, then just close it) then go to the open option on excell which will display file2 (list2) double click and hey presto..

If this is not what you wanted never mind.. i'm not going to spend all night reading the comments below, this is actually the first comment i've ever typed so if its wrong i'm not going to loose any sleep over it, and if its right... YOUR WELCOME.

xx

Don't click on the above link, It is a spyware site and you will get infected.

It also works in Win7 32-bits with Office 2010.

Try this:  http://www.bitterminion.com/excel-launchpad/

Add this to your registry and it will solve your problem. You will then just be able to double click on an excel document and it will open a seperate isntance of excel.

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00


[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Excel.Sheet.12\shell\Open\command]
@="\"C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Microsoft Office\\Office14\\EXCEL.EXE\" /e \"%1\""
"command"=-
[-HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Excel.Sheet.12\shell\Open\ddeexec]
@="[open(\"%1\")]"


[-HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Excel.Sheet.12\shell\Open\ddeexec\application]
@="Excel"


[-HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Excel.Sheet.12\shell\Open\ddeexec\topic]
@="system"


[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Excel.Sheet.12\shell\Open\ddeexec2]
@="[open(\"%1\")]"


[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Excel.Sheet.12\shell\Open\ddeexec2\application]
@="Excel"


[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Excel.Sheet.12\shell\Open\ddeexec2\topic]
@="system"


[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Excel.Sheet.8\shell\Open\command]
@="\"C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Microsoft Office\\Office14\\EXCEL.EXE\" /e \"%1\""
"command"=-


[-HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Excel.Sheet.8\shell\Open\ddeexec]
@="[open(\"%1\")]"


[-HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Excel.Sheet.8\shell\Open\ddeexec\application]
@="Excel"


[-HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Excel.Sheet.8\shell\Open\ddeexec\topic]
@="system"


[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Excel.Sheet.8\shell\Open\ddeexec2]
@="[open(\"%1\")]"


[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Excel.Sheet.8\shell\Open\ddeexec2\application]
@="Excel"


[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Excel.Sheet.8\shell\Open\ddeexec2\topic]
@="system"

Just drag it.  You could open another Excel and drag the file to it.

If you are working almost the entire day in front of your computer at your office with lots of Excel Sheets and Word, then probably you might be working with a dual monitor or may be even more than that. Studies have shown that having an additional monitor increases the productivity by 20 to 30 percent (Source: NY Times)

But some applications like MS Office Excel, even though you open multiple files, they are all from the same instance of the application. So if you want to compare two Excel files, then you may not be able to have it in two separate monitors as the files are loaded using the same instance of Excel. If you move one Excel file to the other window, the other Excel files are also moved to the other window.

So how to have two separate Excel files or other application side by side in dual monitors?

Option A:

In Excel 2003, go to Tools -> Options -> General tab.

Make sure the option, Ignore other applications is checked. Now all the Excel files will be opened as separate instance and you can move the Excel files individually across the monitors.

In Excel 2007, Click the Office button -> Excel Options -> Advanced.

Under General, check Ignore other applications that use Dynamic Data Exchange.

or

As this method forces each Excel file as a separate instance, the memory consumption will be more. If you dont want too many memory consumption then you can open only two instances (see Option B) and manage wisely to view in both the monitors.

Note: If you are having issues like Excel opens without displaying a workbook, then you may have to uncheck this option. (See Microsoft Help for more details on this). You can use option B in this case. I have this option checked and I have not faced any issue yet.

Option B:

They key here is, the application has to be loaded as separate instances. Lets say you have opened an Excel file in Monitor 1 and you want to open the next excel file in Monitor 2. You can usually open another instance of Excel by browsing through the Start Menu -> Programs -> Microsoft Office -> Excel. Make sure this newly opened Excel file is the last Excel file you had viewed and then double click on the Excel file that you wanted to open. This will force the Excel to open in the second instance of Excel. Now you can move these two excel files separately across windows or monitors.

This may be little cumbersome way to open new instances of Excel every time. The easy solution would be to keep these links in the quick links near the Start button. So, every time you want to open a new instance of the application, you can just use those quick links.

hope work thanks

http://www.lytebyte.com/2008/05/13/how-to-open-two-excel-files-side-by-side-in-separate-monitors/

Running Multiple Instances of Excel 2003

Be careful in changing the settings, could cause problems.

One thing you can check. I don't know any option in excel to for to open (or not open) another instance when you double click the file. However, you can do it by direct configuration in windows.

 

Usually the Open of an excel document is done via DDE and that's why it opens the file in the same instance. You can change it by not using DDE to open the file.

 

In the windows explorer, in Tools - Folder Options - File types, select the  XLS extension, Click Advanced and select OPEN then click the edit button.

 

In my case it has the "Use DDE" box checked (and below the DDE message Open "%1").

 

Uncheck "Use DDE"

 

Now you have to include the parameter in the command line.

The command line is something like:

 

"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\OFFICE11\EXCEL.EXE" /e "%1"

 

Now, each time we double click a file excel launches a new instance.

 

 

Pasted from <http://www.mrexcel.com/forum/showthread.php?t=280472>

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is the only way it worked using Excel 2010. I couldn't open a second copy using the icon, only through the start menu. Thanks for the heads up.

I think the problem was in opening two instances.  Your suggestion states to "simply open two instances" and drag one to each monitor.  I used to be able to do this in earlier versions of Excel but can no longer do so with 2010.  The link you provided is for 2007 so I'm not sure what the story is for 2010. I did have luck one time but I don't know what I did so it is possible. I have been able to do it going through the start menu but that's a bit clunky.

bummer...link no longer works

Beautiful!  Both work like a charm.  Thank you!

How do you enlarge a single instance across two monitors? I too have the same issue.  I link a number of spreadsheets and I can't connect cells from spreadsheets in separate instances of excel.

Sorry I've tried to propose an answer but I guess I don't fully understand how this posting works. So, I'm trying as a reply to your original.  You can do the same thing with PowerPoint that Scotslad007 suggested above for Excel.  I tried it and it worked great.

Shift + Left click on the PowerPoint shortcut or

right click on PwerPoint icon pinned to taskbar and left click on MS PowerPoint 2010

Worked perfectly with the above directions.  Life saver.  Thanks

Worked perfectly! Thanks for the very clear instructions!

The trouble with opening up a second instance is it does not allow formulas to work properly across the 2 instances.

We need a solution which will allow spreadsheets to be opened in the same instance and have different window positions (ie, side by side, across monitors). Alternatively we need excel to handle data access between the two (or more) instances correctly.

THIS WORKS.  IT WAS SO SIMPLE (AND BURIED) in all the other stuff here, that I almost missed it.

A real "duh" moment that I didn't figure this out sooner too....

Thanks Scotslad!!!!

Thanks so much for that...the suggestion in the 3rd paragraph did the trick!

Yay!  Thanks, that worked for me!

Follow these steps:

Start -> type "run" into the "Search Programs and files" and hit Enter -> type regedit and hit Enter:

Left column: HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT/Excel.Sheet.8/shell/Open/commend:

Right column {adding (space)"%1"}: (be sure to include the quotation marks when typing)

Double Click on (Default) and write - "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office12\EXCEL.EXE" /e "%1"

Right Click on Command choose "rename" and add something to the name  - for example 2 (commend2).

Left column: HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT/Excel.Sheet.8/shell/Open/ddeexec:

Right Click on the folder ddeexec and choose "rename" and add something to the name  - for example 2 (ddeexec2)

Left column HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT/Excel.Sheet.12/shell/Open/commend:

Right column {adding (space)"%1"}

Double Click on (Default) and write - "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office12\EXCEL.EXE" /e "%1"

Right Click on Command choose "rename" and add something to the name  - for example 2 (commend2).

no restart needed. You can do this for .CSV files as well. Have Fun, and please share this answer with others

In my opinion, this is the best solution to this problem. Thanks Colin!

The solution posted by KrystleW is exactly what I was looking for!!!! I followed the directions to the tee and it worked on the first try. I'm looking at two different Excel spread sheets on two different monitors. Great solution and easy; thanks krystle!!!!!! :-)

Worked great! Thanks!!

If you have Windows XP, here is what you can do:

Download Excell Viewer (google it) and install it. After that, go to Start, Programs, find Microsoft Excel viewer icon and place it on the desktop. Now open first excel file simply by double click, re-size the window and place it on the right screen. then open Excel viewer and simply choose file you want to open. You will have 2 files one beside other.