How To Open Older Version of Excel File?

Open older version of excel file is a job that many Microsoft 365 users may have to do at some point. With the auto-saving feature, the version control of Excel has become even more advanced. While AutoRecover helps save your work during specific time periods, AutoSave saves real-time data while your work is being uploaded to OneDrive or SharePoint.

Understanding how to recover an unsaved Excel file is important in case it stops working unexpectedly. However, what do you do if you know that some edits are incorrect and you need to go back to the previous version of your Excel workbook? In this article, we will introduce you to recover previous version Excel files based on various file locations, including Mac, Windows 10, SharePoint, and OneDrive. All methods apply to Microsoft Office 365 plans.

Part 1. Recovering previous version files in Excel Office 365

Here we will describe the steps to recover previous version files in Excel Office 365. We will cover the steps for Windows 10 and Mac, focusing on recovering files saved on your desktop.

How to Recover Previous Version Excel Files in Windows 10

• Open the latest version of the Excel file you want to recover. Go to File > Info > Version History
• From the menu on the right, double-click on the version you want to recover.
• The selected version will open as a new Excel file. Now you can click on “Restore” or select an option to copy content from this version or save as a separate file.

Now let’s see how to recover previous version Excel files on Mac.

How to recover previous versions of Excel files on Mac:

If you’re using a Mac, follow these steps to recover your Excel files easily:

• Open the Excel file you want to recover. Go to File > View Version History
• Click “Open Version” to see the version of the file you want to restore or copy.
• The selected version will open in a new window. Click “Restore” to save this version as the current version or copy the required information from that version.

Part 2. Recovering previous versions of Excel files using SharePoint

SharePoint is a valuable tool embedded in Office 365. Even if you use it separately, you can still restore previous versions of Excel files in just a few easy steps.

Here’s how to do it:

• Open SharePoint, then click the file icon in the left menu, then double-click the file to restore the desired version.
• Your Excel file will open in a new tab. Click on the file name at the top and select “Version History” from the pop-up window.
• The “Model History” panel will appear on the right side of your screen. Select the model by clicking on the next arrow with time.
• The “Show changes” option will be enabled. It will allow you to see all the changes in each saved version. When you select the desired version, two options will appear above: “Save Copies” and “Restore”. Keep in mind that selecting “restore” will make changes disappear later, so it is recommended to “save copies” if you are not sure.

Now we go back to recovering older Excel files using OneDrive.

Part 3. Recovering old versions of Excel files using OneDrive

If you’re using OneDrive, you can still restore an earlier version of Excel file using familiar steps. The process is quite similar to that shown for SharePoint.

Here’s the step:

• Open OneDrive and click on “My Files”. Select the file you want to recover version from by selecting the option on the left side of the file name.
• Click on the slider icon on the right of the “share” icon and select “version history” from the drop down menu.
• In the “Version History” pop-up box, select the version you want to recover and click on the slider icon behind the version name. To avoid losing changes made after the selected version, select “Open File” to save a copy of the version.

In addition to Microsoft Office 365, Google Sheets also has version control features. If you frequently collaborate on this platform, you can track changes in Google Sheet and use the version history to restore previous versions.

Part 4. An easy and secure way to recover your Excel with WinfrGUI

In a sad situation where everything fails, you can consider using a professional data recovery program to recover your overwritten Excel files. Among the many available online, WinfrGUI is a reliable tool for secure recovery. It supports various formats including Excel files, zipped files, images, videos and audio.

To recover your rewrite Excel file using WinfrGUI follow these simple steps:

• Step 1: Select the directory where your Excel file was stored before being mistakenly rewritten. When you select a location, click “Start” to start the scanning process.
• Step 2: WinfrGUI will continue scanning your computer until the process is complete. The duration will depend on the size of your file.
• Step 3: Once WinfrGUI gets the files you want to scan them before saving them. Finally select “Recover” to protect your recovered files.

Conclusion

In conclusion, while most users may be looking for a solution to recover unsaved files, knowing how to restore previous Excel files is a valuable skill. This makes you ready for any file recovery situation. Whether you are using Windows 10, Mac, OneDrive, SharePoint or Office 365 desktop apps, you will have knowledge in accessing and restoring earlier Excel files.

Now that you’ve learned various ways to restore previous Excel files, you’re ready to open older version of excel file and deal with any situation.

>>Also Read: How to Recover Accidentally Closed Excel Without Saving