Running Out of Memory

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated October 21, 2020)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


Graham wrote to ask about a nagging problem he has with one particular Excel workbook. This workbook contains seven worksheets, one for each month, January through July. The worksheets contain quite a few formulas, and a graph is inserted in each worksheet. The first six graphs were created just fine, but whenever Graham tries to create the graph on the seventh sheet, he gets an "out of memory" error.

Chances are good that you aren't actually running out of memory, but are somehow running out of resources. The end result, however, is the same--Excel doesn't have what it needs to continue with the operation.

This situation seems to be a known problem with Excel 97, and Microsoft has addressed it in Knowledge Base article 168650:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/168650

If this doesn't solve the problem, it could be that the workbook itself is corrupted in some manner. The only way to determine if this is the cause is to recreate the workbook, from scratch (no copying and pasting), and see if the problem goes away.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2732) applies to Microsoft Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Inserting a Document's Path

You can use the FILENAME field to insert a document's filename and, optionally, the path to that filename. However, if ...

Discover More

Saving Non-Existent Changes

Open a workbook, look at the data, start to close the workbook, and you are asked if you want to save your changes. What ...

Discover More

Specifying a Location To Save Automatic Backup Files

Word allows you make two types of automatic backups of your documents. One is a copy of the file before you start making ...

Discover More

Program Successfully in Excel! This guide will provide you with all the information you need to automate any task in Excel and save time and effort. Learn how to extend Excel's functionality with VBA to create solutions not possible with the standard features. Includes latest information for Excel 2024 and Microsoft 365. Check out Mastering Excel VBA Programming today!

More ExcelTips (menu)

Nifty Zooming

If you are using a mouse that has a center wheel, you can use the wheel to zoom in and out of your work. This tip shows ...

Discover More

Changing Error Checking Rules

Excel can check the data and formulas in your worksheet to see if it detects any errors. The rules used for this checking ...

Discover More

Drop-Down List Font Sizes

Excel has several features that cannot be customized. The font size in the drop-down lists is one of them. If you need ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 4 - 1?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


This Site

Got a version of Excel that uses the menu interface (Excel 97, Excel 2000, Excel 2002, or Excel 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.