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Unable to open xlsx file hyperlink in Firefox (with Microsoft Excel program, of course).

  • 4 replies
  • 6 have this problem
  • 589 views
  • Last reply by loyheng

It used to be problem-free in Firefox versions in the past but in the latest version, I was unable to open Excel (xlsx) file in Firefox (even in safe mode). When I clicked the file the attached page would appear. I can open the said file in other browsers (the file would be opened in my copy of Microsoft Excel 2010). There is no Excel file type in the Applications panel under Options for me to tweak like for a pdf file).

My PC is running on Windows 10, 32-bit. I'm not tech-savvy, so wouldn't know how to tweak the registry or any advance tweaking under the hood. Please advise in simple language/steps. Thanks a lot.

It used to be problem-free in Firefox versions in the past but in the latest version, I was unable to open Excel (xlsx) file in Firefox (even in safe mode). When I clicked the file the attached page would appear. I can open the said file in other browsers (the file would be opened in my copy of Microsoft Excel 2010). There is no Excel file type in the Applications panel under Options for me to tweak like for a pdf file). My PC is running on Windows 10, 32-bit. I'm not tech-savvy, so wouldn't know how to tweak the registry or any advance tweaking under the hood. Please advise in simple language/steps. Thanks a lot.
Attached screenshots

Chosen solution

Were you able to download the file? My suggestion, if possible, would be to try right-clicking the link to the file and using Save Link As.

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All Replies (4)

Not the most attractive display!

If you call up the Page Info dialog for that page of gibberish, what "Type" is shown?

You can call that up using any of these:

  • right-click a blank area of the page and choose View Page Info
  • (menu bar) Tools menu > Page Info

Ideally, servers are configured to send a specific content-type for XLSX files -- application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.spreadsheetml.sheet -- but if that is omitted the server may default to "text/plain" which Firefox will throw into a tab.

I checked the page info as advised and found "text/plain" in the field Type. It seems the problem was with the website. Thank you so much Sir for your help in my case and also for your regular contributions in this support forum.

Chosen Solution

Were you able to download the file? My suggestion, if possible, would be to try right-clicking the link to the file and using Save Link As.

jscher2000 said

Were you able to download the file? My suggestion, if possible, would be to try right-clicking the link to the file and using Save Link As.

Yes, I managed to download to desktop via "Save Link As" . Thank you.