XL97: "Unable to Open" Error Performing Web Query (163924)

SYMPTOMS

When you perform a Web query in Microsoft Excel, you may receive the following error message

Unable to open <Uniform Resource Locator>. Cannot locate the Internet server or proxy server.

and no data is returned by the Web query.

CAUSE

This problem occurs if you are not connected to the Internet or if you are connected to the Internet through a proxy server in a network environment and you are not logged on to the network.

Note that if you use Dial-Up Networking, you may not be connected to your service provider. The Web query feature in Microsoft Excel does not dial your service provider and cannot be configured to do so.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this behavior, use either of the following methods.

Dial-Up Networking

If you use Dial-Up Networking to connect to the Internet through an internet service provider, connect to your service provider, and then perform the Web query.

To dial your service provider, point to Programs on the Start menu, point to Accessories, and then click Dial-Up Networking. In the Dial-Up Networking window, double-click the preconfigured connection icon for the service provider.

If no icons, other than "Make a New Connection" appear, double-click "Make a New Connection." Type the appropriate information for your service provider in the "Make New Connection" dialog boxes, and then click Finish. An icon for the connection you created appears in the "Make a New Connection" window.

Proxy Server

If you use a proxy server in a network environment to connect to the Internet, verify that you are logged on to the network. Also, check with you network administrator to see whether the proxy server is working correctly.

MORE INFORMATION

In Microsoft Excel 97, Web queries allow you to query data from a specific World Wide Web site, Internet, or intranet site, and then return the information directly into a Microsoft Excel worksheet. Microsoft Excel 97 includes some sample Web queries, which are located in the Program Files\Microsoft Office\Queries folder.

To perform a Web query, point to Get External Data on the Data menu, and then click Run Web Query. Then, locate and select the .iqy file that contains the query and click Get Data in the Run Query dialog box.

For additional information, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

157482 XL97: How to Create Web Query (.iqy) Files

REFERENCES

For more information about Web queries, click Contents And Index on the Help menu, click the Index tab in Microsoft Excel Help, type the following text

web, queries

and then double-click the selected text to go to the "Create a Web query" topic.