If you double-click the Visio icon for drawing, the diagram does not open (299607)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Office Visio Standard 2003
  • Microsoft Office Visio Professional 2003
  • Microsoft Visio 2002 Standard
  • Microsoft Visio 2002 Professional
  • Microsoft Visio 2000 Enterprise Edition
  • Microsoft Visio 2000 Professional Edition
  • Microsoft Visio 2000 Standard Edition
  • Microsoft Visio 2000 Technical Edition
This article was previously published under Q299607

SYMPTOMS

In Windows Explorer, when you double-click the icon for a drawing, any of the following problems may occur:
  • The drawing is opened in another program (and may be unreadable), or the Open With dialog box is displayed.
  • Another program is started, and that program returns an error message because it cannot open the drawing.
  • Double-clicking the icon has no effect (the drawing is not opened).

CAUSE

The file is not recognized as a valid Visio file. This problem may occur in the following cases.

Case 1: The file name extension is associated with another program

If the file name extension is something other than .vsd, and it is associated with another program, the file is recognized as belonging to that program. For example, if you double-click a Visio drawing named MyFile.txt, Microsoft Notepad attempts to open the drawing, because the .txt extension is associated with Notepad.

Case 2: The file name extension is unregistered

To view registered file types and extensions, use the appropriate method for your operating system.

Microsoft Windows 2000 and Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition (Me)

  1. On the Windows desktop, double-click My Computer.
  2. On the Tools menu, click Folder Options.
  3. Click the File Types tab.

Microsoft Windows 98

  1. On the Windows desktop, double-click My Computer.
  2. On the View menu, click Folder Options.
  3. Click the File Types tab.

Microsoft Windows NT 4.0

  1. On the Windows desktop, double-click My Computer.
  2. On the View menu, click Options.
  3. Click the File Types tab.

Case 3: The file does not have a file name extension

This problem may occur when you rename a file and do not specify the .vsd file name extension. In this case, Windows displays the following message:
If you change a filename extension, the file may become unusable.

Are you sure you want to change it?
If you click Yes, the file name extension is changed or lost.

Case 4: The file is compressed

If you received the file from another user or source, the file may be compressed with a compression utility you do not have. For example, the file may have one of the following extensions, or others not listed here:

.zip, .lha, .arc, .bin, .sit, .dat, .sea

RESOLUTION

To work around this problem, use any of the appropriate methods for your situation.

Method 1: Open the drawing from within Visio

  1. On the File menu, click Open.
  2. In the Look in list, select the drive, and then open the folder where your drawing is located.
  3. In the File name box, type *.*, and then click Open.
  4. Select your drawing, and then click Open.

Method 2: Give the drawing a .vsd file name extension

  1. Right-click the Start button, and then click Explore on the shortcut menu.
  2. Use the appropriate method for your operating system.

    Microsoft Windows 2000 and Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition (Me)

    1. On the Tools menu, click Folder Options.
    2. Click the View tab.
    3. Click to clear the Hide file extensions for known file types check box.
    4. Click OK.

    Microsoft Windows 98

    1. On the View menu, click Folder Options.
    2. Click the View tab.
    3. Click to clear the Hide file extensions for known file types check box.
    4. Click OK.

    Microsoft Windows NT 4.0

    1. On the View menu, click Options.
    2. Click the View tab.
    3. Click to clear the Hide file extensions for known file types check box.
    4. Click OK.
  3. Locate your drawing. Right-click the drawing, and then click Rename on the shortcut menu.
  4. If the drawing does not have a file name extension, add .vsd to the end of the file name, or change the existig file name extension to .vsd. For example, rename MyFile or MyFile.abc, to MyFile.vsd.

    NOTE: The icon changes to a Visio Drawing icon.
  5. Double-click the drawing icon to open the drawing.

Method 3: Decompress the file

  1. Obtain a compression utility that supports the compression type of the file.
  2. Use the utility to decompress the file. Verify that the resulting file is a Visio drawing (.vsd).
  3. Double-click the drawing icon to open the drawing.
Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:10/11/2006
Keywords:kbpending kbprb KB299607
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