How to Fix Missing Files Inside an XLSX Package

The workbook, the relationship, and the manifest all describe a sheet, but the file itself is not in the ZIP. Those references do not recreate it, and the worksheet is where your cell values and formulas live.

xl/worksheets/
  sheet2.xml
                      <- CORRUPT: sheet1.xml is not in the archive

<!-- Still present, and still pointing at it: -->
<sheet name="Sheet1" sheetId="1" r:id="rId1"/>
<Relationship Id="rId1" Type=".../relationships/worksheet" Target="worksheets/sheet1.xml"/>
<Override PartName="/xl/worksheets/sheet1.xml" ContentType="...spreadsheetml.worksheet+xml"/>

Fix: Restore that exact worksheet from a matching backup or version-history copy of the same workbook, then verify its formulas and its shared-string and style references. Reusing a worksheet from a different workbook can mismatch sheet IDs, names, styles, and shared-string indexes.

Last resort: If no backup exists, you can remove the dead references so the rest of the workbook opens. This permanently gives up that sheet's data. Removing a sheet has knock-on effects in this workbook, so work through all of them:

• In workbook.xml, delete the <sheet> entry. Because activeTab="1" would now point past the only remaining sheet, set it to "0".
• In workbook.xml.rels, delete the rId1 relationship, and in [Content_Types].xml delete the /xl/worksheets/sheet1.xml override.
• In calcChain.xml, the entry <c r="A11" i="1" l="1"/> refers to the removed sheet. Delete the chain, its relationship, and its override; see Fix calcChain.xml.
• In docProps/app.xml, update the sheet count and the sheet names so they match the workbook.

Text cells do not store their text. They store a number that points into the shared strings table. Without that table the worksheets still load, but every text cell has lost its text.

<!-- sheet1.xml: cell F3 asks for string number 0 -->
<c r="F3" t="s"><v>0</v></c>

<!-- sheet2.xml: cell E3 asks for string number 0 -->
<c r="E3" t="s"><v>0</v></c>

<!-- xl/sharedStrings.xml -->
                    <- CORRUPT: part is not in the archive, so "ABC" is gone

Fix: Restore xl/sharedStrings.xml from a backup. The strings cannot be reconstructed from the other parts. If a backup is impossible, you can convert each affected cell to an inline string, but only for text you know from another source. Then remove the shared strings relationship and override so nothing points at the missing file. See Fix sharedStrings.xml for repairing a table that is present but damaged.

<!-- Fixed (only if you know the cell text): inline string instead of a shared string -->
<c r="F3" t="inlineStr"><is><t>ABC</t></is></c>

styles.xml defines every font, fill, border, and number format in the workbook, and each cell's s attribute points into it. Excel treats the style sheet as essential.

xl/
  worksheets/
  theme/
  sharedStrings.xml
                      <- CORRUPT: styles.xml is not in the archive

Fix: Restore it from a backup of the same workbook so cell formatting is preserved. If none exists, the workbook can be made to open by supplying a minimal style sheet that defines just the default font, fills, borders, and cell format. All custom formatting is lost, and any cell whose s attribute refers to a style that no longer exists will need that attribute removed. The minimal style sheet from the clean reference workbook is:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?>
<styleSheet xmlns="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/spreadsheetml/2006/main">
  <fonts count="1">
    <font><sz val="11"/><color theme="1"/><name val="Aptos Narrow"/><family val="2"/><scheme val="minor"/></font>
  </fonts>
  <fills count="2">
    <fill><patternFill patternType="none"/></fill>
    <fill><patternFill patternType="gray125"/></fill>
  </fills>
  <borders count="1">
    <border><left/><right/><top/><bottom/><diagonal/></border>
  </borders>
  <cellStyleXfs count="1">
    <xf numFmtId="0" fontId="0" fillId="0" borderId="0"/>
  </cellStyleXfs>
  <cellXfs count="1">
    <xf numFmtId="0" fontId="0" fillId="0" borderId="0" xfId="0"/>
  </cellXfs>
  <cellStyles count="1">
    <cellStyle name="Normal" xfId="0" builtinId="0"/>
  </cellStyles>
</styleSheet>

Save it as xl/styles.xml and keep the existing relationship and override as they are. See Fix styles.xml for damage inside a style sheet that is present.

Some parts describe appearance and metadata rather than your data. The theme (xl/theme/theme1.xml) sets default colors and fonts. The document properties (docProps/core.xml and docProps/app.xml) hold the author, timestamps, and application details. None of them contain cell values or formulas. The trouble starts when the part is gone but a relationship or manifest entry still points at it.

<!-- Archive no longer contains docProps/app.xml -->

<!-- _rels/.rels -->
<Relationship Id="rId3"
              Type="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/officeDocument/2006/relationships/extended-properties"
              Target="docProps/app.xml"/>
<!-- ↑ CORRUPT: target part does not exist -->

<!-- [Content_Types].xml -->
<Override PartName="/docProps/app.xml" ContentType="...extended-properties+xml"/>

Fix: Restore the part from a backup if you have one. If not, recreate it. The theme is covered in Repair theme1.xml: copy theme1.xml from a clean workbook and expect the appearance to revert to the default Office theme. For document properties, the healthy files in Repair docProps show the structure; fill in real values and do not invent a historical timestamp. Alternatively, for a part you do not need, remove both the relationship and the matching manifest override so nothing points at the missing file.

<!-- Fixed (removal option): relationship deleted from _rels/.rels -->
<Relationships xmlns="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/package/2006/relationships">
  <Relationship Id="rId2" Type=".../metadata/core-properties" Target="docProps/core.xml"/>
  <Relationship Id="rId1" Type=".../relationships/officeDocument" Target="xl/workbook.xml"/>
</Relationships>

<!-- [Content_Types].xml: the /docProps/app.xml Override is removed as well -->

_rels/.rels and xl/_rels/workbook.xml.rels contain no data of their own, but the package cannot be navigated without them. Without the first, Excel cannot find the workbook. Without the second, it cannot find the worksheets or supporting parts.

_rels/
                         <- CORRUPT: .rels is not in this folder
xl/
  _rels/
                         <- CORRUPT: workbook.xml.rels is not in this folder
  workbook.xml

Fix: Because every target follows a fixed convention, these files can be rebuilt without a backup. The full method, including which IDs must match workbook.xml, is in Repair XLSX Relationships under *A .rels File Is Missing Entirely*.

Without the manifest, Excel cannot identify the type of any part, so the package will not open even though every other file is intact.

Corrupted.xlsx
  _rels/
  docProps/
  xl/
                   <- CORRUPT: [Content_Types].xml is not at the root

Fix: First confirm it has not just been pushed into a wrapper folder. If it is truly absent, rebuild it with one Default pair and one Override per part. The complete method is in [Fix [Content_Types].xml](/guides/fix-content-types-xml.html) under *[Content_Types].xml Missing Entirely*.