I have a problem with a user on Windows 7 in my network when accessing a single .xlsx file. When Jane Smith opens said file, she gets a message that the file is locked by Jane Smith but she has checked and it was in use by another user, Roger Smith. This happened over a weeks time and is not a one-off situation. Researching online, I tried one suggestion by going to Roger Smith's computer and into the registry under HKEY CURRENT USER, navigated to "Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\Common\UserInfo", expecting to see Jane Smiths name and initials. Nope, that wasn't the problem. I went ahead and deleted extra profiles on the computer and ran a repair on Roger Smiths Office 2013.

It was okay for a half a day then towards the end of the day, Jane Smith calls back to say again the same file is locked by Jane Smith yet this time Diana Smith had the file open.

So, the file is locked but why is Excel not reporting the correct user? What can I do to address this?

There are several posts with relevant pointers to solve this issue. Please read here and here.

• Edited by Gil RavivMicrosoft employee 23 hours 44 minutes ago

These all reference Office 2007 and 2010. As far as you know, all of these fixes still apply to Office 2013?

example: they give two updates to download.

Excel 2007 - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2598133
 
Excel 2010 - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2598143

No option for 2013.

but this could be useful no matter the version.

In the Shared folder or the File Server;

1. Open the folder where the Document is located.
2. Click Tools=>Folder Options
3. Click the View tab
4. Scoll down to Advanced Settings>Hidden files and folders
5. Select Show hidden files and folders and Unselect Hide protected operating system files
6. Look for a temp lock file and delete it. It should look something like ~$filename.xlsx  or whatever file extension the it was saved in.
   (In my case, this file had become corrupt and was stuck displaying an earlier modify date from a few days ago..)

• Edited by AJ39 19 hours 28 minutes ago

I shared the posts, so you will find the workarounds which are relevant for all versions.

Is you problem solved?

There are several posts with relevant pointers to solve this issue. Please read here and here.

• Edited by Gil RavivMicrosoft employee Friday, February 27, 2015 11:49 AM
• Proposed as answer by Ethan HuaMicrosoft contingent staff, Moderator 1 hour 1 minutes ago
• Unproposed as answer by Ethan HuaMicrosoft contingent staff, Moderator 1 hour 1 minutes ago

There are several posts with relevant pointers to solve this issue. Please read here and here.

• Edited by Gil RavivMicrosoft employee Friday, February 27, 2015 11:49 AM
• Proposed as answer by Ethan HuaMicrosoft contingent staff, Moderator 17 hours 45 minutes ago
• Unproposed as answer by Ethan HuaMicrosoft contingent staff, Moderator 17 hours 45 minutes ago

These all reference Office 2007 and 2010. As far as you know, all of these fixes still apply to Office 2013?

example: they give two updates to download.

Excel 2007 - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2598133
 
Excel 2010 - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2598143

No option for 2013.

but this could be useful no matter the version.

In the Shared folder or the File Server;

1. Open the folder where the Document is located.
2. Click Tools=>Folder Options
3. Click the View tab
4. Scoll down to Advanced Settings>Hidden files and folders
5. Select Show hidden files and folders and Unselect Hide protected operating system files
6. Look for a temp lock file and delete it. It should look something like ~$filename.xlsx  or whatever file extension the it was saved in.
   (In my case, this file had become corrupt and was stuck displaying an earlier modify date from a few days ago..)

• Edited by AJ39 Friday, February 27, 2015 4:05 PM
• Proposed as answer by Ethan HuaMicrosoft contingent staff, Moderator 1 hour 1 minutes ago

These all reference Office 2007 and 2010. As far as you know, all of these fixes still apply to Office 2013?

example: they give two updates to download.

Excel 2007 - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2598133
 
Excel 2010 - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2598143

No option for 2013.

but this could be useful no matter the version.

In the Shared folder or the File Server;

1. Open the folder where the Document is located.
2. Click Tools=>Folder Options
3. Click the View tab
4. Scoll down to Advanced Settings>Hidden files and folders
5. Select Show hidden files and folders and Unselect Hide protected operating system files
6. Look for a temp lock file and delete it. It should look something like ~$filename.xlsx  or whatever file extension the it was saved in.
   (In my case, this file had become corrupt and was stuck displaying an earlier modify date from a few days ago..)

• Edited by AJ39 Friday, February 27, 2015 4:05 PM
• Proposed as answer by Ethan HuaMicrosoft contingent staff, Moderator 17 hours 45 minutes ago

I did find a temp file that was approximately 2 weeks old, when the problem started occurring. Unfortunately, the user is out of office until the end of the month so I'm not sure if it is fixed or not.