I can't open some Excel files on the Dropbox app of my 10.15.7 macOS Catalina.

[FrankTM]

I cannot open certain Excel files I have on Dropbox. It's possible this has something to do with the fact that my Mac is more than 10 years old and is no longer supported. I am running Mac OS Catalina 10.15.7 and can't update. The Excel version I am using on this Mac is 16.66.1. It also can't be updated for the same reason as above. I can open these same files on a Windows computer that is also in the family, leading me to believe the problem is directly related to my Mac and its operating system. Does anyone have any insight into this problem?

[Nancy]

Hi @FrankTM, I hope you’re doing well and thanks for your post today. 

As per this Help Center article, your computer should be compatible with Dropbox if it’s running macOS 10.13 or higher. Do you mean that you can’t update the OS version of your device perhaps? 

Can you send me a screenshot of what you see when trying to open your Excel files, as well as one more of the syncing icons you see next to them in your Finder > Dropbox folder?

I can have a look this way.

[FrankTM]

Yes, I cannot update the OS version on my Mac because thsi computer is no longer supported by Apple. Here is a copy of what I see when I try to open one file. It is obviously corrupted. I don't know what you mean by "synching icon." Thanks for you help. 

[Nancy]

Thanks for the screenshot! I was talking about the small syncing icons that should be showing next to your files in the local Dropbox folder (you can see a full list here). 

Other than that, I’d like you to hover over the small Dropbox icon in your menu bar and let me know its syncing status and app version.

[FrankTM]

Status of all files on Dropbox are green check marks (both those I can open and those I can't.) Dropbox version is 204.4.5420, and status is Up to Date. I still think this has to do with my computer or the Excel version I have on this Mac, because I can access these files from my wife's Windows computer.

[Nancy]

It’s quite possible that this could be it. 

One more thing I’d like to ask you; if you quit the Dropbox app and then open one of your Excel files, do you still experience the same behavior? If yes, then it means this isn’t caused by Dropbox indeed.

[FrankTM]

No, this only happens with two files (so far) on Dropbox. Nevertheless, I still think the problem is either the version of Excel I have on the Mac or the Mac operating system itself. I plan to replace the computer this month so I'll be able to tell after that. I'll save this email and let you know what happens.

[FrankTM]

I copied the file to my Mac and it looks the same on my Mac as it looked in Dropbox. I think that eliminates Dropbox as the problem, but I never suspected Dropbox was the problem to begin with. I think the file is corrupted because I can't update Excel, and that's because I can't update the Mac operating system. I'm going to replace the computer this month and I'm betting that resolves the problem. I'll let you know. And thanks for your help.