Today I encountered an issue in excel, where I was unable to see the contents of an excel workbook, after opening it.

Both by double clicking the file from explorer, as well as opening excel fully, then opening the workbook..

In most cases where a workbook is opened and the data is not seen, simply checking the hide/unhide option of the workbook resolves it. This time it was not so easy for me.

This particular instance was one where when any workbook was opened, it was minimized inside of excel, and there were no tabs/options to click to maximize it.

The solution was to click CTRL+F10, which brought the workbook up as the main window inside excel, after which the contents of the workbook was again visible.

(CTRL+F10 is a shortcut to minimize/maximize workbooks inside of excel)

Next time you open an excel workbook and it’s not hidden, and all you see is a blank grey page, remember to click CTRL+F10, to maximize your workbook, so it’s visible to you.