Files.com Online Editor

Files.com includes an in-browser editor and previewer for documents, spreadsheets, and presentations. Users author files in it or view files in it, depending on their permissions on the file.

A site administrator can instead enable the Microsoft Office for Web integration, which replaces the default Files.com editor with Microsoft Office for Web for viewing and editing standard productivity suite formats.

The Files.com editor supports advanced styling and formatting, high-fidelity rendering, spreadsheet analysis, and transitions and presenter mode for presentations. It also supports mail merge, importing CSV documents into spreadsheets, adding watermarks, and dragging contents from one document into another, all within the browser and without a separate application.

Hosted Within the Files.com Infrastructure

The Files.com editor runs entirely within the Files.com infrastructure. Files do not leave our managed infrastructure and are not transmitted to an external service.

Many competing services use managed SaaS from Microsoft or Zoho, which sends customer documents to those vendors to support the collaborative editing environment. Files.com does not.

To support co-editing, the editor uses temporary storage and processing in our USA region regardless of where files are stored permanently. Files.com manages this temporary storage automatically, and files are not retained in the USA beyond the editing session.

Maximum Supported File Sizes

The Files.com platform handles file sizes up to 5TB, but the editor has smaller limits for the size of file it can open.

Documents and spreadsheets are limited to 950MB. Presentations are limited to 150MB.

These limits apply to extensions that do not require conversion, such as DOCX, and to those that do, such as CSV.

Files that exceed the maximum size for editing cannot be previewed.

Saving, History, and Notifications

The Files.com editor saves changes automatically. Opening a document and saving it back to storage create activity records and can trigger folder notifications. See saving changes and activity history and notifications for the shared editing behavior, including how co-authoring affects attribution.

Error Messages

If an error interrupts your work in the Files.com editor, the exact message helps you determine whether to coordinate with another collaborator or contact support.

"An error has occurred while opening the file."

This generic error means the editor could not open or convert the document. It usually indicates a software bug. Contact Files.com support for help resolving it.

"The operation could not be done as the sheet has been locked by another user."

The spreadsheet editor prevents one person from moving a cell while another person is editing it. Although the message says "sheet," the conflicting lock can cover just one cell.

For example, if a collaborator starts editing B2 and leaves the cell in edit mode, cutting B2 and pasting it into D2 produces this warning. Ask that collaborator to close the editor. The lock is then released, and you can complete the move immediately.

"The file cannot be accessed right now."

This message means your editing session has been dropped. It is a general session error with several possible causes, including a software bug or a problem with your browser or network. It is separate from the spreadsheet-lock warning and lock conflicts. Contact Files.com support for help resolving it.