When you attempt to open a file, you receive the following error message: This error may occur when accessing files that were directly saved on removable media.

This error may result from any of the following conditions:

• Improperly handling the disk while working with the presentation. For example, you removed the disk, such as a floppy disk, Zip disk, Jazz disk, or Bernouli disk, from the drive or you exchanged the disk with another disk while the presentation was open.
• A network interruption, such as a lost connection, occurred while saving, closing, or working in a file that you opened from a network drive.
• A power outage, spike, or brownout occurred while PowerPoint was attempting to access the disk.
• A virus scanner or other disk utility locked the disk while the file was opened in PowerPoint.
• You have a damaged disk or the disk drive is not functioning properly.
• The presentation was too large to fit on the disk. Hence, only part of the presentation was saved.

In most cases, this error message indicates that the file you are attempting to open is damaged and you will not be able to recover the file. However, in some cases you may be able to recover the file using one of the following methods.

Method 1: Open the File on a Different Computer

Attempt to open the file on another computer that is running the same version of PowerPoint. Or, if you have a Macintosh computer on which you installed PowerPoint version 4.0, attempt to open the file on that computer. You must have the PowerPoint 95 converter for PowerPoint 4.0 for the Macintosh. Currently there is no converter available for PowerPoint 97 files.

Method 2: Run ScanDisk

Run ScanDisk to determine if the file has become cross-linked with other files or folders and repair any errors.

1. On the Windows Start menu, point to Programs, point to Accessories, and then click ScanDisk.
   
   NOTE: If ScanDisk does not appear on the submenu, it may not be installed. Rerun Windows Setup in maintenance mode to install ScanDisk.
2. Select the drive you want to check and click Start.

Method 3: Open the File Using a Different Method

Open the file using one of the following methods:

• In Windows Explorer, double-click the file.
• Start PowerPoint. Drag the file from Windows Explorer to PowerPoint.
• In PowerPoint, click Slide From File on the Insert menu.

Keep the following in mind when you work with files that are stored on removable media:

• Do not remove the disk from the drive when the file is open in PowerPoint.
• Make sure the disk has enough free space to store your presentation.
• If the computer's power supply is unreliable, repair or replace the power supply or purchase an uninterruptible power supply (UPS).
• Copy the file to the hard disk, make the changes you want, save the file, and then copy the file to the removable media or network drive.