Why are document changes not saving to SharePoint or Locked for Edit?


Why are document changes not saving to SharePoint or Locked for Edit?

Users may experience an error that says a document is locked for editing by their own accounts. ​There are a couple of things to check for. It is usually associated with recently editing documents in the desktop Office applications.

When a document is opened in the desktop app from SharePoint, Microsoft makes a local cached copy on the user's desktop. All changes are made in the cached copy until the user hits the save button, at which point the version is sent back to SharePoint. There may be a delay of up to ten minutes before the lock is released. If the user closes the program without saving or there are errors when saving, the document changes may not be saved in SharePoint​ at all. From SharePoint's perspective, it thinks the document is still in use.

Troubleshooting Tips

Try the following suggestions to resolve the error:

  1. Verify that check out is not enabled in the library (select Library Settings > Versioning settings). If Require Check Out is set to Yes, documents are locked for editing until the user manually checks it in. If this is No, continue on with troubleshooting.
  2. Ensure that the document was opened from SharePoint and wasn't opened using a local copy. To check for local copies, go to c:\users\[username]\University of Toronto.
  3. Open the Office desktop app and see if the document appears in Recent documents. Check that it was in fact opened from SharePoint. Open it, verify changes are visible, and try saving it to SharePoint again.
  4. Check the Upload Center to see if the document is stuck. Select the Windows key > All Programs > Microsoft Office 2016 > Office Tools > Office 2016 Upload Center. If Microsoft encountered errors when saving, they will show here along with suggestions to resolve.
  5. Ensure the user is signed into Office using the proper credentials. They must be signed in with @utoronto.ca to save back to SharePoint.​​
  6. Clear the browser cache/history and restarting the computer. Changes may or may not have been pushed to the site.
  7. A document that opens blank in Office may also be related to file path length limitations​ so check the file path.
  8. Enable AutoSave, if it hasn't been set.