Question: I can't find a proper \*.exe for Excel in the usual places:

* "C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Microsoft Office
* "c:\program files\microsoft office\office12\excel.exe"

Does anybody know where I would find the Excel executable for a Windows Vista machine? For that matter, also invoke Excel to open an existing \*.xls file using a batch file?

Incidentally, the Shortcut for Excel shows "target:" to be 

> 
> Microsoft Office Professional Hybrid 2007
> 
> 
>

Answer: 
If you want to start excel on its own, you can use.

```
  Start Excel

```

You should be able to find the exact path by opening a command prompt and typing

```
 reg query "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\App Paths\excel.exe"

```
I just stumbled across this amazingly clear Microsoft Support article: [Command-line switches for Microsoft Office products](https://support.office.com/en-us/article/command-line-switches-for-microsoft-office-products-079164cd-4ef5-4178-b235-441737deb3a6) It lists executable names and paths for Office 2007, 2010, 2013, and 2016 products in its *Startup command names and locations* section .

I notice that the version of Windows 7/Office that I'm using now *does* list the target path in the shortcut, but I have run across this problem in the past.

Edit: I also discovered that this is because of .NET Advertised Shortcuts. This [Stack Overflow question](https://stackoverflow.com/questions/1270779/why-is-the-target-disabled-in-dot-net-shortcuts-after-setup) gives a bit more info.