Chapter 2 · 2.4
Converting old doc, xls and ppt files in one go
Files from before 2007 (doc, xls and ppt) use old, closed formats. LibreOffice and Euro-Office can still open them, but it's wise to convert files you still use to a modern format. If you have a lot of them, you can convert them all in one go.
In LibreOffice: to odt, ods and odp
LibreOffice has a wizard that converts an entire folder to OpenDocument. Your original files are kept.
- Choose File > Wizards > Document Converter....
- Choose Microsoft Office and tick the types you want to convert: Word, Excel and/or PowerPoint documents (and the templates, if you like).
- For each type, choose the folder that contains the files and the folder where the new files should go.
- Check the summary and click Convert.
In LibreOffice: to docx, xlsx and pptx
The wizard only converts to OpenDocument. If you want docx, xlsx and pptx, use the command line instead. LibreOffice must be closed while you do this.
| System | Command in the folder containing the files |
|---|---|
| Windows (Command Prompt) | "C:\Program Files\LibreOffice\program\soffice.exe" --headless --convert-to docx *.doc |
| Mac (Terminal) | /Applications/LibreOffice.app/Contents/MacOS/soffice --headless --convert-to docx *.doc |
| Linux (Terminal) | soffice --headless --convert-to docx *.doc |
Replace docx *.doc with xlsx *.xls or pptx *.ppt for spreadsheets and presentations. Add --outdir followed by a folder name to choose where the new files go.
In Euro-Office: one file at a time
- Click the old file in your Nextcloud. Euro-Office opens it.
- Choose File > Save Copy As and pick DOCX, XLSX or PPTX. The new copy is saved in your Nextcloud.
For lots of files, LibreOffice is faster. Then put the converted files in your Nextcloud, for example with the sync app.
Please note: old doc and xls files can contain macros without the file name showing it. Read Macros from Word and Excel (VBA): what still works? before you convert such files, and keep the originals in a separate archive folder.