Qlik Sense fails to read XLS Excel file including a specific character, error code 16

[Nobuaki_T]

Reading an XLS file which includes a specific character leads to Qlik Sense failing with the following error:

An Error occurred
Connection lost. Make sure Qlik Sense is running properly. If your session has timed out due to inactivity, refresh to continue working.
Error code: 16

Example:

1. Create a new app
2. Open the Data load editor
3. Select Attached files and import an xls file which includes 2363B code characters.
4. ??? is shown as the date after the character
5. Click Insert script, followed by Load data and confirm the result by clicking Close
6. Go to Edit Sheet
7. Add a table and add the previously loaded data as dimensions
8. The error is displayed

The error is avoided when using XLSX or CSV files with identical data. 

Qlik Cloud is not affected.

Resolution

Workaround:

Use xlsx or csv as source files.

Fix Version:

No fix is yet available for Qlik Sense Enterprise on Windows. Qlik anticipates a fix for its May 2025 release. 

Information provided on this defect is given as is at the time of documenting. For up-to-date information, please review the most recent Release Notes, or contact support with the ID QB-29693 for reference.

Cause

The error is triggered when reading .xls files containing strings with UTF-16 surrogate pair characters, such as emojis or rare Asian characters. The specific characters leading to the problem are uncommon. 

Environment

• Qlik Sense Enterprise on Windows, all versions