Old version of Publisher

TJ Garland 240 Reputation points
2026-09-07T01:34:16.6766667+00:00

I understand Publisher is being deprecated at the end of the current month (Sep 2026).

I have a few files that I want to open and save as a PDF so I can retain my data, yet I get an error message saying "Publisher cannot open this file. This file was saved from a previous version of Publisher. Publisher no longer supports file that were saved in this version."

Is there a way to open these old files (not opened in more than a decade) with the latest version of Publisher or is there somewhere that I can download a version of Publisher that will open these files?

Microsoft 365 and Office | Publisher | For business
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  1. TJ Garland 240 Reputation points
    2026-09-08T01:59:49.55+00:00

    I don't have access to an earlier version of Publisher as I have Microsoft 365 and it's the latest version.

    It seems there is no way to recover my data. It hadn't occurred to me that I'd need to open each Publisher file every few years to keep it "current".

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  2. BabybooHN 3,040 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2026-09-07T02:01:26.1+00:00

    Dear @TJ Garland

    I understand the concern. The error you are seeing is related to the age/version of the Publisher file, rather than the upcoming retirement of Publisher.

    If the files were created with a very old version of Publisher, current versions may no longer be able to open them. Microsoft does not provide a current Publisher Viewer that can open unsupported older .pub formats, and I would not recommend downloading Publisher from unofficial sources.

    I recommend trying the following:

    1. If you have access to an older computer or installation of Publisher, preferably the version that was originally used to create the files, open the files there and save/export them to PDF.
    2. If you do not have the original version, you could try an older supported Publisher release. If the original version is unavailable, you may be able to open the file with an intermediate older version of Publisher that still supports the format, although compatibility is not guaranteed, depending on how old the files are. However, Microsoft does not provide a general download specifically intended to convert every obsolete Publisher format, so compatibility cannot be guaranteed.
    3. Once you can open the files, use File > Save As and select PDF to preserve the content in a format that can be accessed after Publisher is retired.

    Microsoft's current guidance is to convert existing Publisher files to PDF or another supported format before October 1, 2026. Microsoft 365 subscribers will no longer be able to open or edit Publisher files in Publisher after that date.

    If these files contain important information, I would strongly recommend making a backup copy of the original .pub files before attempting any conversion.

    Official Microsoft guidance: Microsoft Publisher will no longer be supported after October 2026

    Please let me know if you need any additional assistance.

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