QAT File – What is .qat file and how to open it?

QAT File Format

A QAT file is an XML-based file that stores the configuration settings for the Microsoft Office Quick Access Toolbar. The Quick Access Toolbar is a customizable toolbar that provides quick access to frequently used commands and features. It is located at the top-left corner of the Office application window.

The QAT file contains the following information:

• Toolbar commands: The commands that are displayed on the Quick Access Toolbar.
• Command order: The order in which the commands are displayed on the toolbar.
• Command visibility: Whether or not each command is visible on the toolbar.
• Command properties: The properties of each command, such as the icon and tooltip.

Customizing the Quick Access Toolbar

You can customize the Quick Access Toolbar by adding or removing commands. To add a command to the toolbar, click on the “Customize Quick Access Toolbar” button in the top-right corner of the Office application window. Then, select the command that you want to add from the list of available commands.

To remove a command from the toolbar, right-click on the command and select “Remove from Quick Access Toolbar.”

You can also change the order of the commands on the toolbar by dragging and dropping them.

Opening QAT Files in Microsoft Office

QAT files are associated with Microsoft Office’s Quick Access Toolbar (QAT), a customizable toolbar that provides shortcuts to frequently used commands. To open a QAT file and restore the QAT configuration it stores, follow these steps:

1. Start the relevant Microsoft Office application (e.g., Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
2. Locate the QAT on the ribbon at the top of the main application window.
3. Right-click on the QAT and select “Import Quick Access Toolbar.”
4. In the file browser dialog box that appears, navigate to the location of the QAT file (.qat).
5. Select the QAT file and click “Open.”

The QAT will be restored to the configuration defined in the QAT file. This can be useful for quickly replicating the QAT configuration across multiple Office installations or for restoring a previous QAT configuration.

Alternate Methods for QAT File Interaction

If you are unable to open a QAT file using the above method, there are a few alternative approaches to consider:

• Copy the QAT file to the following location:


%appdata%\Microsoft\Office\QAT


This may automatically restore the QAT configuration in supported Office applications.
* If the QAT file is corrupted or incompatible, consider creating a new QAT file from scratch. To do this, right-click on the QAT and select “Reset Quick Access Toolbar.” Then, manually add the desired commands and shortcuts to the QAT as needed.

Microsoft Office Quick Access Toolbar File (.QAT)

The file extension .QAT refers to a Microsoft Office Quick Access Toolbar File. This file is developed by Microsoft and is used to store the custom settings for the Quick Access Toolbar (QAT) in various Microsoft Office applications, such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook. The QAT is a customizable toolbar located at the top-left corner of the application window and provides quick access to frequently used commands.

The .QAT file contains information about which commands are displayed on the QAT, their order, and any additional settings, such as icons or custom labels. When a user customizes the QAT by adding or removing commands, changing their order, or modifying their settings, the changes are saved to the .QAT file. The next time the application is launched, the .QAT file is loaded and the QAT is configured according to the stored settings. This allows users to maintain their preferred QAT configuration across different devices and applications.

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