---
title: “There was a problem sending the command to the program” error message
description: "When trying to invoke a RealData product, you may get this message: *There was a problem sending the command to the program.* This may happen if the '**Ignore other applications** **that use Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE)**' option in Excel is…"
url: "https://www.realdata.com/docs/there-was-a-problem-sending-the-command-to-the-program-error-message/"
updated: "2024-06-06"
category: General
---

# “There was a problem sending the command to the program” error message

When trying to invoke a RealData product, you may get this message:

*There was a problem sending the command to the program.*

This may happen if the '**Ignore other applications** **that use Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE)**' option in Excel is set. Please see the Microsoft Knowledgebase article below for instructions on turning this option off, even though the error message shown there is different:

[https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3001579](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3001579)