Raw Handling: Paste from MS Excel no longer creates a table block #42570

admturner · 2022-07-20T18:05:09Z

Description

Pasting content from Microsoft Excel as a table is not working as expected. I expect to content copied from an Excel spreadsheet to create a table block when pasted in the editor. Instead, it pastes as a paragraph block.

Copying and pasting from Google Sheets works as expected -- it creates a table block in the editor. But copying and pasting from Excel appears to strip the HTML during an intermediary step between pasting and block creation (see screen recording).

This issue appears to have originated in v5.9, but I'm not sure. I used the "WP Downgrade | Specific Core Version" plugin to downgrade from 6.0.1 to 5.8.4 (my end users noticed the issue begin around March or April) and copy-paste from Excel works as expected in 5.8.4.

Step-by-step reproduction instructions

Create an Excel spreadsheet with some content.
Go to Pages > Add New.
Copy the content of the Excel spreadsheet into the WP editor.
See error.

Repeat steps from Google Sheets to see expected behavior.

Screenshots, screen recording, code snippet

On a fresh local WordPress 6.0.1 installation:

Environment info

WordPress 6.0.1, not using Gutenberg plugin, default Twenty Twenty-One theme, and no plugins active. Issue appears in Twenty-Twenty Two theme as well, and when downgraded as far as WordPress 5.9.
Firefox 102.0.1 (64-bit). Issue also appears in Chrome (103.0.5060.134) and Edge (103.0.1264.62).
Desktop with Windows 10.
WordPress running in local Docker environment. Issue also appears in WP 6.0.1 running in hosted environment.

Please confirm that you have searched existing issues in the repo.

Yes

Please confirm that you have tested with all plugins deactivated except Gutenberg.

Yes

t-hamano · 2022-11-12T09:32:49Z

@admturner
Thank you for your contribution.

I have confirmed that this process for Windows, added by #33607, caused the regression.

gutenberg/packages/block-editor/src/components/rich-text/use-paste-handler.js

Lines 91 to 92 in 92d28ca

    
           // Remove Windows-specific metadata appended within copied HTML text. 
        
           html = removeWindowsFragments( html );

Received HTML data differs depending on the presence or absence of this process:

With removeWindowsFragments

 <col width=70 span=2 style='width:53pt'>
 <tr height=24 style='height:18.0pt'>
  <td height=24 class=xl65 width=70 style='height:18.0pt;width:53pt'>Cell 1</td>
  <td class=xl65 width=70 style='width:53pt'>Cell 2</td>
 </tr>
 <tr height=24 style='height:18.0pt'>
  <td height=24 class=xl65 style='height:18.0pt'>Cell 3</td>
  <td class=xl65>Cell 4</td>
 </tr>

Without removeWindowsFragments

 <html xmlns:o="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"
xmlns:x="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:excel"
xmlns="http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40">

<head>
<meta http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=utf-8">
<meta name=ProgId content=Excel.Sheet>
<meta name=Generator content="Microsoft Excel 15">
<link id=Main-File rel=Main-File
href="file:///C:/Users/TETSUA~1.HAM/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip.htm">
<link rel=File-List
href="file:///C:/Users/TETSUA~1.HAM/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_filelist.xml">
<style>
<!--table
	{mso-displayed-decimal-separator:"\.";
	mso-displayed-thousand-separator:"\,";}
@page
	{margin:.75in .7in .75in .7in;
	mso-header-margin:.3in;
	mso-footer-margin:.3in;}
.font5
	{color:windowtext;
	font-size:6.0pt;
	font-weight:400;
	font-style:normal;
	text-decoration:none;
	font-family:游ゴシック, monospace;
	mso-font-charset:128;}
tr
	{mso-height-source:auto;
	mso-ruby-visibility:none;}
col
	{mso-width-source:auto;
	mso-ruby-visibility:none;}
br
	{mso-data-placement:same-cell;}
td
	{padding-top:1px;
	padding-right:1px;
	padding-left:1px;
	mso-ignore:padding;
	color:black;
	font-size:11.0pt;
	font-weight:400;
	font-style:normal;
	text-decoration:none;
	font-family:游ゴシック, monospace;
	mso-font-charset:128;
	mso-number-format:General;
	text-align:general;
	vertical-align:bottom;
	border:none;
	mso-background-source:auto;
	mso-pattern:auto;
	mso-protection:locked visible;
	white-space:nowrap;
	mso-rotate:0;}
.xl65
	{font-family:"Noto Sans JP", sans-serif;
	mso-font-charset:128;}
ruby
	{ruby-align:left;}
rt
	{color:windowtext;
	font-size:6.0pt;
	font-weight:400;
	font-style:normal;
	text-decoration:none;
	font-family:游ゴシック, monospace;
	mso-font-charset:128;
	mso-char-type:katakana;
	display:none;}
-->
</style>
</head>

<body link="#0563C1" vlink="#954F72">

<table border=0 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 width=140 style='border-collapse:
 collapse;width:106pt'>
<!--StartFragment-->
 <col width=70 span=2 style='width:53pt'>
 <tr height=24 style='height:18.0pt'>
  <td height=24 class=xl65 width=70 style='height:18.0pt;width:53pt'>Cell 1</td>
  <td class=xl65 width=70 style='width:53pt'>Cell 2</td>
 </tr>
 <tr height=24 style='height:18.0pt'>
  <td height=24 class=xl65 style='height:18.0pt'>Cell 3</td>
  <td class=xl65>Cell 4</td>
 </tr>
<!--EndFragment-->
</table>

</body>

</html>

As the above data shows, data pasted from MS Excel has Startfragment and EndFragment in the Table tag.

Since #33607 removes the outside of the fragments, the removal of the table tag would have caused it to no longer match the table schema.

t-hamano · 2022-11-12T09:46:58Z

I think it would be better to add the test proposed in #34235 first, so that the resolution of this issue does not cause regression #33607 to the contrary.

ellatrix · 2023-10-09T10:27:29Z

@admturner, or anyone else, could you please share the HTML that is logged in the console so we can fix and add a test? Example: #46832. No need to provide an example file. Thanks!

t-hamano · 2023-10-09T10:48:56Z

Below are the screencast and recorded logs. I also investigated the cause of this issue in this comment.

bcf47031253d3eb4ab3d51c3c112a657.mp4

Received HTML:

 
 <col width=70 span=3 style='width:53pt'>
 <tr height=24 style='height:18.0pt'>
  <td height=24 width=70 style='height:18.0pt;width:53pt'>One</td>
  <td width=70 style='width:53pt'>Two</td>
  <td width=70 style='width:53pt'>Three</td>
 </tr>
 <tr height=24 style='height:18.0pt'>
  <td height=24 style='height:18.0pt'>Four</td>
  <td>Five</td>
  <td>Six</td>
 </tr>Received HTML:

 
 <col width=70 span=3 style='width:53pt'>
 <tr height=24 style='height:18.0pt'>
  <td height=24 width=70 style='height:18.0pt;width:53pt'>One</td>
  <td width=70 style='width:53pt'>Two</td>
  <td width=70 style='width:53pt'>Three</td>
 </tr>
 <tr height=24 style='height:18.0pt'>
  <td height=24 style='height:18.0pt'>Four</td>
  <td>Five</td>
  <td>Six</td>
 </tr>

Received plain text:

 One	Two	Three
Four	Five	Six

Processed HTML piece:

 <p>One Two Three<br>Four Five Six</p>

Testing Environment

OS: Windows 11
Browser: Version 117.0.5938.150
Excel: Microsoft® Excel® 2016 MSO (verion 2309 build 16.0.16827.20130) 64bit

t-hamano · 2023-10-10T12:24:05Z

Are you positive that this is the markup you're receiving?

Yes. Why such HTML is received is discussed in this comment.

Even in the gif image seen at the beginning of this issue, you can see that such HTML is recorded in the browser console, so it shouldn't be a problem in my environment.

carolinan added [Block] Table Affects the Table Block [Feature] Paste labels Jul 21, 2022

t-hamano added the [Type] Regression Related to a regression in the latest release label Nov 12, 2022

t-hamano mentioned this issue Nov 12, 2022

Add integration test to cover handling of spaces on paste in Windows #34235

Open

annezazu mentioned this issue Aug 3, 2023

Tracking: Writing Experience #53305

Closed

42 tasks

annezazu changed the title ~~Paste from MS Excel no longer creates a table block~~ Raw Handling: Paste from MS Excel no longer creates a table block Aug 3, 2023

annezazu added this to WordPress 6.4 Editor Tasks Aug 30, 2023

annezazu moved this to Needs Dev / Todo in WordPress 6.4 Editor Tasks Aug 30, 2023

bph removed this from WordPress 6.4 Editor Tasks Sep 23, 2023

ellatrix linked a pull request Oct 10, 2023 that will close this issue

Fix pasting MS Word table #55206

Open

github-actions bot assigned ellatrix Oct 10, 2023

github-actions bot added the [Status] In Progress Tracking issues with work in progress label Oct 10, 2023

ellatrix mentioned this issue Jul 8, 2024

Tracking: Writing and Editing Flow / Block Editor Core Polish #63255

Open

colorful-tones mentioned this issue Aug 26, 2024

Table block polishing issues for 6.7 #64809

Open

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Raw Handling: Paste from MS Excel no longer creates a table block #42570

Raw Handling: Paste from MS Excel no longer creates a table block #42570

admturner commented Jul 20, 2022

t-hamano commented Nov 12, 2022 •

edited

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t-hamano commented Nov 12, 2022

ellatrix commented Oct 9, 2023

t-hamano commented Oct 9, 2023

t-hamano commented Oct 10, 2023

Raw Handling: Paste from MS Excel no longer creates a table block #42570

Raw Handling: Paste from MS Excel no longer creates a table block #42570

Comments

admturner commented Jul 20, 2022

Description

Step-by-step reproduction instructions

Screenshots, screen recording, code snippet

Environment info

Please confirm that you have searched existing issues in the repo.

Please confirm that you have tested with all plugins deactivated except Gutenberg.

t-hamano commented Nov 12, 2022 • edited Loading

t-hamano commented Nov 12, 2022

ellatrix commented Oct 9, 2023

t-hamano commented Oct 9, 2023

Testing Environment

t-hamano commented Oct 10, 2023

t-hamano commented Nov 12, 2022 •

edited

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