PowerPoint comment compatibility evidence

PowerPoint comment coverage depends on the stored schema

This evidence note records how legacy comments and Microsoft 365 modern threads become a review-ready Excel register.

What the PowerPoint tests were designed to answer

PowerPoint can store older comments and newer Microsoft 365 threaded comments in different package parts. A reliable exporter must identify the schema before interpreting replies or resolution state.

The acceptance checks therefore cover real saved fixtures, relationship traversal, thread identity, slide order, workbook fields, and conservative handling of unknown structures.

Schema detection

Can legacy and modern comment relationships be recognized without treating an unknown relationship as ordinary comment data?

Thread structure

Can a modern reply keep its parent comment ID and inherit only a verified parent thread state?

Slide context

Can rows retain presentation order, slide number, and slide title for handoff?

Workbook integrity

Can every result include the comment register and the coverage notes that explain its limits?

Tested claims and current status

The released claims come from PowerPoint for Windows round-trip fixtures, OOXML parser tests, workbook checks, and browser download verification.

AreaStatusWhat the evidence shows
Microsoft 365 modern root commentValidatedA real modern fixture exports the root comment with slide, author, text, date, and resolved status.
Modern nested replyValidatedThe same fixture exports one reply with the correct parent ID and verified parent thread status.
Legacy PowerPoint commentValidatedA PowerPoint Save As round-trip fixture exports the legacy comment in slide order with Open status.
Unknown modern status detailExplicit unknownUnavailable status information produces a coverage warning rather than an invented resolved or active value.
Unknown comment relationshipExport blockedA detected unsupported relationship returns COMMENT_COVERAGE_BLOCKED instead of an incomplete workbook.

What the Excel workbook is expected to contain

The workbook keeps extracted review rows and the explanation of their coverage in one file.

Comments sheet

IDs, parent IDs, thread type, status, slide number, slide title, author, date, comment text, response, disposition, and row coverage.

Export Notes sheet

Detected comment schema, validated boundaries, safety limits, and any warning that affects interpretation.

Handoff controls

A frozen header, filters, stable ordering, and safe cell values make the workbook usable as a review register.

Deterministic scope

The exporter handles one macro-free PPTX and stops above its file, package, XML-part, or 5,000-row limits.

What this evidence does not prove

It does not claim coverage for every future PowerPoint schema, cloud-only collaboration state, deleted comments, comments that are no longer stored in the PPTX, or visual slide annotations outside the detected comment models.

Legacy comments do not expose modern replies or resolved state. They are exported as Open with a coverage explanation rather than mapped to unsupported thread semantics.

Continue with the right next step.

Compare the workflow guide with the evidence behind its limits.