FAQs
Select File > Info. Select the Protect Workbook box and choose Encrypt with Password.
How can I protect an Excel File? ›
Require a password to open or modify a workbook
- Open the sheet or workbook that you want to protect.
- On the Review tab, click Protect Sheet or Protect Workbook.
- In the Password box, type a password, and in the Verify box, type the password again.
- Choose any other protection options you want and click OK.
- Click Save.
Protect the workbook structure
- Click Review > Protect Workbook.
- Enter a password in the Password box. Important: The password is optional. If you do not supply a password, any user can unprotect and change the workbook. ...
- Select OK, re-enter the password to confirm it, and then select OK again.
Protected View is a read-only mode where most editing functions are disabled. There are several reasons why a file opens in Protected View: The file was opened from an Internet location - When you see the message in Protected View that says "Be careful - files from the Internet can contain viruses.
Can you protect an Excel worksheet so no one can input in it but allow the users to still format cells? ›
On the Review tab, select Protect Sheet. In the Allow all users of this worksheet to list, select the elements you want people to be able to change. Move the pointer to cells for which the Locked box is checked on the Protection tab of the Format Cells dialog box. By default, users are allowed to select locked cells.
Which is the most common method to protect an MS Excel File? ›
If you don't want others to open your file: You can encrypt the Excel file, which is the most common technique used. This basically means you lock it with a password and nobody except you can open it.
What are the three different ways you protect your workbook? ›
You can protect Excel workbooks at the file level or at the worksheet level. There are three levels of password protection in Excel: password protection to open a file, password protection to change data, or password protection for changing the file's structure, such as adding, deleting, or hiding worksheets.
How do I save an Excel File so it cannot be edited? ›
Click Review > Protect > Restrict Editing.
How do you lock Excel so it Cannot be edited? ›
On the Review tab in the ribbon, in the Changes group, select either Protect Sheet or Protect Workbook, and then reapply protection.
What is the difference between protect sheet and protect workbook in Excel? ›
Protecting the workbook prevent other users from modifying the structure of the workbook. For example Adding, Deleting, Renaming, or Hiding worksheets. Protect Sheet is about preventing users from modifying (Changing, moving, or deleting) data in a worksheet.
If you have an Excel sheet that you can open but can't edit, you can get around this by converting the sheet into an XML file and deleting the code that makes the sheet password protected. While this sounds hard, it's actually very easy to do. If the sheet is fully encrypted, you must use a password cracker.
How can I tell if an Excel spreadsheet is protected? ›
Step 1 − Navigate to the sheet tab at the bottom of the Excel window, placed above the status bar. Step 2 − In the sheet tab, look for the padlock icon. If protection is enabled, the padlock icon (🔒) will appear before the sheet name in the tab.
How do you unlock a protected Excel sheet? ›
If the worksheet is protected, do the following:
- On the Review tab, select Unprotect Sheet (in the Protect group). Select Protect Sheet to change to Unprotect Sheet when a worksheet is protected.
- If prompted, enter the password to unprotect the worksheet.
Protect an Excel file
- Select File > Info.
- Select the Protect Workbook box and choose Encrypt with Password.
- Enter a password in the Password box, and then select OK.
- Confirm the password in the Reenter Password box, and then select OK.
Read-only Workbook
- Open a workbook.
- On the File tab, click Save As.
- Click Browse.
- Click on the Tools button and click General Options.
- In the Password to modify box, enter a password and click OK. ...
- Reenter the password and click on OK. ...
- Enter a file name and click Save.
Select File > Info. Select Protect Workbook, point to Restrict Permission by People, and then select Restricted Access.
How to protect an Excel sheet from editing by others? ›
Here's how to protect a worksheet in Excel: Open the Excel workbook and select the worksheet you want to protect. Click on the Review tab in the ribbon. In the Changes group, click on Protect Sheet. In the Protect Sheet dialog box, enter a password (optional) and select the actions you want to allow users to perform.
How do you make an Excel File read only? ›
1. Select File > Info > Protect Document. 2. Select Always open Read-Only.
