How to put a password on an excel file. how to put password on excel file how to encode excel file

Spreadsheets are such a transitional kind between databases and their programming and picking up heaps of rubbish in a (MS Word) Word file.

Excel is a powerful tool, and in the hands of a meticulous manager, crazy accountant or maniacal analyst, it turns into an absolute weapon against chaos and common sense :). Yes, no, I really think that Excel is not a bad thing, only sometimes, out of desperation, people use it beyond what it was designed for.

I also use it for the most, at times, strange things, sometimes so important that they need to be password protected. Since the password setting is located in a completely unexpected place, I will tell you where it is and how you can use it. We are talking about Excel 2007 and, apparently, even newer versions.

How to set a password to open an XLS file?

You already have an XLS file ready and want to set a password. Open the office button (located on the top-left with the MS Office 2007 logo) and select the "save as" item. At the bottom of the "Save Document" window, next to the "save" button, there will be a "Tools" options panel.

Select the "General Settings" item, where you will be prompted to set passwords for two cases - to open a document and to modify a document.

In our case, you need to fill in the "Password to open" field, click "OK" and repeat the password again. Everything is ready. It remains to click the "Save" button.

Now, every time you open a document, Excel will ask you for the password you set earlier.

How good is this EXCEL file password protection?

Any password protection is usually only as good as the password itself. But this axiom does not apply to early Microsoft products, because the Internet is literally replete with software that performs hacking of office documents. In the latest versions of Office (starting with MS Office 2007), the developers took into account their mistakes, and now password protection is cracked using the bruteforce method (brute force, i.e., by trying all possible combinations or using a dictionary).

In any case, the presence of password protection is better than its absence. The theory of security is based on the fact that the more expensive (in terms of money and time) the hacking will cost, the more effective the protection.

It is worth touching on such an important question: how to password-protect an Excel file. The presented tool is an integral part of Microsoft Office. Excel allows you to create tables of various levels of complexity, apply formulas, change the design. To date, all versions of the program support setting a password.

detailed instructions

The description of the process can be divided into several stages. *.xls files, as well as any other Microsoft Office documents, including Word and Access, allow you to password-protect Excel materials. To complete the procedure, the following steps are required:

1. At the end of the process, click the "File" item. It is located in the menu at the top of the Microsoft Excel window.
2. When the list appears, you need to go to the "Save as" section. To do this, click on it with the left mouse button.
3. In the file save window, find the "Tools" menu and click the inverted triangle.
4. After that, the "General Settings" function will appear, which you need to apply.

Password setting

Now you should move on to the main steps that allow you to password-protect an Excel file. When the "General Settings" section appears, you will need to enter a password that will allow you to enter the document, as well as edit it if necessary. When the Read Only feature is enabled, the toolbar is disabled by default when a password is set. When securing a document only to run it, the prompt for input occurs constantly at the moment the table is opened. In order to use it, as well as edit its data, you need to know the secret combination.

To open a password-protected Excel file, provided that the protection is set to change the material, the launch is carried out as standard, without prompting. Difficulties arise when introducing new data into the table, as well as trying to save the document. As a result, the user will be required to enter a secret combination. Setting both types of passwords requires double entry when opening and closing a file.

It is worth noting that you can set different passwords for opening and editing the material. Now we need to return to the settings. After the password is created, you must click "OK", which is located in the "General Settings". In the explorer, you need to enter the name of the file, save it using the appropriate function.

Removing a password It is also worth touching on the issue of disabling the installed protection in Excel. To solve such a problem, no additional program is required. The application is equipped with built-in tools that can perform these actions. First you need to start Excel, and also open the file that you want to get rid of the password. Then you need to use the "File" menu. In it you need to specify "Save As" and the "Tools" menu.

After that, go to "General Settings". To do this, you need to double-click on the asterisks located in the password line. Then the "Del" button is used to perform the necessary actions. The correctness of the operation is confirmed by the "OK" key. After that, you need to click "Save", and then the "Yes" button, which will open in a new window. After performing such simple steps, the password in Excel will be removed.

When using a sheet, similar operations are carried out. You need to open the "Tools" menu, then use the "Unprotect" command. To cancel the action, you will need to enter the previously set password.

Using the methods presented above, you can password-protect an Excel file, as well as remove protection from a document.

The safety of users' personal data is, of course, one of the priorities of any conscientious software developer. And Microsoft, as one of the industry leaders, offers its own protection tools.

So, let's see exactly how you can protect your Excel workbook data by setting a password.

Set a password

There are several ways in Excel that you can use to set a password for documents, moreover, it can be set both to open a file and to edit it.

Method 1: Set a password when saving a file

This method allows you to perform the password assignment procedure right at the time of saving the document.

1. Click on the menu "File".
2. In the list that opens, click on the item "Save as", in the right part of which we press the button "Overview"(Earlier versions of the program do not have this button, and you will immediately go to the save window).
   
3. A window for saving the file will appear on the screen. Here we click on the button "Service", which is located next to the button "Save". In the list that opens, stop at the item "Common parameters".
   
4. A small window will open in which we can set a password to open or modify the file.
   
5. In the same window with general parameters, we can check the box next to the option “Recommend read-only access”. In this case, when opening a document, even with entering passwords, the toolbar will be initially hidden. But it can always be opened by pressing a special button.
   
6. Now that everything is ready, we can press the button OK.
   
7. The system will then ask you to confirm your password(s) in new windows. Re-enter the data and click OK.
8. The program will return us to the main window for saving the document. Here we select the save location, specify the file name, its format (if necessary) and click "Save".
   
9. Thanks to the above steps, we managed to protect the document. The next time you open it, you will need to enter the previously set passwords.
   

Method 2: set a password in the “Details” section

In this method, we will use the program section "Intelligence".

1. First, go back to the menu "File".
2. In the proposed list, go to the section "Intelligence" and in the right part of the window, click on the button "Protect File". A list of all available options will open. Here we can choose to protect both the entire book and its individual sheets. We also have the ability to set a password to protect the structure of the book, etc.
   
3. When choosing the first option "Encrypt with password" a window will open where you need to enter a password, then click the button OK.
4. The next window will ask you to confirm your password. Enter the same value and click OK. As in the first method, after these steps, no one will be able to open the book without entering the password we set.
5. If we choose the option “Protect current sheet”, a small window will appear on the screen with various options that we can turn on or off by checking the box next to them. We perform the required settings according to our wishes and press the button OK. Next, as usual, you will need to confirm your password.
6. Unlike password protection against changes when saving a document, when using this tool, the user will not even be able to make changes to the document. But at the same time, the ability to save the book will remain.
7. If we chose the option “Protect book structure”, a window will open in which we can set the password accordingly. Although in this case it is not required. After installing this protection, we will not be able to add, delete or edit sheets in the book.

One of the most effective ways to protect a document is to set a password on it. Today, computer users have the opportunity to set a password on any document from the Microsoft Office package. If your Excel document contains important data that should not be seen by third parties, then a password can be put on this document to provide it with reliable protection.

How to set a password on an Excel document?

Almost every full-fledged spreadsheet editor has a document password protection function. Below we will look at the procedure for setting a password for two popular programs - and the free LibreOffice office suite.

Setting a password in Microsoft Excel

1. Launch Microsoft Excel, click the menu button and go to "Prepare" - "Encrypt document" .

2. In the window that opens, in the column "Password" enter any desired security key, which must not exceed 255 characters.

3. Confirm the password by entering it again in the column "Confirmation" and then click the button "OK" .

If you suddenly need it, then you can do this by going to the menu "Encrypt document" , and then putting in the columns "Password" And "Confirmation" empty lines.

Setting a password in LibreOffice

1. Launch the spreadsheet in LibreOffice and then navigate to the menu "File" - "Save As" . In the explorer that appears, specify the folder where the copy of the document will be saved, the extension, check the box next to "Save with password" , and then click the button "OK" .

2. The password setting window will appear on the screen. Think of any password you want, enter it in the first column, and then repeat in the second. As soon as you press the button "OK" , a password-protected copy of the document will appear in the specified folder (if necessary, the old copy without a password can be safely deleted).

Removing the password is carried out as follows: again go to the menu "Save as" and make sure that there is no checkmark in the explorer that opens "Save with password" . After pressing the button "OK" a copy of the document will appear in a folder on your computer, but as before, without a password.

By using such a simple data protection method, you can be sure of the privacy of your information.

Security and data protection are one of the main directions in the development of modern information technologies. The urgency of this problem is not decreasing, but only growing. Data protection is especially important for spreadsheet files, which often contain sensitive commercial information. Let's learn how to protect Excel files with a password.

The developers of the program were well aware of the importance of the ability to set a password specifically for Excel files, so they implemented several options for performing this procedure at once. At the same time, it is possible to set the key, both to open the book and to change it.

Method 1: Set a password when saving a file

One method involves setting a password directly when saving the Excel workbook.

Thus, we have protected the Excel file. Now, to open and edit it, you will need to enter the appropriate passwords.

Method 2: Set a password in the Details section

The second method involves setting a password in the Excel section "Intelligence".

Method 3: Set a password and remove it in the "Review" tab

The ability to set a password is also available in the tab "Review".

As you can see, the Microsoft Excel program offers several ways to protect a file with a password at once, both from deliberate hacking and from unintentional actions. You can password-protect both opening a book and editing or changing its individual structural elements. At the same time, the author himself can determine from which changes he wants to protect the document.