MS-Excel / Excel 2003

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Opening a password-protected workbook

After saving a workbook file to which you've assigned a password for opening it, you must thereafter be able to faithfully reproduce that password to open the file (at least until such time as you change or delete the password). When you next try to open the workbook, Excel opens a Password dialog box, where you must enter the password exactly as it was assigned to the file.

If you mess up and type the wrong password, Excel displays an alert dialog box letting you know that the password you entered is incorrect. After you click OK to close the alert dialog box, you must repeat the entire file-opening procedure (hoping that this time you're able to enter the correct password).

When you do enter the correct password, Excel immediately opens the workbook for viewing and printing (and editing as well, unless you've also assigned a password for modifying the file).

If you're unable to successfully reproduce the password, you are unable to open the file and put it to any use! Excel doesn't provide any sort of command for overriding the password and opening a protected workbook, nor does Microsoft offer any such utility. If there's any danger of forgetting a workbook's password, be sure to write it down somewhere and keep it in a secure place, preferably under lock and key.

If your workbook is protected from modifications and you attempt to open its file, Excel immediately displays a Password dialog box where you have to choose between opening the file with write privileges and opening it in read-only mode. To be able to make changes to the original workbook file with write privileges, you must be able to accurately enter the password in the Password text box and then click OK. To open the workbook as a read-only file, click the Read Only button in this dialog box.

If you don't have access to the modification password and choose to open the file in read-only mode (indicated by [Read-Only] appended to the filename on the title bar), you can review the file and print its worksheets, but you can't save any editing changes that you make to it. If you try to save changes with the File → Save command, Excel displays an alert dialog box indicating that the file you're working with is read-only.

After you click OK to close this alert dialog box, Excel opens the Save As dialog box where you can save your changes. Rename the workbook file in the File Name text box or select a new folder in which to save the file in the Save In list box; then click Save.