CREATE AND MANAGE LINKS TO OTHER WORKBOOKS

A link is a formula that gets data from a cell in another workbook. When you open a
workbook that contains links (a linking workbook), Microsoft Excel reads in the latest
data from the source workbook or workbooks (updates the links).
se links when you want to maintain information in a single workbook, but also use
the information in other workbooks. !or example, if your product prices change
fre"uently, you might keep a master price list. #ther workbooks that use the
price data in calculations, such as purchase orders, in$entory
$aluations, or sales estimates, can create links to the price list
workbook so calculations always use current prices. When prices
change, you only ha$e to enter the new prices in one place.
When you create a link, Excel creates a formula that includes the
name of the source workbook in brackets % &, followed by the
worksheet name, an exclamation point, and the cell
reference.
Create links between workbooks
'. #pen both workbooks.
(. )n the source workbook, select the cells you want to link to and click the Cop button.
*. +witch to the destination workbook and click the upper left cell of the range where you want the links.
,. #n the E!it menu, click "aste Spe#ial, and then click "aste Link.
-ou can also create a link starting from the linking workbook. .ype an e"ual sign in a cell, switch to the source
workbook, click the cell you want to link to, and then press E/.E0.-ou can copy and autofill linking formulas as
you do other Excel formulas.
"$TTING TOGETHER A SET O% LINKED WORKBOOKS
1efore you make extensi$e use of links, it2s a good idea to do some planning. 3ere are some tips for creating links.
Make links eas to tra#k .here2s no automatic way to find all the cells in a workbook that contain
links. -ou might want to use a particular format or border style for cells containing links, or otherwise
document where the links are, so that as your set of linked workbooks grows and gains complexity you2ll
be able to maintain it efficiently.
T&rn on a&to'ati# #al#&lation +ource workbooks that you link to should ha$e automatic calculation
turned on (this is the default). .o turn automatic calculation on, click Options on the Tools menu, click the
Cal#&lation tab, and click A&to'ati# under Cal#&lation.
A(oi! #ir#&lar links 4ircular links, where two workbooks contain links to each other, can make both
workbooks slow to open and update.
Consi!er w)ere o&*ll store linke! workbooks )f you2re using links to share data on your network,
consider where the source and linking workbooks will be stored. +ource workbooks stored on a network
share are a$ailable to other network users, who can store their linking workbooks either on the network or
on their own hard disks. +ource workbooks on your hard disk, howe$er, are only a$ailable to you, so if you
put linking workbooks on a network share, other users won2t be able to update links to source workbooks
on your system.
NETWORK DRI+E LETTERS IN LINKS
When you click a cell containing a link and the source workbook is closed, you2ll see the full path to the source
workbook. .he path uses the dri$e letter you ha$e mapped to the share. .he links continue to work correctly for
other users who map different dri$e letters to the same share.
-ou can edit linking formulas to use /4 names, such as 55myser$er5myshare, instead of dri$e letters. /4 names
can make links easier to update when se$eral people will use a linking workbook, because Excel can update links
that use /4 names e$en if users don2t ha$e a dri$e letter mapped to the network share. !or example, you can
change
='G:\[source.xls]Prices'!B5
to
='\\myserver\myshare\[source.xls]Prices'!B5
3owe$er, using /4 names can also reduce calculation speed, especially if your workbooks use calculation6
intensi$e features such as the +ol$er add6in program.
%ILE NAMES AND "ATHS IN LINKS
Windows has a (776character limitation on paths, which also limits the length of the paths you can use when you
create links. -ou2ll need to consider path length in naming files and setting up folder names and structures. )n
addition, if a workbook file name is longer than '(( characters, you can create links to the workbook but you can2t
change the links once created.
A$oid characters from the Excel linking syntax in file names and worksheet names. -ou can2t create links to
workbooks and worksheets with names that include the characters % & and 8.
LINKING TO CELLS CONTAINING LARGE AMO$NTS O% DATA
9inks can only return the first (77 characters in a cell. )f you want to link to large amounts of data, first distribute it
among se$eral cells on the source worksheet. )f you2re linking to a cell with contents that will grow as you maintain
the source workbook, keep the (776character limit in mind.
LINKS IN SHARED WORKBOOKS
-ou can create links to or from shared workbooks, but if one user creates links in a shared workbook while other
users ha$e the workbook open, when other users sa$e they may see a :0E!8 error instead of the linked data. -ou
can a$oid this problem by creating all the links before you share the workbook, or at a time when other users aren2t
working on it.
LINKING TO "ASSWORD "ROTECTED WORKBOOKS
Assigning a protection password to a source worksheet or workbook does not pre$ent users of linking workbooks
who don2t know the password from updating the links. )f you want users to ha$e to enter a password to update links,
sa$e the source workbook file with a password to open (click Sa(e As on the %ile menu, click General Options on
the Tools menu).
REMO+ING LINKS TO OTHER WORKBOOKS
)f you no longer need a link to information in another workbook, or want to undo a link you ;ust created, you can
simply break the link. When you break a link to a another source, all formulas that use that source are automatically
con$erted to their current $alue. 1ecause the action cannot be undone, it2s a good idea to sa$e a $ersion of your
worksheet before you remo$e links.