Microsoft Excel offers a password protection feature that allows users to secure their workbooks by restricting access to the file's contents. However, this functionality poses significant limitations when used in conjunction with external data connections, such as those used in our systems.
This article contains the following topics:
How Password Protection in Excel Works
Password protection in Excel is found under the File > Info menu. From here, users can select Protect Workbook and choose to set a password to prevent unauthorized access or editing. There are three primary levels of protection:
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Encrypt with Password – Encrypts the entire workbook, requiring a password to open the file.
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Protect Workbook Structure – Prevents users from adding, removing, or moving sheets within the workbook.
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Protect Sheet – Restricts editing of specific sheets within the workbook while allowing users to view or interact with the data.
When a workbook is protected by encryption, the external data connections (e.g., SQL databases, online data sources, or Catalyst connections) are disrupted because Excel blocks the access needed to refresh or update the data.
Technical Limitations of Password-Protected Excel Files
While password protection can help secure sensitive data, it introduces the following limitations when working with external data sources:
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Data Refresh Breakage: Password protection prevents Excel from refreshing any linked data, generating errors when a user attempts to update the file.
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Loss of Dynamic Connections: External connections to databases, APIs, or data cubes are severed, making it impossible for Excel to pull in fresh data.
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Manual Data Entry Only: With protection enabled, you are restricted to using static, manually entered data unless you remove the protection.
Because of these technical limitations, we do not support password-protected Excel files when working with external data connections. If your Excel file is connected to Catalyst or other data sources, enabling password protection will break these connections and render the file unusable for real-time data refreshes.
Recommended Alternative: Role-Level Security (RLS) in Catalyst
For data security, we recommend using Role-Level Security (RLS), which is managed through Catalyst’s user and group permissions. RLS allows you to control data access at a granular level without breaking data connections or disrupting refresh functionality.
How RLS Works in Catalyst:
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Centralized Permissions: You can build a single workbook or visualization and share it with multiple users, each seeing only the data they have been granted access to through Catalyst permissions.
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Secure Data Access: Users' views are restricted based on their assigned roles, ensuring that sensitive data is only accessible by the appropriate individuals.
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Simplified Management: Instead of setting up individual password-protected files, you can manage access at the group or user level within Catalyst, ensuring compliance with data access policies.
Using RLS, you can maintain both data security and functionality without the need for password protection that could potentially disrupt your workflows.
Technical Notes on Excel Password Protection
When Excel workbooks are password protected with the Encrypt with Password feature, the data connections are effectively disabled. According to Microsoft documentation:
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Excel prevents opening protected files programmatically, which impacts any external systems or workflows that rely on accessing or updating the file.
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Data connections will not refresh while the workbook is password-protected, leading to common errors such as "Data could not be refreshed" or "External data connection not found."
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You cannot automate tasks on password-protected files using macros or other automation tools until the protection is removed.
While Excel’s password protection feature may seem like a quick security measure, it is not suitable for workbooks with active data connections to external sources. For more secure and flexible management of data permissions, we recommend using Role-Level Security (RLS) within Catalyst to ensure that users only see the data they are authorized to access, without compromising the functionality of the file. If you have any further questions or need assistance with managing permissions in Catalyst, please contact our support team.
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