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#1
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How do I make a file read only unless a password is supplied?
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#2
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Click <File <Save As...
When the Save As window opens, click <Tools <General Options Enter your desired password in the 'Password to modify:' box and then click 'OK". This will launch a 'Confrim Password' window in which you will need to re-enter the desired password. The user will be able to open the file and not save changes. However, the user can delete/modify any data while it is open--just not save the changes. If you want the user to only be able to open the file and not be able to change anything, you might want to consider using the Protection feature. This allows the author to protect the whole file, separate sheets, or a single cell. <Tools <Protection Best wishes. "Tim" wrote: |
#3
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Transplanted Buckeye wrote...
Click <File <Save As... When the Save As window opens, click <Tools <General Options Enter your desired password in the 'Password to modify:' box and then click 'OK". .... The user will be able to open the file and not save changes. However, the user can delete/modify any data while it is open--just not save the changes. Not quite. User can't overwrite the existing file, but *CAN* save the changed workbook under a different filename. Then the enterprising user could close this new file and use the OS to copy it using the original filename. All the modify password does is open the file as read-only WITH RESPECT TO ITS ORIGINAL FILENAME if the user doesn't enter the modify password. If the OP want's file protection with passwords, it'd have to be provided by the OS, not any application software, and AFAIK, no Windows version supports any file system that provides password access to modify files. Under Unix-like systems (including Macs running OS X), it's possible to write scripts which start off by reading user-entered passwords, and if validated, open other processes UNDER OTHER USER IDs to copy the users' working copies of protected workbooks (stored in the user's own working disk space) to protected locations which the users' own IDs have only read access. Maybe the same sort of thing could be done securely under Windows, but I'd guess it'd require a background service to run separate processes with file access permisions different from the current user's. If you want the user to only be able to open the file and not be able to change anything, you might want to consider using the Protection feature. This allows the author to protect the whole file, separate sheets, or a single cell. <Tools <Protection This provides EXTREMELY WEAK protection. Adequate to prevent innocent and unsophisticated users from screwing anything up, but a minor inconvenience to sophisticated users (such as anyone reading this newsgroup) intent on unprotecting worksheets or workbooks. Aside from file open passwords, all security or protection mechanisms in Excel are light weight and not meant to deter determined attack. |
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