It sounds like you are experiencing
performance issues when trying to
delete large blocks of data in Excel. This can be frustrating, but there are a few things you can try to improve the situation.
- Check for updates: Make sure that Excel is up to date with the latest updates and patches. Sometimes, performance issues can be resolved with a simple update.
- Clear the clipboard: When you copy and paste large amounts of data, it can fill up the clipboard and slow down Excel. Clearing the clipboard can help improve performance. To do this, open the Home tab, click on the Clipboard group, and then click on the Clear All button.
- Disable add-ins: Add-ins can sometimes cause performance issues in Excel. Try disabling any add-ins that you are not using to see if this improves performance. To do this, go to the File tab, click on Options, and then click on Add-ins. From there, you can manage your add-ins.
- Use the Clear Contents command: Instead of selecting all the data and hitting the delete key, try using the Clear Contents command. This will remove the data from the cells, but leave the formatting intact. To do this, select the cells you want to clear, right-click, and then select Clear Contents.
- Split the data into smaller chunks: If you are still experiencing performance issues, try splitting the data into smaller chunks and deleting them one at a time. This may take longer, but it can help prevent Excel from hanging.
- Use a macro: If you are comfortable with macros, you can create a macro to delete the data for you. This can be faster than manually deleting the data. Here is an example macro that deletes all the data in a worksheet:
Formula:
Sub DeleteData()
Cells.Select
Selection.ClearContents
End Sub
To use this macro, open the Visual Basic Editor (press Alt + F11), create a new module, and then paste in the code. Save the macro and then run it from the Excel worksheet.
I hope these tips help improve the performance of Excel when deleting large blocks of data.