By default, this looks like the best excel place for this question.

I get the error message:
"Excel cannot complete this task with available resources. Choose less data
or close other applications.",

and the follow-up message of

"Unable to save external link values"

The error message relates to two workbooks:
The 1st workbook stores data.
The 2nd workbook references the data via vlookup or match-index functions.

When I trim down the data in the 1st workbook to a half its size. The error
messages go away, but of course needed data is lost.

Also if I make one workbook out of two (combining the data and referencing
workbooks), the message goes away, but the design is less desirable.

Is the problem with my machine capcity, or limits within Excel? Any light
will be much appreciated.

Thank you,
Mark