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434 Password-Protecting the File
You set a password for modifying the workbook when you’re dealing with a spreadsheet whose data needs to be viewed and printed by different users, none of whom are authorized to make changes to any of the entries. For example, you might assign a password for modifying a workbook before distributing it companywide, after the workbook’s been through a complete editing and review cycle and all the suggested changes have been merged. (See Book IV, Chapter 3 for details.)
Protecting the workbook when saving the file
If you’re dealing with a spreadsheet whose data is of a sensitive nature and should not be modified by anyone who’s authorized to open it, you need to set both a password for opening and a password for modifying the workbook file. You assign either one or both of these types of passwords to a work- book file at the time you save it with the File➪Save As command (Alt+FA).
When you choose this command (or click the Save button on the Quick Access toolbar or press Ctrl+S for a new file that’s never been saved before), Excel opens the Save As screen where you select the place where you want to save the file. (See Book II, Chapter 1 for details.) After you select the place to save the file on the Start screen, Excel opens the Save As dialog box where you can then set the password to open and/or the password to modify the file by taking these steps:
1. Click the Tools button in the Save As dialog box and then choose General Options from its drop-down menu.
Doing this opens the General Options dialog box, similar to the one shown in Figure 1-1, where you can enter a password to open and/or a password to modify in the File Sharing section. Your password can be as long as 255 characters, consisting of a combination of letters and num- bers with spaces. When adding letters to your passwords, keep in mind that these passwords are case-sensitive. This means that opensesame and OpenSesame are not the same password because of the different use of upper- and lowercase letters.
Figure 1-1:
Setting a password to open and modify the workbook in the General Options dialog box.