hiding a worksheet

[jc]

i have put together a spreadsheet for salesforce that is based on data on a
number of linked sheets, but i would like to hide source info. how do/can
you accomplish this. i have "squished" the columns and locked the sheet but
is there a better way?

Jeffrey

 

[Dave Peterson]

Excel's protection isn't really a security measure. It's more for preventing
typing errors--overwriting cells with formulas, for instance.

The worksheet protection is easily broken. Anything you don't want seen
shouldn't be put into a workbook that you're going to share.

You could hide the worksheets that have the info (but that's easily overcome,
too).

On the other hand, what you've done will probably keep most (all???) users out.
Most won't even notice the hidden columns and most won't know how to unprotect a
worksheet without the password.

But if you have any really dedicated snoopers....

 

[Arvi Laanemets]

Hi

1. You can hide formulas from users, checking FormatCells.Hidden for all
cells, and protecting the worksheet (user sees the values returned by
formulas only).
2. You can hide columns with sensitive info, as you did.
3. You may have the sensitive info on hidden sheet (Activate the sheet,
Format.Sheet.Hide). But any user can unhide such sheets. On other hand, when
hidding of sheet(s) is combined with hidding formulas on visible worksheets,
most of users may not be aware of existence of hidden sheets at all.
4. You can make a sheet Very Hidden (Activate VBA editor pressing Alt+F11,
select the sheet to hide in VBA Project window, and in Properties window,
set sheet's Visible propertie to xlSheetVeryHidden). Very hidden sheet(s)
doesn't appear in list of hidden sheets, when Format.Sheet.Unhide is
selected, and also are they not visible in workbook's properties. To avoid
unhiding the sheet from Properties window, you have to protect the VBA
Project with password (right-click on project in VBA-Project window, and
then select VBAProjectProperties.Protection for it). You can hide formulas
on visible sheet too, so user doesn't know of existence of such sheet.
5. When you want completely hide source sheet name without hidding formulas,
you can use an interim sheet, which gets (only) essential info needed in
formulas from source sheet, using links. Making both source and interim
sheet very hidden, as described above, hides source sheet name from user.
Without knowing sheet name, he can't get any info from it through formulas,
what he/she can do always having at least one unlocked cell available. And
from interim sheet are only data used in formulas avalable anyway.