Microsoft Excel Workbook and Worksheet Management 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is a macro-enabled workbook (.xlsm)?
- Any workbook with formulas
- A workbook that stores and runs VBA macros (Correct answer)
- Enhanced security workbook
- Compressed format
Correct answer: A workbook that stores and runs VBA macros
.xlsm supports VBA macros; needed when workbook contains macro code.
Saving .xlsm as .xlsx strips all VBA code. Macro security controlled via Trust Center settings.
Question 2: How does Consolidate help across multiple worksheets?
- Merges worksheets
- Creates summary aggregating matching data from multiple sheets (Correct answer)
- Consolidates formatting
- Reduces file size
Correct answer: Creates summary aggregating matching data from multiple sheets
Consolidate combines data from multiple ranges using aggregate functions.
By Position or By Category. Optional: Create Links for auto-updating outline groups referencing source cells.
Question 3: How do you encrypt an Excel workbook?
- Cannot be encrypted
- File > Info > Protect Workbook > Encrypt with Password (AES-256) (Correct answer)
- Only macro files
- Requires add-in
Correct answer: File > Info > Protect Workbook > Encrypt with Password (AES-256)
Encrypt with Password applies AES-256 encryption to the entire file.
Only Encrypt with Password provides real security. Sheet/structure passwords are NOT encryption and can be removed with tools.
Question 4: How do you manage External Links to other workbooks?
- Not tracked
- Data > Edit Links shows all external references with update, change, break options (Correct answer)
- File > Properties
- Manage themselves
Correct answer: Data > Edit Links shows all external references with update, change, break options
Edit Links displays all external references with options to update, change source, or break links.
Break Link converts to static values (irreversible). Find external references: Ctrl+F > search for [. Named ranges can also contain links.
Question 5: What is the Inquire add-in used for?
- Creating surveys
- Analyzing workbook structure, comparing workbooks, tracing relationships (Correct answer)
- Inquiring about features
- Managing data queries
Correct answer: Analyzing workbook structure, comparing workbooks, tracing relationships
Inquire provides advanced analysis: workbook comparison, cell relationship diagrams, and structure analysis.
Features: Workbook Analysis, Cell Relationship Diagram, Compare Files (cell-level), Clean Excess Formatting. Enable via COM Add-ins.
Question 6: How can you recover an unsaved workbook?
- Permanently lost
- File > Info > Manage Workbook > Recover Unsaved Workbooks (Correct answer)
- Only with manual backup
- Auto-recovery on restart
Correct answer: File > Info > Manage Workbook > Recover Unsaved Workbooks
AutoRecover saves backup copies that can be recovered through File > Info.
Recovery files in %AppData%\Microsoft\Excel. Reduce AutoRecover interval to 1-2 minutes for critical work. OneDrive files have Version History.
Microsoft Excel Workbook and Worksheet Management 3
What is a macro-enabled workbook (.xlsm)?