BI360 Tips & Tricks – Excel Security on Budgeting Templates

To avoid Budgeting users from making changes budget templates you can implement Excel Security

Protecting the worksheet:

Planning creates special flags in certain cells. It is important to ensure the locked flag for row 1 in excel is unchecked. Because the executed report may dynamically create columns, it is sometimes difficult to pinpoint the exact columns to unlock, which is why unlocking the entire first row will ensure the cells remain unlocked. Users may hide row 1 so that changes are less likely to be made to the flagged cells.

Here are the steps to protecting your workbook:

1. Determine which cells should be open to users to enter data

• On the cell that you want user to enter data – right mouse click and select “Format cells…”
• By default within Format Cells function automatically checks the “locked” cell. Unlock the cells where you want the users to enter in data.  (Format Cells>Protection)

2. Protect the “Sheet”

• Go to the review ribbon ad click on the “Protect Sheet”.

Typical settings when locking a sheet

Now your users can only enter data on the cells you designated. If they try to change a cell that is protected, they will get a popup error message:

To learn more about how you can take advantage of this and other Dynamics GP features, visit RSM’s Microsoft Dynamics GP resource. To make sure you stay up to date with the Microsoft Dynamics Community, subscribe to our Microsoft Dynamics Community Newsletter.For more information on Microsoft Dynamics 365, contact us.

By: Sherry Lambe

Sherry Lambe