No Macro Virus Warning Message Appears Opening Workbook with Password (176640)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Excel 97 for Windows
  • Microsoft Excel 98 Macintosh Edition
This article was previously published under Q176640

SYMPTOMS

When you select the Macro Virus Protection check box in the General tab in the Options dialog box, and then open a workbook that contains Visual Basic for Applications code, you may not receive a warning message that indicates the workbook contains macros.

CAUSE

This problem occurs if the workbook requires you to enter a password to open it. Microsoft Excel does not scan for macros when you open workbooks that are protected by this kind of password. It is assumed that these workbooks have been created by trusted sources; therefore the workbooks are not scanned for macros or macro viruses.

WORKAROUND

To work around this behavior, remove the password that is required to open the workbook by following these steps:
  1. On the File menu, click Save As.
  2. In the Save As dialog box, click Options.
  3. In the Password To Open box, delete the password. Then, click OK.
  4. Click Save to save the workbook.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in the versions of Microsoft Excel listed at the beginning of this article. This problem no longer occurs in Microsoft Excel 2000.

MORE INFORMATION

To apply a password that is required to open a workbook, follow these steps:
  1. On the File menu, click Save As.
  2. In the Save As dialog box, click Options.
  3. In the Password To Open box, type a password. Then, click OK.
  4. Retype the same password, and then click OK again.
  5. Click Save to save the workbook.
The Macro Virus Protection feature in Microsoft Excel is designed to warn you when the workbook you are opening contains macro code. When you receive the warning, you can enable or disable the code. You can then use the Microsoft Excel Virus Search Add-In to scan for and eliminate macro viruses that may be in the workbook.

To make macro virus protection available, follow these steps:
  1. On the Tools menu, click Options or Preferences. Click the General tab.
  2. Click to select the Macro Virus Protection check box, and then click OK.

REFERENCES

For more information about macro virus protection, please see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

171093 XL97: Macro Virus Protection Alert May Not Appear

171661 XL97: Macro Virus Warning Appears Opening File Without Macros

Modification Type:MinorLast Reviewed:8/15/2003
Keywords:kbprb KB176640
©2003 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.