Estimated Time to Fix: 3 minutes

Summary

This article guides you through finding and removing broken external links in an Excel workbook so you no longer receive the "This workbook contains links to one or more external sources that could be unsafe" warning every time you open the file.

Symptoms

• Every time you open an Excel file, a warning pops up asking if you want to Update or Don't Update links.
• You cannot easily find which cells in the spreadsheet contain the links to the external file.

Before You Start

• None required.

Instructions

1. View Existing Links

Start by finding out which files the workbook is actually pulling data from.

1. Open the Excel workbook and click Update (or Don't Update) to get past the initial warning.
2. Click the Data tab at the top of the Excel window.
3. In the "Queries & Connections" group, click Edit Links (if this button is greyed out, your workbook does not actually contain external links).
4. A window will open showing a list of all external files your workbook is pulling data from.

2. Break the Links (Convert to Values)

Breaking a link keeps the numbers you already have and stops Excel asking about the source file.

1. If you no longer need the workbook to update automatically from the external file, you can break the link.
2. In the Edit Links window, click on the file you want to disconnect.
3. Click the Break Link button on the right side.
4. Click Break Links again to confirm.
5. Note: Breaking a link will replace the formulas in those cells with their current static values.

3. Find Links Manually (Using Find and Replace)

Some links hide inside formulas where Edit Links cannot see them.

1. If "Edit Links" doesn't show everything, the links might be hidden in formulas.
2. Press Ctrl + F to open the Find window.
3. In the "Find what" box, type [ (a left square bracket). Excel uses square brackets to reference external files.
4. Click Options >> and ensure "Within" is set to Workbook and "Look in" is set to Formulas.
5. Click Find All. The results will list every cell containing an external link.

4. Verify Success

Close and reopen the workbook — the warning should not come back.

1. Save your workbook (Ctrl + S), close it, and reopen it. The external links warning should no longer appear.

If the warning still appears on reopening, a link is hiding somewhere Edit Links cannot read — click Formulas > Name Manager and delete any name whose Refers to box points at another file. If the warning survives that, raise a ticket giving the workbook's file name, the source path shown in the warning, and confirmation that Edit Links now lists nothing.

Troubleshooting

WARNING

Before breaking a link, ensure you do not need the data to update automatically in the future. Once a link is broken and the file is saved, you cannot undo the action.

Symptom / Error	Potential Cause	Solution
Warning still appears after breaking all links	Hidden elements	Links can hide in "Name Manager" or "Data Validation" rules. Check Formulas > Name Manager for errors.
Cannot find the "Edit Links" button	Button name change	In newer versions of Excel, it may be called Workbook Links on the Data tab.

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• How to Fix Excel Not Opening Files or Showing a Blank Workbook

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