How to Break Links in Excel and Keep Values

Links in Excel refer to the connections between two or more Excel workbooks or worksheets.

These links allow you to reference data from one workbook or worksheet to another.

For example, if you have a sales report in one workbook and want to use some of the data in another workbook that contains a financial report, you can link the two workbooks together.

This means that any changes made to the source workbook (sales report) will be automatically updated in the destination workbook (financial report).

Excel won’t break links

Excel wont be able to break a link for several reasons, including:

1. Read-only mode:
   • If the workbook containing the link is opened in read-only mode, Excel will not allow you to break the link.
   • This is because read-only mode restricts the ability to make changes to the workbook.
2. Protected workbook or sheet:
   • If the workbook or sheet containing the link is protected, Excel may not allow you to break the link.
   • This is because protection settings can prevent certain actions, such as breaking links, from being performed.
3. Corrupted file:
   • If the workbook containing the link is corrupted or damaged, Excel may not be able to break the link.
   • In this case, you may need to repair the file before attempting to break the link again.
4. Link source no longer available:
   • If the external file or data source that the link references is no longer available or has been moved, Excel may not be able to break the link.
   • In this case, you may need to locate and fix the source file or contact the person who created the link for assistance.
5. File format not supported:
   • If the external file or data source that the link references is in a format that Excel does not support, you may not be able to break the link.
   • For example, if the link references a database file that requires a specific driver that is not installed on your computer, Excel may not be able to break the link.

To address these issues, you can try opening the workbook in edit mode, removing the protection, repairing the file or locating the missing source file, installing the required drivers, or contacting the person who created the link for assistance.

how to break links in excel when source not found

If you are unable to locate the source file or data source for a linked Excel workbook, you can still break the links by following these steps:

1. Open the workbook that contains the links you wish to break.
2. Click on the “Data” tab in the ribbon.
3. Click on the “Edit Links” button in the “Connections” group.
4. In the “Edit Links” dialog box, select the links you wish to break.
5. Click on the “Break Link” button.
6. If Excel displays a message stating that it cannot find the source file or data source, click on “Continue“.
7. Excel will display another message asking if you want to convert the links to values. Click “Yes“.

By following these steps, Excel will replace the external references with the current values from the linked cells.

This effectively breaks the links and converts the formulas and data into static values.

However, keep in mind that breaking the links and converting them to values means that any changes made to the original data source will not be reflected in your workbook.

Therefore, it’s important to carefully consider the implications of breaking the links before doing so.

Additionally, it’s a good practice to always make a backup copy of your workbook before making any major changes or breaking links, especially if the data is critical to your business or personal needs.

how to break links in excel before opening file

In order to break links in Excel before opening a file, you will need to follow these steps:

1. Open a blank Excel workbook.
2. Click on the “Data” tab in the ribbon.
3. Click on the “Edit Links” button in the “Connections” group.
4. In the “Edit Links” dialog box, click on the “Change Source” button.
5. Navigate to the folder where the original file is located and select it.
6. In the “Change Source” dialog box, select the “Break Link” option.
7. Click “OK” to close the dialog box.

By following these steps, you will effectively break all the links in the file before opening it.

This can be useful if you suspect that the linked data sources are no longer available or if you want to prevent any accidental updates to the external data.

It’s important to note that breaking links before opening a file means that any formulas or data that rely on the external data sources will be lost.

Therefore, it’s a good practice to always make a backup copy of the file before making any major changes or breaking links.

Additionally, if you need to access the linked data again in the future, you will need to manually re-establish the links or import the data into your workbook.

Why do We need to break links in Excel?

If you want to break links in Excel but still keep the underlying formulas, you can use the “Paste Special” feature to copy and paste the values of the linked cells as follows:

1. Select the range of cells containing the linked data that you want to break.
2. Press “Ctrl+C” on your keyboard to copy the selected cells.
3. Right-click on the destination cell where you want to paste the copied data.
4. Click on the “Paste Special” option from the context menu.
5. In the “Paste Special” dialog box, select the “Values” option from the list of available options.
6. Click “OK“.

By following these steps, you will be copying the values of the linked cells while preserving the underlying formulas. This effectively breaks the link without altering the formulas or data contained in your worksheet.

Alternatively, you can use the “Convert to Values” feature to replace the external references with the current values of the linked cells:

1. Select the range of cells containing the linked data that you want to break.
2. Click on the “Data” tab in the ribbon.
3. Click on the “Convert to Values” button in the “Data Tools” group.
4. In the “Convert to Values” dialog box, select the “Values” option.
5. Click “OK“.

By following these steps, you will be replacing the external references with the current values of the linked cells.

However, this will also remove the underlying formulas, so you should only use this method if you no longer need to maintain the original formulas.

how to break links in Excel that won’t break

Breaking links in Excel can be a bit tricky, but there are some steps you can follow to ensure that the process goes smoothly and the links are properly broken without causing any issues.

Here are the steps to break links in Excel that won’t break:

1. Identify the source of the links: Before you can break the links,
   • you need to know where they are coming from. Select the cell or range of cells that contain the links, and
   • look in the formula bar to see where the link is coming from.
   • This will give you the information you need to find and break the link.
2. Find the linked cells:
   • Once you know where the link is coming from, you need to locate the cells that are being linked to.
   • You can do this by selecting the cell with the link, right-clicking, and choosing “Trace Dependents.”
   • This will show you all the cells that are dependent on the selected cell.
3. Remove the links:
   • Now that you’ve identified the linked cells, you can remove the links.
   • One way to do this is to copy the data in the linked cells,
   • paste it into a new worksheet or workbook, and then delete the original worksheet or workbook with the links.
   • Another way to remove the links is to use the “Edit Links” feature in Excel.
   • To access this, go to the “Data” tab, click “Edit Links,” and then select the links you want to break and choose “Break Link.”
4. Check for errors:
   • After you’ve broken the links, it’s important to check your workbook for any errors or issues that may have been caused by the broken links.
   • Look for #REF! errors, which indicate that a reference is no longer valid, and fix them by updating the formula with the correct references.

By following these steps, you should be able to successfully break links in Excel that won’t break and avoid any issues that may arise from broken links.

Will breaking links affect my data in Excel?

Breaking links in Excel can potentially affect your data, depending on how your workbook is set up and what the purpose of the links are.

Here are some things to consider:

1. Broken formulas:
   • If your links are used in formulas that perform calculations or retrieve data from external sources,
   • breaking those links can cause the underlying formulas to break as well.
   • This could result in error messages or incorrect calculations.
2. Missing data:
   • If your links are used to retrieve data from external sources, such as databases or other Excel workbooks,
   • breaking those links will remove the referenced data from your worksheet.
   • This could result in missing data or incomplete information.
3. Data integrity:
   • If your linked data is integral to your workbook’s overall structure or functionality, breaking those links could potentially compromise your data’s accuracy and reliability.

However, there are also situations where breaking links may be necessary or desirable, such as when you no longer need to reference external data sources or want to prevent unintended changes to your data.

Before breaking any links in your Excel workbook, it’s important to carefully consider how doing so may impact your data and ensure that you have a backup copy of your workbook in case any issues arise.

Additionally, it’s always a good idea to test any changes you make to your workbook to ensure that everything is working as expected.

here’s an example of how breaking links can affect your data in Excel:

Let’s say you have a workbook that contains sales data for the past year, and you have linked to another workbook that contains expense data for the same period.

You use these links to calculate profitability for each month based on the difference between sales and expenses.

If you decide to break the links to the expense workbook, this will remove the referenced data from your worksheet.

This means that your profitability calculations will no longer be accurate or complete, as they are missing key data points.

Furthermore, if any of your formulas relied on the external links, they will now display errors or incorrect results.

To avoid this issue, you could consider copying the relevant data from the expense workbook and pasting it directly into your sales workbook.

This would eliminate the need for external links and ensure that your data is complete and accurate.

Alternatively, you could keep the links intact if you still need to reference the expense data for other purposes.

However, it’s important to carefully consider the potential impact of any changes you make to your workbook to ensure that your data remains reliable and accurate.

Break multiple links at once in Excel

Breaking multiple links at once in Excel can be done by following these steps:

1. Open the workbook that contains the links you wish to break.
2. Click on the “Data” tab in the ribbon.
3. Click on the “Edit Links” button in the “Connections” group.
4. In the “Edit Links” dialog box, select the links you wish to break.
5. Click on the “Break Link” button.
6. Confirm that you want to break the selected links by clicking “OK“.

By following these steps, you will be able to break multiple links at once in your Excel workbook. Breaking links is useful when you no longer need to reference external data sources or want to prevent unintended changes to your data.

how to break links with Shortcuts on the same sheet

In the following example, we assume we have a table like the one below.

We want the value of cell E11 to be copied without the formula being copied and only the value being displayed.

Method 1:

1. Select E11 cell

2. Press (CTRL+C) simultaneously

3. Select the cell where you want the desired value copied. (ex: E13)

4. Press (ALT+CTRL+V) simultaneously

5. Then press the V button.

6. Click Ok.

how to break external links with Shortcuts in external sheet

Method 2:

We want the value of cell E11 (in Student Sheet) to be copied in Cell E11 (in Student-copy Sheet) without the formula being copied and only the value being displayed.

1. Select the data tab.

2. Select Edit Links.

3. Select Break Link.

4. Again Select Break Link.

5. Finally Select Close.

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