MS Office 2007 Only, Set Or Remove Password Protection, documents, workbooks, and presentations

In the 2007 Microsoft Office system, you can use passwords to help prevent other people from opening or modifying your documents, workbooks, and presentations. Keep in mind that Microsoft cannot retrieve forgotten passwords.

For more about passwords, see Create strong passwords.

CAUTION   Keep your password in a safe place. If you lose or forget the password, it can't be recovered.

What do you want to do?

Set a password in a Word document

To encrypt your file and set a password to open it:

1. Click the Microsoft Office Button , point to Prepare, and then click Encrypt Document.
   
2. In the Encrypt Document dialog box, in the Password box, type a password, and then click OK.
   CAUTION   Keep your password in a safe place. If you lose or forget the password, it can't be recovered.
   You can type up to 255 characters. By default, this feature uses AES 128-bit advanced encryption. Encryption is a standard method used to help make your file more secure.
3. In the Confirm Password dialog box, in the Reenter password box, type the password again, and then clickOK.
4. To save the password, save the file.

Remove password protection from a Word document

1. Use the password to open the document.
2. Click the Microsoft Office Button , point to Prepare, and then click Encrypt Document.
3. In the Encrypt Document dialog box, in the Password box, delete the encrypted password, and then click OK.
4. Save the file.

Set a password to modify a Word document

In addition to setting a password to open a Word document, you can set a password to allow others to modify the document.

1. Click the Microsoft Office Button , click Save As, and on the bottom of the Save As dialog, click Tools.
2. On the Tools menu, click General Options. The General Options dialog opens.
3. Under File sharing options for this document, in the Password to modify box, type a password.
4. In the Confirm Password dialog, re-type the password. Click OK.
5. Click Save.

NOTE   To remove the password, repeat these instructions and then delete the password from the Password to modify box. Click Save.

Set a password in an Excel spreadsheet

To encrypt your workbook and set a password to open it:

1. Click the Microsoft Office Button , point to Prepare, and then click Encrypt Document.
   
2. In the Password box, type a password, and then click OK.
   You can type up to 255 characters. By default, this feature uses AES 128-bit advanced encryption. Encryption is a standard method used to help make your file more secure.
3. In the Reenter password box, type the password again, and then click OK.
4. To save the password, save the file.

Remove password protection from an Excel spreadsheet

1. Use the password to open the spreadsheet.
2. Click the Microsoft Office Button , point to Prepare, and then click Encrypt Document.
3. In the Encrypt Document dialog box, in the Password box, delete the encrypted password, and then click OK.
4. Save the spreadsheet.

Set a password to modify an Excel spreadsheet

In addition to setting a password to open an Excel spreadsheet, you can set a password to allow others to modify the spreadsheet.

1. Click the Microsoft Office Button , click Save As, and on the bottom of the Save As dialog, click Tools.
2. On the Tools menu, click General Options. The General Options dialog opens.
3. Under File sharing, in the Password to modify box, type a password.
4. In the Confirm Password dialog, re-type the password. Click OK.
5. Click Save.

NOTE   To remove the password, repeat these instructions and then delete the password from the Password to modify box. Click Save.

Set a password for a PowerPoint presentation

To encrypt your presentation and set a password to open it:

1. Click the Microsoft Office Button , point to Prepare, and then click Encrypt Document.
   CAUTION   Keep your password in a safe place. If you lose or forget the password, it can't be recovered.
   
2. In the Password box, type a password, and then click OK.
   You can type up to 255 characters. By default, this feature uses AES 128-bit advanced encryption. Encryption is a standard method used to help make your file more secure.
3. In the Reenter password box, type the password again, and then click OK.
4. To save the password, save the file.

Remove password protection from a PowerPoint presentation

1. Use the password to open the presentation.
2. Click the Microsoft Office Button , point to Prepare, and then click Encrypt Document.
3. In the Encrypt Document dialog box, in the Password box, delete the encrypted password, and then click OK.
4. Save the presentation.

Set a password to modify a PowerPoint presentation

In addition to setting a password to open a PowerPoint presentation, you can set a password to allow others to modify the presentation.

1. Click the Microsoft Office Button , click Save As, and on the bottom of the Save As dialog, click Tools.
2. On the Tools menu, click General Options. The General Options dialog opens.
3. Under File sharing settings for this document, in the Password to modify box, type a password.
4. In the Confirm Password dialog, re-type the password. Click OK.
5. Click Save.

NOTE   To remove the password, repeat these instructions and then delete the password from the Password to modify box. Click Save.