Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Excel 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Excel, click here: Changing Link References.
An ExcelTips reader wrote about a problem their company was having with links in their workbooks. It seems that their links were showing up as UNC paths to files instead of as mapped drive letters. This initially posed no problem, but when the files were moved to a new network server in preparation for changing the network configuration, the UNC paths no longer worked.
Fortunately, Excel has a very powerful search and replace feature. It is so powerful, it even works on OLE links in your worksheet. For instance, let's say your links in some cells looked like this:
='\\proserver\Excel\mystuff\[WordTips.xls]Sheet1!B25
If the server name is changing or the data is being moved to a different server, this can present a problem. And, unfortunately, the Links option from the Edit menu is a real pain at times. You can quickly change all UNC references in the worksheet by searching for the UNC path (in this case, "\\proserver\Excel\mystuff\") and replacing it with your desired mapped drive letter (for instance, "q:\"). The result is links that all of a sudden point to the proper location.
There is one "gottcha" to be aware of. The UNC path is very specific, and will work regardless of what computer is connected to a network. However, it is possible for different computers to have different drive letters mapped for the same network destination. For instance, one workstation might have \\proserver\Excel\ mapped to drive S:, and another workstation may have it mapped to T:. If you change all the links to S:, then the workstations that don't use drive S: for mapping to that location will not be able to access the file.
ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2363) applies to Microsoft Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Excel (Excel 2007 and later) here: Changing Link References.
Comprehensive VBA Guide Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) is the language used for writing macros in all Office programs. This complete guide shows both professionals and novices how to master VBA in order to customize the entire Office suite for their needs. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2010 today!
What would you do if every time you opened a workbook Excel told you it was locked? Here's how you can try to recover from ...
Discover MoreOpen a workbook that someone else is working on, and you won't be able to save your changes back into the same file. Wouldn't ...
Discover MoreIf you use Excel to work with data exported from another program, you might be interested in a way to import a large number ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)
Got a version of Excel that uses the menu interface (Excel 97, Excel 2000, Excel 2002, or Excel 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.
FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
Copyright © 2017 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
Please Note:
This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Excel 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Excel, click here: 
Comments