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: Tying Workbooks Together.
Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated July 25, 2020)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003
Don wonders if there is a way to "tie" two or more workbooks together so they are always open (and closed) at the same time. One relatively easy way to get close to this desire is to create, within Excel, what is called a workspace. You can do this by following these general steps:
That's it; Excel creates a workspace file that includes information about the workbooks you currently have open. Later, when you want all the workbooks open, you can simply open the workspace file (it has an xlw extension) and all the workbooks that make up that file are opened.
While this is a great way to open all the workbooks you need at one time, it doesn't answer the requirement of always having those workbooks be open. For instance, your workspace may include five workbooks, but once opened you can easily close one, two, or more of the individual workbooks in the workspace. The requirement that it be "all or nothing" for the member workbooks isn't met.
If you want to make sure that all the requirements are met, then the only way you can do it is to use a macro. You could include a Workbook_Open event-handler macro in all five of the workbooks that checked to see if the other workbooks in the group were open or not. If they weren't, then the macro could open them. You would also need to create a Workbook_BeforeClose event handler that would make sure that all the other workbooks in the group were closed.
ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (8144) 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: Tying Workbooks Together.
Best-Selling VBA Tutorial for Beginners Take your Excel knowledge to the next level. With a little background in VBA programming, you can go well beyond basic spreadsheets and functions. Use macros to reduce errors, save time, and integrate with other Microsoft applications. Fully updated for the latest version of Office 365. Check out Microsoft 365 Excel VBA Programming For Dummies today!
Need to allow others to contribute to your Excel workbook? It's easy to do if you just share it. This tip provides an ...
Discover MoreDo you need to compare two workbooks to each other? While you can use specialized third-party software to do the ...
Discover MoreIf you have two workbooks that each have the same name, opening them at the same time in Excel could cause some problems. ...
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 © 2025 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