Hidden Links in my spreadsheet

[guntoter]

I am using Excel 2000. I took several large spreadsheets and combined them into one Giant spreadsheet. However, since I did this, every time I open the spreadsheet I get that "Do you want to update the links to other spreadsheets" warning. It's annoying. I have spent loads of time trying to find this slippery link, but no luck.
How can you find all your links to other spreadsheets (so I can wipe them out)???

 

[LTunnicliffe]

Try searching your each sheet for ":\". Basically your looking for the C:\SubFolder\ part of the link. See if this helps!

 

[Ken Puls]

If that doesn't work, the other place that I've found can hang you up is if you have any names defined in the Workbooks that you've copied from. You can check that out a couple of ways:

From your insert menu, choose Name. From here you can either:

1) Choose Define. Look for any name in the left hand side of the list that has a corresponding value in the right hand side. Chances are that if there is a value on the right, that it is to an external file. You will have to do this on each sheet, and make sure that you know where it is supposed to be going to so that you can re-establish the name if you delete it from your workbook completely.

or 2) Choose Paste, and paste a list of all the names in your worksheet. (Just make sure you have a blank area to do it.) This should show you where the names refer to external files, but you'll have to go back to (1) to delete them.

HTH,

 

[Smitty]

Guntoter,

This is a Delete Links Add-In from Microsoft that works pretty well.

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;188449

Also, sometimes, you can go to Edit --> Links and change the linked file to the one you're working in. This points the formulas in the right direction.

Hope that helps,

Smitty

 

[guntoter]

Thank you all for the ideas. When I get to work tomorrow I will try them to see if I can find those little stinkers.

Thanks again.
Guntoter

 

[guntoter]

Ken,
Your idea did it. I looked in the Defined Names of ranges, and, lo and behold, the little stinkers were hiding right amount the Named ranges that I created. I simply deleted all of the ones with #REF# as part of it's equation, and when I opened the spreadsheet the next time there were no link update messages. I didn't know excel would create it own ranges when you are manually merging several spreadsheets into one giant one, but it seems to have done just that.
Thanks again to all of you who answered.