Trouble linking Excel table

[RogerC]

I am trying to link an Excel spreadsheet to my Access database (I have done this many times before). When I try to create the Linked Table, Access tells me it "can't access the data. Please check that the file exists and is in the right format". Does anyone know why this might be happening? The Excel workbook is 'shared and protected'. Could that be why? Thanks.

 

[Joe4]

Does anyone know why this might be happening? The Excel workbook is 'shared and protected'. Could that be why?

Good question. What happens if you make a copy of the Excel file, unprotect it, and try to link that file? If that works, then you know that is what is causing the problem.

 

[RogerC]

Thanks for the suggestion, jmiskey! Apparently the 'Shared and Protected' condition of the workbook IS the reason I cannot link to it. When I temporarily remove sharing and protection, I can link to the workbook and use the linked table in Access. However, this doesn't do me any good, because the workbook needs to be shared and protected and when I turn sharing and protection back on, I then get 'Unable to decrypt file' when I try to use the linked table in Access.