Workbook Manager for Microsoft Excel
This help page illustrates different ways of managing your Excel files with the help of Workbook Manager. Create, open, sort, rename, hide/unhide, print, close and delete your workbooks and worksheets easily. Just pick the option you need and see how to achieve the result.
How to use the Workbook Manager tool
Start Workbook Manager
To run the tool, click the Workbook Manager icon in the Manage group on the Ablebits Data tab:
On the left you will see the add-in pane with all currently opened workbooks and sheets in the worksheet tree. There's also a toolbar with the options that help you manage these Excel files.
How to create a new workbook
There are three ways to create a new workbook.
- Click the New Workbook icon on the add-in toolbar:
- Click the arrow next to the New Workbook icon and choose the corresponding option from the dropdown list:
- Use the Ctrl+N keyboard shortcut.
How to create a new worksheet
You can create a new worksheet in three different ways.
- Click on the arrow next to the New Workbook icon on the toolbar and select Worksheet:
- Use the Ctrl+Alt+W key combination to get the same result.
- To create a new worksheet from the worksheet template, click the arrow next to the New Workbook icon and select the necessary worksheet template from the dropdown list:
How to open a workbook
Click the Open icon on the add-in toolbar:
The standard Explorer window appears. You can browse for a workbook there.
The keyboard shortcut you can use for the same result here is Ctrl+O.
Tip. To open recently used workbooks, click the arrow to the right of the Open icon:
How to rename worksheets and workbooks
- Select the worksheet or workbook of interest in the list and click the Rename button on the toolbar:
Or, right-click the worksheet (workbook) and select the Rename option from the context menu.
Tip. You can also use the F2 hotkey. - After you type a new name, press Enter to save it:
Tip. You can also take advantage of the Save As option to save your workbook under a new name. See How to save a file under a new name.
How to save changes to the file
You can save the changes you made by clicking the Save button on the add-in's toolbar. Just like in standard Excel, this will save the selected file under the same name in the same location.
Tip. If you want to save all your changes in all workbooks at once, press Ctrl+A on your keyboard and then click the Save icon.
How to save a file under a new name
If you want to save your file under a new name to a new location, use the Save As option. You can find it if you click the arrow to the right of the Save icon:
It will let you change the file name and location in the Save As dialog box.
How to sort worksheets
To sort worksheets in a workbook alphabetically, choose a workbook in the list and click Sort A to Z or
Sort Z to A on the add-in toolbar:
You can also find the same options in the context menu if you right-click the workbook in the tree:
Tip. If you select several workbooks, you can sort all the worksheets they contain at once. To do this, hold the Ctrl key pressed, select the necessary workbooks, and then click Sort A to Z or Sort Z to A.
How to print a worksheet
Right-click the worksheet you want to print and choose the Print option from the context menu:
You will see the standard Print dialog box where you can define print settings.
Tip. You can use the Ctrl+P keyboard shortcut to do the same.
Tip. If you right-click the worksheet in the tree and select the Page Setup item from the menu, you will see the Page Setup dialog box where you can customize the page layout before printing your worksheet:
How to hide sheets
To hide a worksheet, right-click it in the list and choose the Hide a Sheet option from the menu:
Tip. If you right-click a workbook name and choose to Hide a Sheet, all worksheets except the last one in the file will become hidden at once.
Note. You can't hide all worksheets within one workbook. A workbook must contain at least one visible worksheet.
Tip. You can hide several worksheets at the same time. To do this, hold the Ctrl key, select the necessary sheets, right-click them and choose Hide a Sheet.
If you want to make your worksheet "Very Hidden", right-click it and choose to Make a Sheet "Very Hidden". By selecting a workbook name and choosing this option, you can make all sheets except for one "Very Hidden" at once.
How to unhide sheets
To show a hidden or a "Very Hidden" worksheet, right-click it and choose Unhide a Sheet.
Tip. You can also select a workbook that contains several hidden worksheets, right-click it and select Unhide a Sheet. This will make all the worksheets visible.
How to copy worksheets from one workbook to another
To copy a worksheet from one Excel file to another, press the Ctrl key and drag the worksheet to another workbook in the worksheets tree.
How to move sheets from one workbook to another
To move a worksheet, just drag it from one workbook to another in the worksheets tree.
How to collapse or expand workbooks
If you want to have only the names of the workbooks displayed in the add-in pane, right-click the tree and select Collapse All Workbooks. To see the names of all the worksheets each workbook contains, select Expand All Workbooks:
How to delete worksheets
To delete a worksheet from a workbook, select it and click the Delete a Sheet icon on the add-in toolbar:
Tip. You can also find the Delete a Sheet option if you right-click the worksheet. Or just press the Delete key on your keyboard.
How to close a workbook
To close a workbook, select it and click the Close a Workbook icon on the add-in toolbar:
Tip. You can find the Close a Workbook option if you right-click the workbook:
How to export workbook and sheet list
If you need to have a list of all opened workbooks and worksheets in one place, right-click the worksheet tree and pick Export Workbook and Sheet List from the context menu:
The add-in will create a new workbook and place the list of all currently opened workbooks and their worksheets there:
Responses
Leslie says:
March 26, 2019 at 6:48 pm
I created separate worksheets in my workbook for individuals. How do I take one and email it to them for their work to do without saving a separate file of them.
Hi Leslie,
Thank you for the comment. The Workbook Manager tool does not provide an opportunity to email Excel files. However, thank you for the idea, I will pass it to our developers and maybe it will be implemented in our coming releases.
Please do not hesitate to contact us with any other issues.
I wish I could assist you more.
Thank you.
Michelle Alexander says:
October 15, 2018 at 4:47 pm
Silly question...
I used to have the workbook manager attached to the left side of excel, but now it is free floating as a whole window, which doesn't make it very useful to manage multiple workbooks. How do I do I "re-attach" it to the xlsx.
Hello, Michelle,
Thank you for using Workbook Manager and for the question. The question is not silly at all!
If I have understood you correctly, the following steps will help:
1. Maximize your Excel file to make it full screen.
2. Run Workbook Manager. Left-click the name of the tool in the upper left corner of the tool’s window and, holding the left click, drag the window to the left side of your Excel book.
3. When your mouse reaches the left side of the monitor, a green stripe will appear. As soon as you see it, release the mouse button.
Please let me know if this helped!
Thank you.
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