Forum Discussion
Excel help - protecting sensitive information in model
G'day,
I was hoping for some help / guidance around the best way to secure/protect IP within an excel model. The idea would be that other users are able to obtain outputs from a model based on a given set of inputs, without being able to see the model contents . What I'd like to accomplish is this:
1)An excel sheet or workbook where inputs to a model are entered. The input sheet/workbook links through to a model
2)A model - either on a separate sheet or within a separate workbook that performs calculations based on the given inputs before returning a set of outputs to the user (to the same sheet/workbook as the inputs)
As mentioned, the calculation procedure and formula within the model is highly sensitive, however I require others to be able to quickly obtain outputs from the model for a given set of inputs.
I'd like to know the best way to do this. Is it simply to have it all within the same workbook and to password protect the model sheet? Or is it more secure to have the model file located in a common sharepoint with restricted access, and for users to have a separate inputs/outputs workbook that links through to the model?
Cheers,
Matt
2 Replies
Matt
The first question that comes to my mind is: What is so special about the formulas? Because every function that is used is known.
Password protection is merely used to ensure that nobody destroys formulas by accident. Password protection can be removed easily.
The best way to protect the model would be to develop it as an Add In. But there is always the possibility of reverse engineering.
The mathematical operations themselves are not complex or information sensitive - it is more how inputs are manipulated using various calculations as well as the fixed parameters within the model (that are also used within the model calculation) that I'm trying to protect.
