ExcelInsider Team
When you open an Excel file and see the warning “This workbook contains links to one or more external sources that could be unsafe”, it means that your workbook is pulling data from another file or online source and excel thinks they are unsafe. This is common in finance, HR, and reporting workbooks where multiple datasets are combined. However, these links can sometimes be broken, outdated, or unnecessary. We can fix these easily.
To fix issue like: Workbook containing unsafe links to one or more external sources that could be unsafe, follow these steps:
➤ Open your workbook and go to the Data tab.
➤ Click Edit Links and review the external sources.
➤ Choose to either Break Links, Update Links, or disable the update prompt in Excel settings.
In this article we will cover multiple ways to deal with external link warnings in Excel, including Find & Replace feature, Edit Links dialog, Disable Update Prompt, and Click Update methods.
Using Find & Replace Feature to Identify and Remove Unsafe External Links
When Excel workbooks show a warning: “This workbook contains links to one or more external sources that could be unsafe”, this happens when formulas refer to external files or network locations. The Find & Replace feature in excel helps easily locate these external links (usually ending with .xls, .xlsx, or .xlsm) and replace them with safe references.
Steps:
➤ Open Your Excel workbook that shows the warning about unsafe external links and click OK.
➤ Press Ctrl + F . A small “Find and Replace” dialog box will appear.
➤ In the “Find what” box, type .xl (this will catch .xls, .xlsx, .xlsm).
➤ Click Find All.
➤ Excel will list all cells that contain .xl. Click on each result from the list. Excel will take you directly to the cell with the external link.
➤ Replace or adjust the links that you find unsafe or broken. After replacing or editing all external references, save your workbook. The external link warning should disappear next time you open it.
Using Excel’s Break Links Feature to Turn off Unsafe External Source Warning
When a workbook triggers the warning “This workbook contains links to one or more external sources that could be unsafe”, you can break those links using this method.
Steps:
➤ Open your Excel file that displays the external link warning.
➤ After clicking OK we will see the Worksheet is Unsafe with one or more external sources.
➤ Click on the Data tab from the top menu ribbon. In the Connections group, click Workbook Links. If no external links exist, this button will be greyed out.
➤ A dialog box appears listing all external sources linked to your workbook (e.g., other Excel files, web sources). Click on Break all.
➤ If you want to remove any single links, select the link(s) you need to remove.
➤ Excel will prompt a warning: “Breaking links can’t be undone”. Click on the Break Links button below.
➤ Save the file under a new name (e.g., 63.Finance_Report_Cleaned.xlsx) to ensure you have a backup of the original linked file.
➤ Now the workbook is safe, self-contained, and won’t rely on risky or unavailable external sources. Hence you won’t see any warning before.
Disable Automatic Update Links Feature in Excel to Turn off Unsafe External Source Warning
Excel shows a prompt asking if you want to update links when you open a workbook that contains external references. This is designed for safety, but in cases where users are
confident that the external links are safe or no longer relevant, you can disable this option. This method is best for workbooks that are regularly shared among multiple users, such as HR, Finance, or Marketing reports, where prompts cause unnecessary interruptions.
Steps:
➤ Launch Excel and open your file. Click Yes to proceed upon seeing the error.
➤ Click on the File tab in the upper-left corner of the Excel window.
➤ From the File menu, scroll down and click Options. This opens the Excel Options dialog box.
➤ In the Excel Options window, select Advanced from the left-hand side panel. Scroll down to the General section.
➤ Locate “Ask to update automatic links. Uncheck this option to disable the update prompt.
➤ Click OK to apply changes.
➤ Close and reopen Excel to ensure the new setting takes effect and there will be no warning like before.
Applying VBA to Disable the Warning Prompt In Excel
This method uses a simple VBA setting to prevent Excel from showing the external links update prompt when we open a workbook. It is useful when we work with datasets that rely on linked files but you don’t want users to be interrupted by security popups every time.
We have a dataset that contains sales performance data, but one of the columns pulls values from an external workbook (linked file). When we open the workbook, Excel shows the warning: “This workbook contains links to one or more external sources that could be unsafe.”
Steps:
➤ Open the workbook that is showing the external links warning message.
➤ Open the Excel workbook, press Alt + F11 to open the VBA Editor window.
➤ Go to Insert > Module.
➤ A blank code window will open. Paste the following VBA code in the module window.
Sub DisableLinkUpdatePrompt()
Application.AskToUpdateLinks = False
End Sub
➤ Press F5 in the VBA editor or go back to Excel.
➤ Press Alt + F8 , select DisableLinkUpdatePrompt, and click Run.
➤ Save the workbook as a Macro-Enabled Workbook (.xlsm). This ensures that the VBA code will be available every time you open the file.
➤ Close and Reopen the workbook. This time, the warning “This workbook contains links to one or more external sources that could be unsafe” should not appear.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I remove links to external sources in Excel?
Go to Data > Edit Links > Break Link. This replaces the formulas pulling from external files with static values, removing the dependency.
How do I turn off external links warning in Excel?
Go to File > Options > Advanced. Scroll down to the General section and uncheck Ask to update automatic links. This prevents the warning prompt from showing each time you open a workbook.
How do I find ghost external links in Excel?
Ghost links are hidden references that don’t show up easily. Use Ctrl + F to search for “.xl” or “com” across the workbook, check the Name Manager, and review all chart sources.
How do I remove a link in Excel that is not found?
If a link cannot be broken from the Edit Links dialog, check for hidden names via Formulas > Name Manager. Delete names that refer to external sources, or use Find & Replace to remove references.
Concluding Words
The Excel warning “This workbook contains links to one or more external sources that could be unsafe” should not be ignored. You can resolve it using four reliable methods that we have shown. Also you can download the excel file we have used and practice these methods. Don’t forget to leave a comment regarding what you think of this article.
