Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Excel in Microsoft 365. If you are using an earlier version (Excel 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Excel, click here: Automating Copying Macros.

Automating Copying Macros

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated August 19, 2023)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Excel in Microsoft 365


1

Sreekanth asked if there is a way to automate the copying of macros from one workbook to another. It seems that Sreekanth has to create a new "distribution" workbook each month that contains a PivotTable that analyzes data, and the workbook needs to contain certain macros.

Perhaps the easiest way to do this is to create a new Excel template that contains only the macros you want to distribute. Then, you can use that template as a basis for your distribution workbook. Simply copy your PivotTable to the workbook, and it will be ready to distribute, as needed.

You could also, if desired, created an Excel add-in that contains the macros you want. (How you create add-ins is discussed in other ExcelTips.) You could then send the add-in to all recipeints of your distribution workbook and ask them to install the add-ins on their system.

If you would rather not use a template or mess with an add-in, then you can create a macro that will copy macro procedures from one workbook to another. Such a macro can get rather involved, and would take some testing. A good place to start in developing such a macro is a great online resource located at this Web page:

http://www.cpearson.com/excel/vbe.aspx

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the ExcelTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (11655) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Excel in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Excel here: Automating Copying Macros.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Using Less Paper on Printouts

If a worksheet contains nothing but a bunch of values in column A, you may be loathe to print the worksheet and "waste" a ...

Discover More

Returning to Where You Were Before Finding Something

When you use the Find and Replace dialog box to do editing, you could easily lose track of where you were before ...

Discover More

Automatically Changing a Cell's Background Color

It is often desired to change what is displayed in a cell based on what is in a different cell. What if what you want to ...

Discover More

Professional Development Guidance! Four world-class developers offer start-to-finish guidance for building powerful, robust, and secure applications with Excel. The authors show how to consistently make the right design decisions and make the most of Excel's powerful features. Check out Professional Excel Development today!

More ExcelTips (ribbon)

Checking the Scope of a Defined Name

When creating a macro to work with the names of defined ranges, you may need to know whether the scope of the name is for ...

Discover More

Pulling Apart Characters in a Long String

You can easily use formulas to pull apart text stored in a cell. For instance, if you need to pull individual characters ...

Discover More

Understanding Variables in VBA Macros

You can create and use all sorts of variables in your macros. This tip examines all the different data types you can specify.

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 2 + 3?

2023-08-19 11:03:25

J. Woolley

For related discussion, see https://excelribbon.tips.net/T011855_Automating_the_Importing_of_Macros.html


This Site

Got a version of Excel that uses the ribbon interface (Excel 2007 or later)? This site is for you! If you use an earlier version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the menu interface.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.