Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated November 12, 2022)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, Excel in Microsoft 365, and 2021
Steven needs to ensure that nobody enters information into a worksheet between 4:00 pm and 6:30 pm each day. He wonders if it is possible to use Data Validation to prevent a user from entering information in a worksheet during a particular time each day.
There are two general ways you can go about this. One approach is to use Data Validation to check the time and either allow or disallow data entry.
Figure 1. The Data Validation dialog box.
=OR(24*MOD(NOW(),1)<16,24*MOD(NOW(),1)>18.5)
The problem with this approach is in the very first step: You need to select all the cells in the worksheet in order to prevent data being entered in any of them. Plus, if you already are using Data Validation in any of the cells, this approach will overwrite those settings.
For these reasons, it may be better to use a macro-based approach. All such approaches can utilize event handlers to check for any changes. The following relies on the Worksheet_Change event, which means it is triggered only when Excel detects a change in the worksheet.
Private Sub Worksheet_Change(ByVal Target As Range) Dim sMsg As String sMsg = "No entries allowed between 4:00 pm and 6:30 pm!" If Time >= "4:00:00 PM" And Time <= "6:30:00 PM" Then MsgBox sMsg, vbCritical With Application .EnableEvents = False .Undo ' This undoes the change the person made .EnableEvents = True End With End If End Sub
Essentially, every time there is a change in the worksheet, the handler checks to see if it is between 4:00 pm and 6:30 pm. If it is, then a message box is displayed to indicate the error, and then the .Undo method is used to roll back any change that was attempted.
If you prefer, you could take a different approach and protect the worksheet if it is within the banned time:
Private Sub Worksheet_Activate() If Time >= "4:00:00 PM" And Time <= "6:30:00 PM" Then ActiveSheet.Protect MsgBox "Worksheet is protected." Else ActiveSheet.Unprotect MsgBox "You are free to edit now." End If End Sub
The Worksheet_Activate event handler is invoked every time the worksheet is activated (selected). If the worksheet is activated anytime outside of the banned time, then it is unprotected. Of course, the user could still manually unprotect the worksheet even during the banned time, so it is a good idea to use this approach in conjunction with an approach that is triggered every time a change is attempted, as discussed earlier.
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