How to Enable Macros in Excel for Windows and Mac?

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Macros can be extremely useful to automate repetitive tasks in Excel and boost your productivity. However, enabling macros also poses security risks like malware or data theft. In this comprehensive guide, I will walk you through how to carefully enable macros in latest versions of Excel on both Windows and Mac.

First, let me quickly explain – what are macros and why would you need them?

What are Macros and Why Enable Them?

Macros are automated scripts that record your actions in Excel and play them back later with a single click. For example, a macro can help transform raw dataset into informative charts and dashboards every month with no manual work needed once set up.

Macros harness the power of Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) – the underlying programming language for Excel automation. While VBA scripts can be complex for beginners, Excel provides a recorder to create macros intuitively.

Here are some common use cases for enabling macros in Excel:

Automate repetitive reporting and data tasks
Create custom functions not available in Excel
Standardize document formats across your organization
Automate data imports from databases and other sources
Quickly generate insights via pivot tables, charts and more

For instance, here‘s a simple macro code to format a selected dataset:

Sub FormatData()
   Selection.NumberFormat = "£#,##0.00" 
   Selection.Font.Bold = True
End Sub

Let‘s see how to enable macros safely on Windows and Mac to create such productivity scripts.

Enabling Macros in Excel on Windows

Follow these simple steps to enable macros in latest versions of Excel (post Excel 2016) on your Windows machine:

Launch Excel and click on Options from the left sidebar ribbon.

In the popup window, choose Trust Center on left and then click on Trust Center Settings.

In next window, select Macro Settings from categories on the left.

Finally, choose "Enable all macros" option and click OK.

This will enable macros to run across all workbooks on your Windows machine. Optionally, you can choose to disable macros again when not needed or enable digitally signed macros only for better security.

Enabling Macros in Excel on Mac

The process is quite similar for enabling macros on Mac devices:

Open any Excel workbook on your Mac.
Select Excel menu option from top toolbar and click on Preferences.
Choose Security from the popup window.
Check the option for "Enable all macros".

And you have successfully enabled macros to run on Excel for Mac! The macros settings may be greyed out on Mac if you have not upgraded to latest Excel version, so do keep your Office suite updated.

Security Risks of Enabling Macros in Excel

While macros allow more automation, they also pose some security challenges. Some key things to note are:

Malware Risks: Documents with macros can contain malicious code or viruses designed to compromise your system. This is a common malware attack vector.
Data Theft: Intruders can use macros to secretly transmit stolen confidential data from your system.
Privacy Breach: Sensitive personal or company information can be leaked via macro viruses.
System Damage: In some cases payloads maybe designed to corrupt files or crash systems by exploiting macro capabilities.

For instance, hackers often distribute infected Excel sheets via email phishing campaigns. The sheets contain harmful macros that can get triggered if downloaded and opened without adequate protections.

Some common payloads include crypto-mining malware, ransomware, botnets, spyware, backdoors for remote access and more. Developers often use compromised machines as launch points for further attacks.

So always exercise caution before enabling macros in Excel. Verify document sources, check for digitally signed scripts, limit permissions etc – especially for files from the internet or external drives. A malware infection can have severe financial and legal consequences.

How to Stay Protected while Using Macros?

Here are some tips to enable macros carefully in Excel:

Only enable macros when absolutely needed for your work
Disable macros again by default when not required
Be extra cautious for files downloaded from internet
Check macro virus protection in your antivirus software
Use recent versions of Excel and Windows/MacOS
Add macro-enabled files to trusted locations
Check PDF/HTML exports if concerned about hidden code
Limit macro permissions via VBA editor (advanced)
Scan files on VirustTotal before opening (advanced)

I also highly recommend using a paid antivirus suite like Bitdefender or Kaspersky for enhanced security layers against macro viruses or ransomware. Most good antivirus software have dedicated protections for such document-based threats. An investment here can save you from big losses in future due to malware.

Use Cases for Enabling Macros in Excel

Here are some examples of useful macros for automating repetitive Excel tasks:

1. Automate Reports Generation

If you need to create similar reports every week/month, then use macros for automated production instead of manual work. Macros can connect to databases or other sources, process latest data, create relevant pivot tables and graphs and more based on preset logic.

2. Standardize Templates

Have custom templates for financial models or other standard documents? Embed the required formats, validations, defaults etc. into reusable macros to significantly cut down maintenance efforts.

3. Automate Data Imports

Connecting external data sources like SQL databases, REST APIs, CSV/JSON files etc. is simplified via macros instead of complex manual operations. Relevant transformations and load options can also be automated.

4. Create Custom Functions

Perform complex logic and mathematical operations specific to your needs by encapsulating the steps into custom functions via macros. Call these functions easily later on any dataset.

As you can imagine, there are many more such automation use cases once you understand the possibilities with macros!

Alternatives to Enabling Macros

I‘ll also briefly cover some alternative options you have for Excel automation as well:

Excel Formulas and Functions: Great for standardized actions but limited in complexity possible
Power Query: More suited for complex data transformations and loading without VBA code
VBA Scripts: These provide deeper programmability than macros if you have developer skills
Add-ins and Excel Apps: Excel addins allow custom logic like macros without risks

So depending on your specific automation needs – macros may not always be the best approach due to the security overhead needed. Solutions like Power Query and Custom Functions may better suit some advanced requirements.

Conclusion

Macros can help boost productivity by automating repetitive Excel tasks but also pose malware risks if not careful. I have covered a step-by-step process to enable macros safely in latest versions of Excel on both Windows and Mac.

Do share your feedback or interesting macro use cases in the comments below! I am also happy to address any security related queries you may have while working with Excel macros.