Manage data links

This page explains how to manage the data links between PowerPoint and external data sources, such as adjusting linked Excel ranges, updating individual linked elements with new data, and managing updates for all the linked elements in your presentation with the Data Links dialog.

To learn more about creating data links between Excel and PowerPoint, see Create elements from Excel. To learn more about creating and managing data links between Tableau and PowerPoint, see Create elements from Tableau.

Data links terminology

The following table defines specific terms that appear in this page.

Manage linked Excel ranges

In Excel, you can make changes to linked ranges in a number of ways that will affect linked elements in PowerPoint. The most common change to a linked range is changing the data values in the linked cells, then updating the linked elements with the new data. The following sections explain the other adjustments you can make to linked ranges that will affect linked elements:

• Adjust linked ranges
• Transpose and edit the data layout of linked ranges

You don't need to have PowerPoint open while adjusting linked Excel ranges. To see the changes in PowerPoint, you need to open a presentation that contains links to the Excel range and update the linked elements (see Manage the data in linked elements).

You can identify linked ranges by the color coded data link frames that appear around them. Frame colors indicate the status of linked ranges as follows:

• Green: There are open presentations that contain links to the Excel range.
• Red: There aren't any open presentations that contain links to the Excel range.
• Blue: The frame is selected.

When there are multiple workbooks or worksheets open with linked cell ranges that think-cell recognizes as a match, small tabs appear under each copy of the linked range that show the other copies. The cell ranges that have a connected data link to an open PowerPoint presentation appear in green tabs and the cell ranges that have disconnected data links appear in red tabs.

When you hover over a tab, a tooltip appears that shows the worksheet and workbook that contains that copy of the linked range. To open a worksheet that contains a specific copy, select the tab that contains that copy. Selecting the tabs in Excel doesn't replace the linked data source of elements in PowerPoint. To replace the data source of linked elements, use the Data Links dialog (see Switch to alternate data sources).

Adjust linked ranges

After creating linked Excel ranges, you can adjust the linked range by using different cells in the worksheet or by including or excluding cells. This is useful when you need to add another series to a linked chart or remove a row from a linked table.

To adjust a linked range, select the data link frame around the linked range, then choose from the following options:

• To use different cells in the worksheet as the linked range, drag and reposition the data link frame over the cells that you want in the linked range.
• To include or exclude cells, resize the data link frame by selecting and dragging a corner handle until the cells that you want are inside the frame.

Transpose and edit the data layout of linked ranges

Linked elements in PowerPoint use a default data layout to interpret and display Excel data. For example, in an Excel range that is linked to a column chart, rows represent series and columns represent categories by default (see Create charts from Excel).

You can change how think-cell interprets and displays Excel data in linked elements without editing the cells or changing the values in the linked Excel range. To do so, transpose a linked range or edit its data layout.

To transpose a linked range, right-click the data link frame around the linked range, then select Transpose Link .

To edit the data layout of a linked range, right-click the data link frame around the linked range, then select Edit Data Layout . To learn more about editing data layout, see Edit datasheet layout.

Manage the data in linked elements

In PowerPoint, you can update linked elements with new data from Excel, take back the latest data updates in linked elements, or let think-cell update linked elements automatically when there is new data. The following sections explain how to manage the data in linked elements individually:

• Manually update linked elements
• Revert updates to linked elements
• Automatically update linked elements

To update a linked element in PowerPoint, think-cell must connect to the Excel workbook that contains the linked range. For this connection, think-cell uses the following information about the Excel workbook:

• The name and file path of the Excel workbook
• The name of the worksheet that contains the linked data range

When you select a linked element on a slide, the information about its linked workbook and worksheet appears on top of the element.

To learn how to manage linked elements when think-cell hasn't connected to their Excel data ranges, see the following sections:

• Restore disconnected data links
• Manage the data in linked elements without using Excel data sources
• Switch to alternate data sources

Manually update linked elements

When a linked element has new data in its linked Excel range, the selection frame around the element turns green, and the Update button appears above the element.

To update the element with the new data, select Update . Alternatively, select the element to open the mini toolbar, then select Update Once .

Revert updates to linked elements

When you update linked elements, think-cell stores the elements' previous data set until you close the presentation. To take back the last data update to a linked element, select the element to open the mini toolbar, then select Revert .

You can use the Update Once and Revert buttons to switch between the most recent data update and the previous data in linked elements, even when the data link to the linked Excel workbook is disconnected.

Automatically update linked elements

You can allow think-cell to connect to linked Excel ranges and automatically update linked elements whenever the data in Excel changes. To do so, select the element to open the mini toolbar, then select Update Automatically .

As long as think-cell can connect to the linked Excel range, any changes in the linked Excel range will automatically appear in the linked element (see Restore disconnected data links).

To stop automatic updates for a linked element, select the element to open the mini toolbar, then select Disable Automatic Update or Revert .

Restore disconnected data links

When a data link between a linked element and its linked Excel range is disconnected, an orange question mark ( ) appears in the following locations:

• Above the element when you select it.
• On the element's mini toolbar, on the Reverted button.
  • If you selected automatic updates for the element, the orange question mark appears on the Automatic Update Enabled button instead.
• In the Data Links dialog, next to the linked element's data source (see Manage linked data with the Data Links dialog).

To restore a disconnected data link in your presentation, follow these steps:

1. Select the element.
2. Choose one of the following:
   • On the mini toolbar, select Update Once or Update Automatically .
   • Select Open Datasheet . Alternatively, double-click the element.

If think-cell can connect to the linked Excel range, it restores the data link and the orange question marks disappear. Depending on your choice, the element updates or the linked Excel range opens.

If think-cell can't connect to the linked Excel range, red exclamation marks ( ) replace the orange question marks. If you selected Open Datasheet (or double-clicked the element), the element datasheet opens instead. To learn more, see Restore disconnected data links when think-cell can't connect to linked Excel ranges and Manage the data in linked elements without using Excel data sources.

Restore disconnected data links when think-cell can't connect to linked Excel ranges

When think-cell can't connect to a linked Excel range to restore a data link, a red exclamation mark ( ) replaces the orange question mark above the linked elements and the update buttons. Common causes include changes to the name or location of the linked workbook or worksheet.

When there are changes to the name or location of a linked workbook or worksheet, you can restore disconnected data links manually. To do so, replace the data source of the linked elements (see Switch to alternate data sources).

Manage the data in linked elements without using Excel data sources

When think-cell can't restore a data link, you can still manage the data in linked elements using their element datasheets (see Element datasheets). To do so, select the element, then select Open Datasheet . Alternatively, double-click the element. The element datasheet opens, containing a copy of the most recently used data from the linked Excel range.

If you later link the element to an Excel range, changes that you made in the element with the element datasheet will not change until you update it with the linked Excel data. To ensure that the changes that you made in the element with the element datasheet aren't overwritten, think-cell disables automatic updates for linked elements when you open and edit their element datasheets.

Manage linked data with the Data Links dialog

When you have many linked elements in your presentation, managing their data individually can be impractical. The Data Links dialog gives you an overview of all data links in your presentation and allows you to manage multiple linked elements simultaneously.

To open the Data Links dialog, on the PowerPoint ribbon, go to Insert > think-cell > Tools and select Data Links . Alternatively, select a linked element to open the mini toolbar, then select Open Data Links Dialog .

The left side of the dialog lists the linked elements in the presentation as follows:

• Slides that contain linked elements appear as slide thumbnails.
• In each slide thumbnail, the linked elements appear as gray placeholders.
• Elements that have a pending update available appear with the green update icon on them (see Manually update linked elements).
• Elements with disconnected data links appear with the orange question mark on them (see Restore disconnected data links).
• Elements with disconnected data links that think-cell can't restore appear with the red exclamation mark on them (see Manage the data in linked elements without using Excel data sources).

The right side of the dialog lists the linked data sources. Each data source appears next to the first slide that contains an element linked to it. The list shows data sources as follows:

• Excel data sources appear grouped by workbook:
  • The workbook file name and location appear first.
  • Under each workbook, linked worksheets in that workbook appear as a list.
• Tableau data sources appear as URLs (see Create elements from Tableau).

When you hover over an element placeholder in a slide thumbnail, the element's linked data source highlights on the list. A tooltip displays the name of the worksheet, the file path of the workbook, the element's current update state, and the last time the element received new data from Excel.

If you select the element placeholder, the linked data source in the dialog and the actual element on the slide are also selected, and the slide that contains the element opens. Above the data source, a floating toolbar appears with the data update buttons. You can update linked elements in the Data Links dialog with the update buttons the same way that you update them individually on the slide (see Manage the data in linked elements). You can also select multiple linked elements and manage updates for them simultaneously (see Select and manage multiple linked elements).

To open the linked Excel range of an element, on the list of slide thumbnails, double-click the element's placeholder. If think-cell can't connect to the linked Excel workbook or worksheet, in the dialog, a red question mark appears next to the workbook or worksheet, and the element datasheet opens instead (see Manage the data in linked elements without using Excel data sources).

To highlight all linked elements in your presentation, select Highlight on Slide. A green highlight appears on all linked elements in your presentation. If you want an element to stay highlighted, select the element placeholder, then on the floating toolbar, select Always Highlight on Slide.

Select and manage multiple linked elements

You can select multiple linked elements in the Data Links dialog, then manage the selected elements simultaneously using the data update buttons (see Manage the data in linked elements).

To select multiple linked elements, do one of the following:

• Select a data source in the right column to select all elements linked to that source.
• Select a slide thumbnail to select all linked elements on that slide.
• Select and hold Ctrl, then select multiple elements, slide thumbnails, or data sources.
• Select and hold Shift, then select a range of slide thumbnails or data sources.
• Select Ctrl+A or Select All Linked Elements to select all linked elements in the presentation.

After selecting multiple linked elements, you can filter your selection to contain specific linked elements, such as removing elements that are already updated from your selection. To filter your selection, use the following Filter Selection checkboxes:

• : Elements that don't contain the most recent linked Excel data and elements with disconnected data links (see Restore disconnected data links).
• : Updated elements.
• : Elements that have automatic updates enabled.
• : Elements that are linked to Tableau (see Create elements from Tableau).

When you have selected the linked elements that you want, you can use the data update buttons on the floating toolbar to manage the data in the elements in your selection.

Switch to alternate data sources

Sometimes you need to make changes to an Excel workbook that has data links to elements in PowerPoint. If you rename, move, or duplicate a workbook or worksheet that contains a linked range, think-cell doesn't automatically switch to the changed data source to update the data links. Instead, the changed data source becomes an alternate source for the linked elements.

In the Data Links dialog, alternate sources appear on the Data Source dropdown menu. When think-cell detects a new alternate source for the first time, indicators appear in these locations:

• On the think-cell ribbon, on the Data Links button icon.
• In the Data Links dialog, next to the listed data sources that have a new alternate source, and next to the Data Source dropdown menu.

To switch the data source of linked elements to alternate sources, follow these steps:

1. In the Data Links dialog, choose how you want to switch sources:
   • To switch a linked element to the alternate source, select the element placeholder.
   • To switch all linked elements on a slide to the alternate source, select the slide thumbnail.
   • To switch all linked elements that use the same workbook or worksheet as their source to the alternate source, select the workbook or worksheet.
2. Open the Data Source dropdown menu.
3. On the dropdown menu, select the alternate source.

Remove data links

You can remove data links between elements and Excel ranges from PowerPoint or Excel. Removing a data link only ends the relationship between a specific element in PowerPoint and its linked cell range in Excel. In Excel, the cell contents don't change; in PowerPoint, the element stays in the presentation with its most recent data set.

When you remove a data link from a linked element in PowerPoint, the linked Excel range retains the data links it has with other linked elements. Similarly, when you remove a data link from a linked Excel range, the elements that link to that range keep their data links but can't update their data using that particular range anymore. You can still change their data source and keep using them as linked elements (see Switch to alternate data sources).

To remove a data link from a linked element in PowerPoint, right-click the element to open the context menu, then select Break Excel Link . You can also select multiple linked elements on a slide and remove their data links in the same way (see Select multiple objects).

You can remove multiple data links in a presentation simultaneously by deleting the listed data sources in the Data Links dialog (see Manage linked data with the Data Links dialog). To do so, in the dialog, select the workbooks or worksheets that you want to remove, then select Del (see Select and manage multiple linked elements).

To remove a data link from a linked range in Excel, right-click the frame around the linked range to open the context menu, then select Delete .

In Excel, you can remove data links from all linked ranges that have disconnected data links. To do so, on the Excel ribbon, go to Insert > think-cell > Tools and select Delete Disconnected Links . Alternatively, right-click a red frame around a linked range to open the context menu, then select Delete Disconnected Data Links .

Excel data links FAQ

What happens when I copy linked elements?

When you copy a linked element, both the original and the copy link to the same Excel data range and receive data updates the same way (see Manage the data in linked elements).

What happens when I delete linked elements?

When you delete a linked element, you also remove the data link to Excel along with it. If there are no other elements in an open presentation linking to the same Excel data range, the frame around the linked Excel range turns red. The linked range is not affected in any other way. To learn more, see Remove data links.

How do I get rid of the red frames in my Excel worksheets?

A red frame around a linked range indicates a disconnected data link, meaning that there no open presentations with data links that use the linked range. It doesn't necessarily mean that there are no linked elements that use that cell range.

You can remove a frame around a linked range by removing the data link. Removing the data link in an Excel range doesn't affect the data in the range. To remove data links from all linked ranges that have disconnected data links, on the Excel ribbon, go to Insert > think-cell > Tools and select Delete Disconnected Links . Alternatively, right-click a red frame around a linked range to open the context menu, then select Delete Disconnected Data Links . To learn more, see Remove data links.

Why are my linked elements indicating a pending update even though the Excel data didn't change?

Even small changes in Excel data, such as changes to decimal separators or currency symbols, register as new data for a linked element.

If you see pending updates for a linked element when you are sure that there is no new data in the linked Excel range, check the element's datasheet for any data changes. To learn more about changing data in linked elements with the element datasheets, see Manage the data in linked elements without using Excel data sources.

Why is Excel slow when I have lots of linked ranges?

You can improve Excel performance by disabling automatic error checking. To do so, follow these steps:

1. On the Excel ribbon, go to File > Excel Options.
2. In the Excel Options dialog, select the Formulas tab.
3. In the Error Checking section, cancel Enable background error checking.

I have a lot of Excel files to visualize with think-cell. Can I run think-cell in batch mode?

Yes, think-cell offers functions to update charts with data from Excel ranges programmatically and to create entire presentations from templates. To learn more, see Automation with Excel data.

What are the advantages of data links over Microsoft OLE?

You may be familiar with OLE (Object Linking and Embedding) in Microsoft Office. OLE is somewhat similar to think-cell's data links, allowing the creation of charts in PowerPoint that you can update with data from Excel. However, think-cell's linking technique has several advantages over OLE:

• The charts are always the same, whether they are linked or not. Even linked charts are native PowerPoint objects, not Excel charts pasted into PowerPoint. In particular, the data on which the chart is based is also stored in the presentation and can be viewed and edited even if the file linked to is unavailable.
• Charts can be linked to Excel at any time, not only when they are created.
• Linked charts remain editable, even when the linked data source is not available.