Why Do My Excel Links Keep Breaking? (3 Reasons with Solutions)

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In this article, we’re going to show you the top 3 reasons why do my Excel links keep breaking. To describe our methods to you, we’ve selected a dataset with 3 columns: Name, Age, and Department.

why do my excel links keep breaking


Why Do My Excel Links Keep Breaking: 3 Reasons with Solutions

1. If File or Folder Is Moved Then Excel Links Keep Breaking

Firstly, if we move our linked file or folder then our links will break. For that reason, we may get a “#REF!” error.

We can click on a cell and see our link location. To fix this problem follow our next steps.

why do my excel links keep breaking

Steps:

  • Firstly, from the Data tab >>> select Edit Links.

After that, the Edit Links dialog box will appear.

  • Secondly, click on “Check Status”.

why do my excel links keep breaking

After that, we’ll see the status as “Error: Source not found”.

  • Thirdly, select Change Source…

why do my excel links keep breaking

A dialog box will appear.

  • Then, navigate to the location of your file.
  • After that, select the file.
  • Finally, click on OK.

why do my excel links keep breaking

We’ll use “OK” as the status from the Edit Links dialog box.

  • Then, click on Close.

Thus, we’ve solved the Excel links keep breaking issue.

why do my excel links keep breaking

Read More: How to Find Broken Links in Excel


2. Excel Links Keep Breaking If the File Is Renamed

If you rename the linked file or folder you may get an error. Here, our file is incorrectly named “dat.xlsx”. In our source file, we changed the name to “data.xlsx”. This will break our Excel link. To stop the Excel links from breaking, follow our steps.

Steps:

  • Firstly, from the Home tab >>> Find & Select >>> click on Replace…

why do my excel links keep breaking

Then, the Find and Replace dialog box will appear.

  • Secondly, click on Options >>.
  • Thirdly, type-
    • Dat” in Find what: box.
    • Data” in the Replace with: box.
  • Then, click on Replace All.

At this point, a confirmation dialog box will appear. Therefore, close that.

  • Finally, click on Close.

In conclusion, we’ve solved the issue of links keep breaking in another way.

why do my excel links keep breaking


3. If File Gets Deleted Then Excel Links Keep Breaking

Our links will keep breaking if we delete the linked file or folder. Now we can restore files or folders if we didn’t delete them permanently. Therefore, we can only restore files if they are in the recycle bin.

Steps:

  • Firstly, go to the recycle bin.
  • Secondly, right-click on the file.
  • Thirdly, click on Restore.

why do my excel links keep breaking

After that, if we check on the Excel file, the links are still broken.

  • Then, select cell C5.
  • After that, click on the formula box and hit ENTER.
  • Finally, repeat it for the rest of the cells.

why do my excel links keep breaking

Thus, we’ve fixed our Excel broken links. Moreover, this is what the final step should look like.

Read More: [Fixed!] Break Links Not Working in Excel


Practice Section

We’ve provided practice datasets in the Excel file. Hence, you can try that to follow our step-by-step guide.

why do my excel links keep breaking


Download Practice Workbook


Conclusion

We’ve shown you 3 reasons why do my Excel links keep breaking and solutions to that problem. If you have any problems regarding these, feel free to comment below. Thanks for reading, keep excelling!


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Rafiul Haq
Rafiul Haq

Greetings! I am Rafiul, an experienced professional with an engineering degree and an MBA in finance. Data analysis is my passion, and I find Excel to be an invaluable tool in this domain. My goal is to simplify complex concepts by providing comprehensive and user-friendly guides on Excel and finance topics, aiming to enhance people's productivity and understanding at ExcelDemy.

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