Macros in Microsoft Excel 2007 serve as modules of instructions that tell Excel to automatically perform a particular process or set of processes. Macros can be extremely useful in performing a wide variety of tasks. However, the same versatility that makes macros such useful tools also enables them to cause serious damage to a user's computer if a macro containing poorly written or malicious code is allowed to run. For this reason, macros are not enabled by default in Excel 2007; it is highly recommended that you verify that the macros you are attempting to enable come from a trustworthy source before continuing past this point.

To enable macros in Microsoft Excel 2007, take the following steps:

1. Open Excel 2007 and click the Office button in the upper left corner of the screen. At the bottom of this menu, click the Excel Options button.



2. Click the Trust Center button on the left. Then, at the bottom right, select Trust Center Settings.



3. In the new window that appears, choose Macro Settings from the sidebar and select Disable all macros with notification from the list of options that appear. This option keeps macros disabled but notifies users when macros attempt to run, allowing users to decide on a case-by-case basis which macros to enable. Click OK to exit this window.



4. For the new settings to take effect, it will be necessary to close Excel and reopen it. A security dialog box should appear beneath the Office ribbon the next time you attempt to run a spreadsheet that contains macros.



5. When the notification appears, click the Options button. Choose Enable this content from the options that appear to allow macros to run within the current spreadsheet. Click OK to close the window.