Sheet Protection & Collaboration
What You’ll Learn:
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How to lock cells and ranges to prevent accidental edits
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How to protect entire sheets or sections
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How to collaborate in real-time while maintaining data integrity
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How to share sheets with different access levels (View, Comment, Edit)
Step 1: Sample Table – Project Tracker
Use this sample sheet for practice:
| Task Name | Owner | Status | Deadline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Design Homepage | Meera | In Progress | 2025-07-10 |
| Content Creation | Aman | Not Started | 2025-07-12 |
| Final Testing | Ravi | Completed | 2025-07-15 |
Let’s say you want only the "Owner" column editable by specific people.
Step 2: Protect a Range (Lock Specific Cells)
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Select the cells to lock (e.g.,
B2:B4) -
Go to Data > Protect sheets and ranges
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In the right pane:
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Enter a description (e.g., “Lock Owner Column”)
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Click Set permissions
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Choose:
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Only you (or)
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Custom: Add specific editors
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Click Done
✅ Now, only selected people can change that range.
Step 3: Protect an Entire Sheet
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Click the sheet tab at the bottom
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Click the dropdown arrow > Protect sheet
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Add a description (e.g., “Lock Sheet”)
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Set who can edit the sheet and click Done
Note: You can exclude specific ranges even when the sheet is locked.
Step 4: Share Sheet with Different Access Levels
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Click Share in the top-right
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Enter email addresses of people to collaborate with
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Choose access level:
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Viewer: Can only view
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Commenter: Can view + add comments
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Editor: Can view + edit
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Use "Get link" > Restricted/Anyone with link for broader sharing.
Step 5: Commenting Without Editing
Encourage collaboration without letting others change your data.
Steps:
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Share with Commenter role
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Select any cell → Right-click → Comment
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Add instructions, questions, or tag teammates using
@name
Mini Project – Team Task Sheet with Protection
Build a task tracker and:
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Lock "Owner" and "Deadline" columns for edit access only to the manager
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Leave "Status" column editable for all team members
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Share sheet with:
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Manager as Editor
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Team members as Commenters
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Clients as Viewers
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Bonus Tips:
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Use Version History (File > Version history) to track and restore previous versions
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Set Notification Rules (Tools > Notification rules) to get email updates on changes
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Combine cell notes/comments with permissions for clearer team communication
