Restrict Editing (Word Only)Ĭontrol what types of changes can be made to the document. If you want to enforce protection from editing you should use the Restrict Editing function described below. Mark as Final simply notifies people who open the file that it should be considered final. Any user who opens the file will be able to click Edit Anyway if they wish to bypass this setting. Important: Mark as Final is not a security feature.

If you click Edit Anyway, the document will no longer be marked as final. The next time you open it, you will see a yellow MARKED AS FINAL message at the top of the document. When you mark a document as final, Word asks you to save the file. When a file is marked as final, typing, editing, commands, and proofing marks are disabled or turned off and the file becomes read-only.

You'll see the following options.Ĭommunicate that you're sharing a completed version of a file so that reviewers or readers are less likely to make inadvertent changes. In an open document, click File > Info > Protect Document. Allow users to read your file, but control changes Be sure to save your file to make that change permanent. To remove the password open the file, which will require the current password, go to File > Protect Document > Encrypt with Password. For more information see: Remove or reset file passwords using DocRecrypt.Īfter you've added a password to your file, that password will need to be entered before anybody can open the file. DocRecrypt can't retroactively recover files that were password protected before you deployed DocRecrypt. Note that you have to deploy the DocRecrypt tool BEFORE the file in question is password protected. If you lose or forget the password, it cannot be recovered or removed.Įnterprises: If you're concerned about losing access to password protected Office files in your enterprise, the DocRecrypt tool might be for you. End Users: Keep your password in a safe place.

How to edit a protected word document