How to Use Protect Worksheet in WPS on macOS

Use Protect Worksheet through 4 how-to topics, all available without membership; start from the How-to Index to jump to the task you need.

How-to Index

How-to Guide

1. Turn on worksheet protection

Entry: Review → Protect Worksheet

1. Open the worksheet that you want to protect.
2. Click the Review tab at the top of the window.
3. Click Protect Worksheet.
4. Enter a protection password in the dialog box.
5. Confirm the password and click OK.

Success Criteria

• Interface result: The current worksheet enters a protected state.
• What you can do next: You can continue viewing the sheet and use any actions that were allowed.
• No unwanted effect: Unauthorized editing actions are restricted.

Tips While Using

• Keep the password in a safe place because it is needed when you remove protection.
• If no password is set, another user with access to the worksheet may also be able to unprotect it.

2. Set allowed actions for users

Entry: Review → Protect Worksheet

1. Open the target worksheet and click Review.
2. Click Protect Worksheet.
3. In the list of actions allowed for users of this worksheet, select the actions you want to keep available.
4. Keep at least essential options such as selecting unlocked cells when needed.
5. Enter and confirm the password, then click OK.

Success Criteria

• Interface result: The worksheet is protected, but the selected actions remain available.
• What you can do next: Users can still select cells, sort, or filter based on the settings you chose.
• No unwanted effect: Actions that were not selected remain restricted.

Tips While Using

• If users need to sort or filter while the sheet is protected, enable those permissions before turning on protection.
• Match the permission settings to the actual spreadsheet scenario so editing access does not become too broad.

3. Remove worksheet protection

Entry: Review → Unprotect Worksheet

1. Open the protected worksheet.
2. Click the Review tab.
3. Click Unprotect Worksheet.
4. Enter the password that was set earlier.
5. Click OK to remove protection.

Success Criteria

• Interface result: The worksheet returns to an editable state.
• What you can do next: You can edit cells, formatting, and protection settings again.
• No unwanted effect: Existing data does not change automatically when protection is removed.

Tips While Using

• If the password is entered incorrectly, protection cannot be removed.
• After making changes, you can turn protection on again if needed.

4. Use protection together with locked cells

Entry: Review → Lock Cell / Protect Worksheet

1. Select the cell range that you want to limit.
2. Use the lock cell setting to confirm which areas should be protected.
3. Then click Protect Worksheet on the Review tab.
4. Set the allowed actions and password as needed.
5. Click OK so the locked-cell setting takes effect under worksheet protection.

Success Criteria

• Interface result: The selected locked area cannot be changed freely.
• What you can do next: Unlocked areas can still accept input or selection based on your settings.
• No unwanted effect: Only the lock setting and protection state take effect together; the original data stays unchanged.

Tips While Using

• If you only lock cells without turning on Protect Worksheet, the restriction does not take effect.
• If you need AutoFilter to remain available, turn on filtering first and then apply protection.