CF9 password protect xls file

[Scott_thornton]

Hello,

Is it possible to password protect a .xls file generated with CFspreadsheet, such that when the file is opened a password is required to VIEW the spreadsheet?

I realise you can password protect a file to request a password to make modifications (e.g protect the worksheet), but I'd like to prevent the file from viewing\opening without a password.

Using CF9.

Thanks,

[BKBK]

You are right: the password attribute in the cfspreadsheet tag only protects against modifications to the content. There is, to my knowledge, no cfspreadsheet setting to prevent the user from opening the Excel file.

Nevertheless, there is a workaround. You may, after creating the Excel file, zip it and, in doing so, impose a password which will be required before the user can view or open it.

But there is an obstacle to using cfzip for this in Coldfusion 9. The password attribute was introduced in cfzip only from ColdFusion 11. In coldFusion 9, you could install 7-Zip and use the cfexecute tag to run it, setting the password switch.

Here follows an example, on Windows. It creates testArchive.zip and requires the password AbracadaBra to open the zipped file.

<cfset args = "a C:\Users\BKBK\Desktop\excelPW\testArchive.zip -pAbracadaBra C:\Users\BKBK\Desktop\excelPW\testFile.xls" >

<cfexecute name="C:\Program Files\7-Zip\7z.exe" arguments="#args#"  timeout="10" variable="status"/>

[Scott_thornton]

HI,

Thanks for your reply.

I ended up creating a password protected pdf file.