Is my file private?
Yes. The file is read and edited inside your browser, on your device, and nothing is tracked. It only leaves if you start Live and let someone in: then it goes straight to them, encrypted between your browsers.
Which files can I open?
Excel workbooks (.xlsx, .xlsm, .xlsb, .xls), OpenDocument spreadsheets (.ods, .fods), and delimited text (.csv, .tsv). The tool checks the file itself, not its name, and tells you if you gave it something else.
How big can the file be?
An .xlsx up to Excel's own limit of 1,048,576 rows opens without trouble on a computer: a file that size with 20 columns takes about 10 seconds and 650 MB of memory. Older formats and CSV files are read differently and stop at 500 MB. Your device sets the real limit.
Do macros run?
No, never. A file with macros opens as data, and the tool tells you they are there.
Why are numbers shown differently from Excel?
Numbers follow your region's decimal mark and thousands separator, as Excel does. The value itself is shown in the bar above the grid, unformatted, when you select a cell.
Will saving damage my file?
Saving an .xlsx rewrites only the cells you changed. Charts, images, pivot tables, comments and everything else stay exactly as they were, and Excel works out every formula again when it next opens the file. A change that cannot be written that safely, such as inserting a row, makes a new file instead, and the tool says what that one leaves out before you save.
Do formulas recalculate?
Yes, as you edit, and only what your change affects. Over 180 functions work, including lookups, conditions, dates, text and finance. Volatile functions like TODAY, dynamic arrays like FILTER, and table references are not worked out here: they keep the value saved in the file, the cell is marked, and the bar above the grid says why.
What about charts and images?
They are not drawn here, but they stay in the file when you save your changes back into it. The tool says when a file has them, and says so again when an export would leave them out.
Does sorting change my file?
No. Sorting, filtering and searching only change your view. If you edit a sorted view it holds still, so your place does not jump, until you ask it to sort again.
Can I come back to it later?
Turn on Keep on this device from the file menu. Your file and your changes stay in this browser and open again from the same menu, with undo still there. Nothing leaves your device.
Can I work on it with other people?
Yes. Live sends a full copy of the file, and every edit after that, straight between your browsers, encrypted end to end. Each link lets in one person, you compare a safety code before anything is sent, and you choose whether they can edit or only view. Your own tab holds the session: if you close it, everyone keeps the copy they have. Our server only helps the browsers find each other, and cannot read any of it. People in a session can see each other's IP address on a direct connection.
What happens if someone's connection drops?
They keep their copy and can go on working. A new link from you catches them up: their edits go back in, and anything that no longer fits, because someone changed that cell or removed its row, is listed with its value so nothing is lost without a word.
