Handling “Privacy settings prevent data from being shared” in co-authored books.

The “Privacy settings prevent data from being shared” error in co-authored Excel workbooks occurs when a file’s privacy configuration conflicts with real-time cloud collaboration. This happens under two specific conditions: the workbook has an active setting that strips personal user metadata on save, or embedded Power Query connections contain mismatched data privacy levels. Because co-authoring relies on tracking individual user identities and syncing changes between authors, these privacy restrictions stop real-time synchronization.

Quick Fix

To restore co-authoring immediately, disable the metadata removal setting: open the workbook in desktop Excel, go to File > Info, and look for Inspect Workbook. If a message says personal details are being removed on save, click Allow this information to be saved in your file, then save the workbook.

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Cause 1: “Remove Personal Information from File Properties on Save”

Real-time co-authoring requires Excel to log and exchange user identifiers so authors can see who is editing each cell. If someone previously ran the Document Inspector and left the personal information filter active, Excel blocks co-authoring to honor that privacy rule.

How to Clear the Document Inspector Restriction:

1. Open the file in the Excel Desktop App.
2. Click File > Options > Trust Center.
3. Click Trust Center Settings, then select Privacy Options.
4. Look under the Document-specific settings section.
5. If the checkbox for “Remove personal information from file properties on save” is checked, uncheck it.
   (Note: If this option is grayed out, go to File > Info, click Allow this information to be saved in your file right next to the Inspect Workbook button, and save).
6. Save and close the file. Once reopened, AutoSave and multi-user co-authoring will resume.

If clearing this setting still leaves the AutoSave switch grayed out, verify that your workbook does not have broader sync blocks by reviewing Troubleshooting “AutoSave” being disabled automatically..

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Cause 2: Power Query Data Privacy Mismatches Across Co-Authors

If the workbook uses Power Query (Get & Transform Data) to pull information from external sources like SQL databases, SharePoint lists, or web APIs, Excel enforces privacy levels to keep sensitive organizational data from leaking into public sources.

When multiple authors open a workbook, their individual Excel installations evaluate these privacy boundaries independently. If one user has their local privacy levels set to Private while another has them set to Organizational or Public, the background mashup engine blocks data exchange.

Step 1: Align Workbook Privacy Levels

1. On the Data tab, click Get Data > Data Source Settings.
2. Select Global permissions, locate the data sources used by the workbook, and review the assigned Privacy Level.
3. Switch to Data sources in current workbook.
4. Set matching privacy levels across all queries used in the model (e.g., set all internal business sources to Organizational).

For a deeper look at resolving firewall blocks when merging disparate data feeds, see How to fix Privacy Level Mismatches: Public vs. Organizational vs. Private..

Step 2: Configure Fast Combine (If Permitted by Policy)

If your organization allows bypassing local privacy evaluation for internal files:

1. Go to File > Options > Trust Center > Trust Center Settings.
2. Select External Content.
3. Under Data Connections, ensure queries are permitted to run.
4. In Power Query (via Data > Get Data > Launch Power Query Editor), go to File > Options and settings > Query Options.
5. Under Current Workbook, click Privacy.
6. Select “Ignore the Privacy Levels and potentially improve performance”.
7. Save the workbook and upload the revised version to SharePoint or OneDrive.

If queries fail entirely when combining data across network boundaries, refer to Formula.Firewall: Data privacy settings prevent combining sources..

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Step 3: Diagnostic Escalation (Cloud vs. Desktop Conflicts)

If privacy errors persist despite completing the steps above, check whether one collaborator is working in Excel for the web while another is using an outdated desktop build.

• Excel Online automatically applies strict tenant privacy rules to connected data models.
• If a desktop user’s local Trust Center policy conflicts with Microsoft 365 tenant-wide data loss prevention (DLP) policies, the cloud server will continually reject the desktop user’s sync requests.
• Have all collaborators close the file, then reopen it simultaneously in Excel for the web. If the error disappears online, the issue is tied to a specific user’s desktop Trust Center configuration.

When conflicting sync changes occur because of privacy drops, see “Merge Conflict”: Resolving co-authoring errors in Excel Online..

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Summary Checklist

• Go to File > Info and confirm that “Remove personal information on save” is deactivated.
• Ensure all queries in Data Source Settings share consistent privacy levels.
• Check that all active editors run modern, supported versions of Microsoft 365.
• Confirm organizational DLP rules are not flagging workbook cells as restricted data.