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Inventory the package and every sheet state
Start with a neutral workbook ID, digest, package parts, workbook relationships, sheet names, relationship targets, visibility state, and defined names. The Microsoft Learn, (opens in a new tab) documentation describes worksheets as package parts containing cells, values, formulas, and characteristics. Record charts, tables, pivot caches, external links, queries, and macros as package-level objects even when the review does not inspect their contents.
| Package field | Record | Stop if |
|---|---|---|
| Workbook identity | Neutral ID and digest | A derivative cannot be matched to source |
| Sheet relationship | Name, relationship ID, target part | Target is missing or ambiguous |
| Visibility | Visible, hidden, or veryHidden | Only the visible tab is inventoried |
| Defined names | Name, scope, reference, and status | Reference points to an external object |
| External links | Relationship and resolution state | Reader follows a link automatically |
| Macros and queries | Presence and inspection state | Binary or query content is treated as absent |
The hidden worksheet guide identifies Hidden and VeryHidden states. Preserve the exact state and package path. A hidden sheet is not necessarily sensitive, and a visible sheet is not necessarily complete.
Compare formulas with cached values and types
For each target cell, record address, cell type, formula text, cached value, shared-formula or array-formula context, style or number format, and whether a recalculation occurred. The Microsoft Learn, (opens in a new tab) documentation describes the formula and value elements, but a cached value reflects a prior calculation state. A workbook can therefore show a number without proving that it is current under a different reader or input set.
| Cell evidence | Record | Interpretation boundary |
|---|---|---|
| Formula | Exact text and reference scope | Formula text is not its evaluated result |
| Cached value | Present, absent, type, and text withheld state | Cached value may be stale |
| Cell type | Number, string, boolean, error, or blank | Display formatting is not storage type |
| Dependencies | Local, named, hidden, or external references | Cell reference is not a business definition |
| Error token | Exact token and location | Error is not silently converted to blank |
| Calculation state | Mode, chain state, and last known update | Date is not proof of recomputation |
Synthetic formula fixture
<c r="B2"><f>A2*2</f><v>fixture-cached-value</v></c>
<c r="C2"><f>A2+Hidden!B4</f></c>
<!-- no real workbook values; review dependency and cache state -->The fixture includes a cached value and a formula with a hidden-sheet reference but no private values. Record missing cached value as unknown, not zero. Do not evaluate a formula by substituting a guessed input.
Use calculation-chain evidence without overclaiming
The Microsoft Learn, (opens in a new tab) documentation describes the chain as the order in which cells were last calculated and explains that it is not a dependency tree and is not required. Record whether the chain exists, which cell references it contains, and whether a reader recalculated. If the chain is absent, do not assume that formulas were never evaluated or that the workbook is invalid.
| Finding | Disposition | Next action |
|---|---|---|
| Formula and cache present | Conditional | Record calculation state and inputs |
| Formula present, cache absent | Hold interpretation | Request controlled recalculation evidence |
| Hidden dependency unresolved | Hold | Inventory path without exposing values |
| External link or query present | Restricted | Record boundary and refresh state |
| Calculation chain absent | Unknown | Do not infer validity or staleness |
| Workbook opens with repair warning | Hold | Preserve warning and package evidence |
Stop conditions
- Stop if formulas, cached values, and cell types cannot be distinguished in the package.
- Stop if hidden or veryHidden sheets, defined names, external links, queries, or macros remain outside the inventory.
- Stop if a reader recalculates or repairs the workbook without recording the resulting changes.
- Stop if a cached value is treated as current without input and calculation-state evidence.
- Stop before sharing private workbook content when the handling boundary or owner authority is unknown.
Close with a workbook packet and a qualified next step
Keep the package inventory, sheet states, formulas, cache states, dependencies, names, links, calculation evidence, and unresolved questions together. Pair this guide with the data provenance log for source and transformation history and the data card template for collection context. Spreadsheet structure is not a business-meaning, quality, privacy, or rights certificate.
For a supported non-health collection, after the owner has authority to describe the scope and a controlled workbook packet, the qualified appraisal request path may be a preparation step. It does not recalculate formulas, inspect hidden sheets, resolve links, create a quote, match a buyer, issue a legal opinion, or grant a license.
Takeaways
- Inventory every sheet state and package relationship before reading the visible grid.
- Keep formula text, cached value, cell type, and calculation state distinct.
- Trace hidden sheets, defined names, external links, queries, and macros without exposing values.
- Treat missing calculation-chain evidence as unknown, not as a pass or failure.