Excel - greyed out ribbon commands

Question

I was able to add the Tables tab to the ribbon but most of the commands are greyed out including Table Style Options, Table Styles, Properties, etc. How can I enable these commands?

Answer 1

Hi Nancy,

Thanks for posting the thread on our forum.

If you create a simple table in Excel 2016, Table Style Options and Table Styles should appear. For the issue please upload some related screenshots for our reference. Meanwhile, I suggest you go to Control Panel>Programs>right-click on the Office 2016 applications’ icon>Change>Online Repair, restart the computer and then do a test to see the result. Moreover, upload a full screenshot of the  Account page in Excel 2016 for our reference. You can access the page via File>Account.

Note: Remove any private information before uploading the screenshots.

 

For the Properties option, it is only enabled when you get the table from an external data source such as a SharePoint Online list. If the table data isn’t from an external data source, the option is greyed out by default.

 

Best Regards,

Cliff

Answer 2

Hi Nancy,

May I know if further assistance is needed on this issue?

Best Regards,

Cliff

Answer 3

You don't have to do anything special to see the Tables Tab. It is "contextual". One of those annoying tabs that "magically" appear and disappear (I don't like this feature).  The "secret" to seeing these contextual tabs is the the relevant item has to be selected for the tab to be displayed.  So in this case, click inside of a table and the table tab will appear.

Another clue is that after you manually forced display of the Table tab most of the command buttons are disabled.  That is telling you that there is no table "ACTIVE" for the commands to work on.

Here are some articles about creating and using tables

@ Insert an Excel Tablehttps://www.myexcelonline.com/blog/how-to-insert-an-excel-table/****Excel Tables are very powerful and have many advantages when using them.  You should start using them asap regardless of the size of your data set, as their benefits are HUUUGE:

     1. Structured referencing;

     2. Many different built in Table Styles with color formatting;

     3. Use of a “Total Row” which uses built in functions to calculate the contents of a particular column;

     4. Drop down lists that allows you to Sort & Filter;

     5. When you scroll down from the Table, its Headers replace the Column Letters in the worksheet;

     6. Remove Duplicate Rows automatically;

     7. Summarize the Table with a Pivot Table;

     8. Supports calculated Columns so you can create dynamic formulas outside the Table;

ET R 0 Ribbon.docx

@Migrating to Tables in Excel ****https://excelsemipro.com/2011/03/migrating-to-tables-in-excel/ ****My first epiphany with Excel was realizing how powerful it could be if you put all your data into data tables. Over the years Excel began to incorporate data tables. First in Excel 2003 as “Lists” then as official “Tables” in Excel 2007.  So I’m going on quest. To find out all I can about Tables in Excel, both good and bad. Let the chips fall where they may. Yet this can’t be done in one post. So I’ll start now and continue with a little mini-series on Tables until I’ve satisfied my curiosity or I’m comfortable using them on a regular basis.

Table Design in Excel

https://excelsemipro.com/2011/03/table-design-in-excel/

I want to start using Excel Tables when building my spreadsheets. But first it’s instructive for me to explain how I think about “unofficial” tables or data tables as I like to call them.

Excel Tables – Styles, Conditional Formatting and Data Validationhttps://excelsemipro.com/2011/04/excel-tables-styles-conditional-formatting-and-data-validation/

I

Table Names in Excel

https://excelsemipro.com/2011/04/table-names-in-excel/

Formulas and Structured Data in Excel Tables

https://excelsemipro.com/2011/04/formulas-and-structured-data-in-excel-tables/

@ Excel Tables Tutorial & 13 Tips for making you a Data Guruhttps://chandoo.org/wp/data-tables/

Excel table is a series of rows and columns with related data that is managed independently. Excel tables, (known as lists in Excel 2003) is a very powerful and super-cool feature that you must learn if your work involves handling tables of data.

.  *  The most important thing after you create a table – Give it a meaningful name

.  *  Change table formatting without lifting a finger

.  *  Add Zebra Lines to Tables without doing Donkey Work

.  *  Tables come with Data Filters and Sort Options by default

.  *  Slice your tables with slicers

.  *  Bye, bye cell references, welcome structured references

.  *  Make Calculated Columns with ease

.  *  Total your Tables without writing one formula

.  *  Export Tables to Pivot Tables

.  *  Push the table data to Sharepoint Intranet Site

.  *  Print Tables Alone, with out all the other stuff around

.  *  Change, reshape or clean your table data with Power Query

.  *  Got multiple tables? Connect them to make a multi-table pivot

ET PT PivotTables Power Query BI.docx

@ Excel 2013 Tips, Tricks and Timesavers-Wiley.pdf  314pg (2013) (downloaded) John Walkenbach-101

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0DBjBjJsSoLX1Q4VWFlM0xESm8/view?usp=sharing 

Part V: Tables and Pivot TablesTip 74: Understanding Tables . .  .205

Tip 75: Using Formulas with a Table  .  .   .208

Tip 76: Numbering Table Rows Automatically  .   .212

Tip 77: Identifying Data Appropriate for a Pivot Table  .  .214xi

Tip 78: Using a Pivot Table Instead of Formulas  . . . .  .218

Tip 79: Controlling References to Cells Within a Pivot Table  . . . .  .222

Tip 80: Creating a Quick Frequency Tabulation   .224

Tip 81: Grouping Items by Date in a Pivot Table  . . . .  .227

Tip 82: Creating Pivot Tables with Multiple Groupings  .  .230

Tip 83: Using Pivot Table Slicers and Timelines   .232