Excel says This operation is not allowed. The operation is attempting to shift cells in a table on your worksheet.

Question

Excel says "This operation is not allowed. The operation is attempting to shift cells in a table on your worksheet."

I am trying to copy over data as previous worksheet has 1 million blank rows

Answer 1

Hello @Holly Slaughter,

Thank you for reaching out to the Q&A forum!

To better understand your situation, please provide me more detail:

1. Could you please share a detailed screenshot of the exact error message “This operation is not allowed” that you’re seeing?
2. I also noticed that your post is tagged under “Business.” Could you please confirm whether you’re using a work or school (organizational) account, or a personal account such as Outlook.com or Hotmail.com?
3. Additionally, as Q&A assistance mentioned, could you try converting the table to a normal range (Table Design => Convert to Range) and let me know whether the issue still occurs?

I will wait for the screenshot from you so that I can research the issue further and test in my environment.   

Please understand that our initial response may not always resolve the issue immediately. However, with your help and more detailed information, we can work together to identify the root cause and find a solution.   

Looking forward to hearing from you! 

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Answer 2

The error message "This operation is not allowed. The operation is attempting to shift cells in a table on your worksheet" typically occurs in Excel when you try to perform an operation that would require moving or shifting cells within a table. This can happen if you are trying to copy or insert data that conflicts with the structure of the table.

To resolve this issue, consider the following steps:

1. Check Table Structure: Ensure that the operation you are trying to perform does not violate the integrity of the table. For example, if you are trying to insert rows or columns, make sure they do not overlap with existing table data.
2. Copy Data Outside the Table: If you need to copy data, try pasting it into a range of cells that is outside of the table first, and then move it into the table if necessary.
3. Convert Table to Range: If the table structure is not needed, you can convert the table back to a normal range by selecting the table, going to the Table Design tab, and choosing "Convert to Range." This will allow you to manipulate the data without the restrictions of a table.
4. Remove Blank Rows: If your previous worksheet has a large number of blank rows, consider deleting those rows before copying data to avoid conflicts.

Following these steps should help you resolve the issue and allow you to copy your data successfully.