Locking Simulation Functions

RiskAMP Concepts

The RiskAMP Add-in uses custom Excel functions to generate random numbers and, more importantly, to process and analyze simulation results. One drawback of this approach is it makes it difficult to share spreadsheets, since other users might not have the Add-in installed.

To make a spreadsheet shareable, you can “lock” the RiskAMP simulation and random number functions. In the spreadsheet, all RiskAMP functions will be replaced by their calculated value. You can then save the spreadsheet, and users without the Add-in will be able to view it like any other spreadsheet. When you want to recalculate or re-run a Monte Carlo simulation, you can “unlock” the simulation functions in the spreadsheet, and the original functions will be put back in place.

To lock or unlock simulation functions, click the button on the Monte Carlo toolbar. Locked simulation functions are preserved when a document is saved, so they can be unlocked later.

If you lock simulation functions in a spreadsheet which already contains some locked function data, the original locked functions will be overwritten and will not be recoverable. A warning message will pop up before you overwrite previously saved data.