Hello,
Our company recently pushed an update to our machines where the Microsoft Office suite majorly tweaked the security settings around macros running within Excel Files / attachments that are retrieved from Outlook Email messages. The macros are effectively being blocked unless you save down the file and re-open from saved location. I found the following web link with more information on this:
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/deployoffice/security/internet-macros-blocked
The vast majority of our 50+ automations that we use heavily rely on Macro-Enabled Excel files being sent via email to colleagues – who open these Excel email attachments from Outlook and the macros within the Excel are triggered to run upon Workbook Open (which properly format documents and perform complex calculations very quickly within the Excel). We start with Excel template file (.xlsm) with Macros stored within the Workbook_Open() activity that are copied to a new location (using RunCommand tool) and Alteryx dumps data to the various tabs of the Excel in this new location - then Alteryx attaches the new .xlsm file in an email.
Has anyone else encountered this issue recently with their companies - I heard the Windows update is about 6 months old, but we recently just installed it so maybe this has been dealt with by other? I've messed around with trying to use a VBS Script run via the RunCommand tool that triggers the Macros within the files to be run (aka Open the File in Question via the script, which triggers the Macros within the Excel to run, save the file, close Excel) before attaching them via Alteryx Email tool. I spent a few hours attempting all versions of this, but couldn't get it to work when triggers via Server/Scheduler - it would only ever work when run manually via my Designer.
The IT personnel said we could potentially work on marking my sender / these documents are trusted senders and documents to help bypass these, but our Excel files still seem to be getting marked as dangerous when sent via Alteryx regardless.
Any thoughts or ideas?
