How to Add Companion Files

If your workbook is linked to other workbooks or data sources, you can add these as “companion files.” This bundles them directly into the main application EXE, making distribution easier. When the application runs, these files are made available in the same virtual folder as the main workbook.

You can even include XLL add-ins.

For example, if your workbook uses an external text file as a data source, adding it as a companion file ensures it will always be found when the compiled workbook is opened on any computer.

To add files, click Add Files and select them. They will appear in the list. The “Storage Filename” column shows the filename that will be used when the file is compiled into the EXE and restored at runtime.

To access companion files with VBA, you can use the following function:

Public Function PathToCompiledFile(Filename As String) As String
    Dim XLSPadlock As Object
    On Error GoTo Err

    Set XLSPadlock = Application.COMAddIns("GXLSForm.GXLSFormula").Object
    PathToCompiledFile = XLSPadlock.PLEvalVar("XLSPath") & Filename

    Exit Function
Err:
    PathToCompiledFile = ""
End Function

You can then use this function to open a companion file:

Sub ExampleUsage()
    Dim wk As Workbook
    Dim filePath As String

    filePath = PathToCompiledFile("Test File.xlsx")
    If filePath <> "" Then
        Set wk = Workbooks.Open(filePath, False, False)
        MsgBox wk.Sheets(1).Cells(1, 1).Value
        wk.Close
    Else
        MsgBox "Companion file not found!"
    End If
End Sub