I am using Visual Studio to build packages for SQL Server Integration Services. When modifying an "Excel Connection Manager" I see in the properties that there are "UserName" and "Password" properties. I am not sure what these are used for and I can't find any documentation.
Can someone tell me how to use these properties?
The "UserName" and "Password" properties in the "Excel Connection Manager" are not commonly used with Excel files, and that might be why there's confusion surrounding them. These properties might appear in the Connection Manager because the interface is shared with other connection types that do require authentication (such as connecting to a database).
When connecting to an Excel file, you generally don't need to authenticate with a username and password. However, in some rare cases where the Excel file might be hosted on a secure server or location that requires authentication, these properties could theoretically be used.
For standard Excel file connections on your local machine or accessible network paths, you typically don't need to worry about the "UserName" and "Password" properties. Your connection string would more commonly include the file path and other details like the Excel version.
Provider=Microsoft.ACE.OLEDB.12.0;Data Source=C:\path\to\your\file.xlsx;Extended Properties="Excel 12.0 Xml;HDR=YES";
In this case, the username and password properties would be left blank.