Policy
Don’t allow Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE) server launch in Excel
Microsoft Office 5532.1000
Policy overview
Key metadata and intent for this policy.
This policy setting allows you to control whether Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE) server launch is allowed. By default, DDE server launch is turned off, but users can turn on DDE server launch by going to File > Options > Trust Center > Trust Center Settings > External Content. For security reasons, turning on DDE server launch is not recommended. Note: For DDE server launch to work, Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE) server lookup must be turned on. Be sure that the “Don’t allow Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE) server lookup” policy setting isn’t enabled, because enabling that policy setting turns off DDE server lookup. If you enable this policy setting, DDE server launch isn’t allowed, and users can’t turn on DDE server launch in the Trust Center. If you disable this policy setting, DDE server launch is allowed, and users cannot turn off DDE server launch in the Trust Center. For security reasons, this is not recommended. If you don’t configure this policy setting, DDE server launch is turned off, but users can turn on DDE server launch in the Trust Center. Note: This policy setting only applies to subscription versions of Office, such as Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise.
Registry values
How enabled and disabled states update the registry.
| Registry location | Type | Enabled value | Disabled value |
|---|---|---|---|
| HKCU\software\policies\microsoft\office\16.0\excel\security\external content\disableddeserverlaunch | REG_DWORD | 1 | 0 |
Policy elements
Inputs and configuration options exposed by this policy.
This policy has no additional user input fields.
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