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Google Sheetsspreadsheet~10 mins

File sharing and permissions in Google Sheets - Cell-by-Cell Formula Trace

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Sample Data

This table lists users and their file permissions in Google Sheets.

CellValue
A1User
B1Permission
A2Alice
B2Edit
A3Bob
B3View
A4Charlie
B4Comment
A5Dana
B5Edit
Formula Trace
=COUNTIF(B2:B5, "Edit")
Step 1: COUNTIF(B2:B5, "Edit")
Cell Reference Map
    A       B
1 | User   | Permission |
2 | Alice  | Edit       |
3 | Bob    | View       |
4 | Charlie| Comment    |
5 | Dana   | Edit       |

Formula references range B2:B5 to check permissions.
The formula looks at the Permission column from rows 2 to 5 to count how many users have 'Edit' permission.
Result
    A       B       C
1 | User   | Permission | Result |
2 | Alice  | Edit       |       |
3 | Bob    | View       |       |
4 | Charlie| Comment    |       |
5 | Dana   | Edit       |  2    |

Cell C5 contains the formula result showing 2 users have 'Edit' permission.
The result '2' in cell C5 tells us that two users have editing rights on the file.
Sheet Trace Quiz - 3 Questions
Test your understanding
What does the formula =COUNTIF(B2:B5, "Edit") count?
ANumber of users with 'Edit' permission
BNumber of users with 'View' permission
CTotal number of users
DNumber of empty cells in B2:B5
Key Result
COUNTIF(range, criteria) counts how many cells in the range match the criteria exactly.