Audit Software

Commercially available model audit software helps to address spreadsheet problems by adding extra commands to Excel. These additional features are useful in developing and checking spreadsheets as they present lists of data to enable the identification of errors and inconsistencies.

For example, audit software packages allow users to construct the following:

• a list of all the worksheets in a workbook, plus key statistics such as the number of formulas;
• a sortable list of every formula that is distinct (not just a copy of its neighbour) along with a measure of its complexity so that the longer, more error-prone examples can be identified and prioritised;
• a list of the "constants" or "inputs", which can then be checked against source documentation;
• a diagram showing an overview of the patterns in each worksheet, highlighting if formulas have been copied inconsistently; and
• a sortable list of all the names in a workbook, their locations and characteristics.

At F1F9, we use and recommend the Operis Analysis Kit or "OAK" produced by Operis.