Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Microsoft 365. If you are using an earlier version (Word 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Word, click here: Accessing the Source of a Document Link.

Accessing the Source of a Document Link

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated November 17, 2018)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Microsoft 365

When you have information from other applications linked in your document, you may find it helpful to pull up the source of the link and review the material in that application. Word makes this easy through any of the following methods:

Double-click on the linked item.
Click the Office button and then click Prepare (if you are using Word 2007) or click the File tab of the ribbon and click Info (if you are using Word 2010 or a later version). Click Edit Links to Files, and then select a link in the list of available links. Click on Open Source.
Right-click on the linked item, choose Linked Object from the resulting Context menu (the actual wording of the option may vary, depending on the nature of the link), and then choose Open Link from the resulting submenu.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (5933) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Accessing the Source of a Document Link.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. Learn more about Allen...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Stubborn Thumbnails

One of the tools that Word provides is to display thumbnails of your document pages at the left side of the program ...

Discover More

Displaying a Hidden First Row

If you hide the first rows of a worksheet, you may have a hard time getting those rows visible again. Here's a simple way ...

Discover More

Listing Dates at Regular Intervals

Need a way to enter dates for every other Tuesday (or some other regular interval)? Excel makes it easy, providing ...

Discover More

The First and Last Word on Word! Bestselling For Dummies author Dan Gookin puts his usual fun and friendly candor back to work to show you how to navigate Word 2013. Spend more time working and less time trying to figure it all out! Check out Word 2013 For Dummies today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Updating Automatic Links

Normally, Word updates links within your document when you first open the document. If you don't want Word to do this, ...

Discover More

Changing Document Links

If your document contains links to information in other documents, you can modify the source document that it is linked ...

Discover More

Breaking a Document Link

Word allows you to link external information into your documents. If you no longer need to maintain the active link, you ...

Discover More

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

Notify me about new comments ONLY FOR THIS TIP

Notify me about new comments ANYWHERE ON THIS SITE

Hide my email address

What is two less than 9?

2018-11-17 14:28:53

Allan

"Click the Office button and then click Prepare (if you are using Word 2007). Click Edit Links to Files, and then select a link in the list of available links. Click on Open Source."
There is no "Edit Links to Files" in Word 2007. See image. (see Figure 1 below)

Figure 1.

This Site

Got a version of Word that uses the ribbon interface (Word 2007 or later)? This site is for you! If you use an earlier version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the menu interface.