Frequently asked questions

Formula Explorer is designed specifically for Google Sheets. You can open .xlsx and .xlsm files in Google Sheets, but they need to be saved as Google Sheets before using Formula Explorer.
Calculation Steps analyses formulas in two stages:
  1. Structure Analysis - In this stage, the primary structure of the formula is identified. You can explore precedents and navigate the structure, but value examination is not yet available. This process typically takes less than a second, regardless of the formula's complexity.
  2. Evaluation - Here, the layers of the formula are evaluated. For small to medium-sized sheets, evaluation takes just a couple of seconds. For extremely large sheets, it may take a bit longer. Please note that performance can vary depending on the load on our infrastructure and Google's infrastructure.

This issue occurs when Formula Explorer isn't granted the 'See, edit, create, and delete all your Google Sheets spreadsheets' permission. This access is essential for Formula Explorer to analyse your sheet and evaluate the formula tree.

For more information, refer to the Security section in our FAQ.

It changes cell background colours on the sheets you select, and nothing else. Formulas, values and formatting are left alone.

Before recolouring a cell, Formula Map saves the background colour it is about to replace. Removing the map writes those colours back and clears the saved record. You can rename a sheet while a map is active. Moving cells is not tracked, so remove the map before inserting, deleting, moving or sorting mapped cells.

To keep our cloud infrastructure efficient, backend services pause when Formula Explorer is not in continuous use. The first analysis after a quiet period therefore waits a moment while they resume, which takes a second or so. Analyses after that start immediately.
Formula Explorer utilises secure Google APIs for authentication and authorisation, adhering to Google's OAuth2 process. Upon successful authentication with Google, Formula Explorer presents a consent screen that has been reviewed and approved by Google. This screen allows you to confirm access to your Google Sheets. In CogniSheets Ltd, we do not have access to your password. Instead, we operate with a secure and encrypted token issued by Google systems upon successful authentication.

We follow the principle of least privilege and do not request access to your Google Sheets data during login. Formula Explorer will only request access when you use features that analyse formulas (such as Calculation Steps, Precedents, Dependents, or Formula Map), as this is necessary to retrieve and analyse your sheet data.

If you choose not to grant this access, Utilities will continue to work normally. Calculation Steps, Precedents, Dependents, and Formula Map require access and will be unavailable.

Below are the Google API Scopes we request, along with an explanation of how and when we use them:

  • Personal Info and Google Account Email - We use your Google email address as part of the authorization process. This basic access lets you sign in and use Utilities. Features that analyse formulas (such as Calculation Steps, Precedents, Dependents, or Formula Map) require additional Sheets access.

    We do not store any additional personal information but may access public information, such as when communicating with you. For more details, please see our Privacy Policy and Security Policy.

  • See, edit, create, and delete all your Google Sheets spreadsheets - To evaluate the formula tree in your Google Sheets, we need access to the data used by the formula. Because Google does not currently provide more granular access levels, this broader scope is necessary to evaluate key formula steps within the current sheet.

    This access allows Formula Explorer to retrieve the values of the formula and its intermediate layers.

    Formula Map also writes to the spreadsheet. It sets the background colour of cells on the sheets you select, and stores the colours it replaced so the map can be undone. This is the only feature that changes your spreadsheet, and it changes nothing except cell background colours.

    Please note that no one at CogniSheets Ltd can view, store, or interact with any of your Google Sheets data.

Formula Explorer does not request access to Google Drive and as a result cannot access any data, including any other Google Sheets, besides the one that is being analysed.

That is where Formula Map keeps the original cell colours it needs to undo a map. It is created hidden when you apply a map, and deleted once the map has been removed. It holds colour data only.

Keeping it in your spreadsheet rather than on our servers means the undo still works if you lose your connection or sign in from another machine. If you delete the sheet yourself while a map is active, the colours cannot be restored automatically.

You can withdraw access from the Settings dialog. Open it by clicking the Formula Explorer icon, either the extension icon in the Chrome toolbar or the Formula Explorer icon in the top-left corner of Google Sheets. Then navigate to the Login Details tab and click the Log Out button in the bottom-right corner.
Alternatively you can always withdraw the permissions explicitly in Permissions section in My Google Account.
To delete your data send us a request to info@cognisheets.com.

If you can't find the answers you're looking for above, feel free to contact us or visit the Support Hub.