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XLTM converter

An .xltm file is a Microsoft Excel template that is allowed to carry VBA macros, so every workbook created from it inherits both the layout and the macro project. It is the template counterpart to .xlsm.

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Drop XLTM files here

Batch files can each use a different output. Nothing uploads for local conversions.

Working inputs include camera RAW, browser-local audio/video, PDF, CBZ/CBR comics, office documents, ebooks, markup, 3D models, structured text, images, and archives.

Where XLTM comes from

Introduced with the OOXML formats in Excel 2007, .xltm completed the pattern of pairing each macro-free Office format with a macro-capable sibling. Macro templates were a favourite way to spread automation — and, historically, macro viruses — across a department.

How XLTM works

  • Same package as .xltx: workbook, worksheets, shared strings, and styles in a ZIP.
  • Adds xl/vbaProject.bin carrying the compiled VBA project, and may declare xl/macrosheets parts.
  • Workbooks created from the template receive their own copy of the macro project.
  • Novus Convert deletes xl/vbaProject.bin and every xl/macrosheets part before parsing, and reads only xl/worksheets parts, so no macro is read, interpreted, or executed.
  • Cell values come from the results cached in the file; nothing is recalculated.

When to use XLTM

  • Departmental reporting templates with automated refresh or validation.
  • Data-collection workbooks whose macros enforce entry rules.
  • Recovering the data layout from a legacy automated template.
  • Converting an automated template to a macro-free .xlsx workbook.

Strengths and limitations

Strengths

  • Distributes layout and automation together as one file.
  • Extension declares macro capability, so policy can act before opening.
  • Open package format keeps the grid readable without Excel.

Limitations

  • Blocked by most mail gateways and by many corporate security policies.
  • Macro automation ages poorly across Excel versions and platforms.
  • Inherits the macro attack surface that made .xls and .xlsm notorious.

Compatibility

Excel 2007 onward on Windows and macOS opens .xltm with a macro prompt; LibreOffice Calc reads the grid, and Google Sheets and Excel for the web import the data while discarding the macros. Conversion here reads the cells only.

Standard docProps core and app parts ride in the package and are dropped by tabular exports.

Convert XLTM to another format