Rename Multiple Columns with Power Query

Sometimes you get data from others that have columns that you'd need to change the name. If it's something you do once, using the Excel Find and Replace function is fine. But if it's something you're going to do multiple times or a recurring basis, you'd think that a VBA macro is something that will need to be written. And if you don't know VBA, this bulk automation process may seem out of reach. However if you have Power Query in your versions of Excel, it's actually quite easy to rename multiple columns at once with some nested M code functions.

Removing Multiple Columns in Excel | Power Query

To remove or delete blank columns in an Excel table is fairly straight forward and easy. Just select the column or press Ctrl to select multiple columns to delete. However if there might be a LOT of columns and they might be non consecutive (i.e., not next to each other). You may have received this table from a system, person or some other source that has just not thought about you as a end user (the table has twenty or more empty columns EVERYWHERE) and it's going to be a lot of clicking. There are a couple a ways this could be solved and it doesn't involved writing VBA. There is a little bit of M code to write in one of the examples, but it is not that much considered its usefulness. See the video now to see how it's done.

Import SharePoint File into Power Query

Importing a Excel file that is hosted on SharePoint or OneDrive should be as easy as copying the URL from the browser or when you use the share feature in SharePoint / OneDrive. Unfortunately, it's not so straightforward. First, the URL link from the share feature isn't event the right one to use and then you have to be on the online version and request to open it with the desktop version to get the correct URL. After that it's just a copy and paste of an edited version of the URL to put into the Power Query field. It's sounds like a lot but once you see how it's done, it's not so bad. Hopefully Microsoft will make it easier in future Power Query updates. But in the meantime, check out the video to learn how to import a file hosted on SharePoint into Power Query.