Manage VBA Projects in Presentations Using Python

What this page is about

Discover how to generate and manipulate PowerPoint and OpenDocument presentations via VBA with Aspose.Slides for Python via Java to streamline your workflow.

Introduction

Aspose.Slides provides classes and interfaces for working with macros and VBA code.

Warning

When you convert a presentation containing macros to a different file format (PDF, HTML, etc.), Aspose.Slides ignores all macros (macros are not carried into the resulting file).

When you add macros to a presentation or resave a presentation containing macros, Aspose.Slides simply writes the bytes for the macros.

Aspose.Slides never runs the macros in a presentation.

Add VBA Macros

Aspose.Slides provides the VbaProject class to allow you to create VBA projects (and project references) and edit existing modules. You can use the VbaProject class to manage VBA embedded in a presentation.

1. Create an instance of the Presentation class.
2. Use the VbaProject constructor to add a new VBA project.
3. Add a module to the VBA project.
4. Set the module source code.
5. Add references to stdole.
6. Add references to Microsoft Office.
7. Associate the references with the VBA project.
8. Save the presentation.

This Python code shows you how to add a VBA macro from scratch to a presentation:

import jpype
import asposeslides

if not jpype.isJVMStarted():
    jpype.startJVM()

from asposeslides.api import Presentation, SaveFormat, VbaProject, VbaReferenceOleTypeLib

presentation = Presentation()
try:
    # Create a new VBA project.
    vba_project = VbaProject()
    presentation.setVbaProject(vba_project)

    # Add an empty module and set its source code.
    module = vba_project.getModules().addEmptyModule("Module")
    module.setSourceCode('Sub Test(oShape As Shape)\n    MsgBox "Test"\nEnd Sub')

    # Create references to stdole and Microsoft Office.
    stdole_reference = VbaReferenceOleTypeLib("stdole", r"*\G{00020430-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}#2.0#0#C:\Windows\system32\stdole2.tlb#OLE Automation")
    office_reference = VbaReferenceOleTypeLib("Office", r"*\G{2DF8D04C-5BFA-101B-BDE5-00AA0044DE52}#2.0#0#C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\OFFICE14\MSO.DLL#Microsoft Office 14.0 Object Library")

    # Add references to the VBA project.
    vba_project.getReferences().add(stdole_reference)
    vba_project.getReferences().add(office_reference)

    # Save the presentation.
    presentation.save("test.pptm", SaveFormat.Pptm)
finally:
    presentation.dispose()

Note

You may want to check out Aspose Macro Remover, which is a free web app used to remove macros from PowerPoint, Excel, and Word documents.

Remove VBA Macros

Using the getVbaProject method of the Presentation class, you can remove a VBA macro.

1. Create an instance of the Presentation class and load the presentation containing the macro.
2. Access the macro module and remove it.
3. Save the modified presentation.

This Python code shows you how to remove a VBA macro:

import jpype
import asposeslides

if not jpype.isJVMStarted():
    jpype.startJVM()

from asposeslides.api import Presentation, SaveFormat

# Load the presentation containing the macro.
presentation = Presentation("VBA.pptm")
try:
    # Access the VBA module and remove it.
    vba_project = presentation.getVbaProject()
    if vba_project is not None and len(list(vba_project.getModules())) > 0:
        module = vba_project.getModules().get_Item(0)
        vba_project.getModules().remove(module)

    # Save the presentation.
    presentation.save("test.pptm", SaveFormat.Pptm)
finally:
    presentation.dispose()

Extract VBA Macros

1. Create an instance of the Presentation class and load the presentation containing the macro.
2. Check if the presentation contains a VBA Project.
3. Loop through all the modules contained in the VBA Project to view the macros.

This Python code shows you how to extract VBA macros from a presentation containing macros:

import jpype
import asposeslides

if not jpype.isJVMStarted():
    jpype.startJVM()

from asposeslides.api import Presentation

# Load the presentation containing the macro.
presentation = Presentation("VBA.pptm")
try:
    # Check whether the presentation contains a VBA project.
    vba_project = presentation.getVbaProject()
    if vba_project is not None:
        for module in vba_project.getModules():
            print(module.getName())
            print(module.getSourceCode())
finally:
    presentation.dispose()

Check Whether a VBA Project Is Password-Protected

Using the VbaProject.isPasswordProtected method, you can determine whether a project’s properties are password-protected.

1. Create an instance of the Presentation class and load a presentation that contains a macro.
2. Check whether the presentation contains a VBA project.
3. Check whether the VBA project is password-protected to view its properties.

import jpype
import asposeslides

if not jpype.isJVMStarted():
    jpype.startJVM()

from asposeslides.api import Presentation

presentation = Presentation("VBA.pptm")
try:
    # Check whether the presentation contains a VBA project.
    vba_project = presentation.getVbaProject()
    if vba_project is not None:
        if vba_project.isPasswordProtected():
            print(f"The VBA project '{vba_project.getName()}' is password-protected for viewing its properties.")
finally:
    presentation.dispose()

FAQ

What happens to macros if I save the presentation as PPTX?

Macros will be removed because PPTX does not support VBA. To keep macros, choose PPTM, PPSM, or POTM.

Can Aspose.Slides run macros inside a presentation to, for example, refresh data?

No. The library never executes VBA code; execution is only possible inside PowerPoint with the appropriate security settings.

Is working with ActiveX controls linked to VBA code supported?

Yes, you can access existing ActiveX controls, modify their properties, and remove them. This is useful when macros interact with ActiveX.