Remove Mark as Final Option in PowerPoint 2010 for Windows

Did you receive a presentation that doesn't let you make any changes? Or was this a presentation you created a while ago, and now you cannot fathom why the slides cannot be edited? Yes, this could be a password-protected presentation but that's not the only reason why you cannot edit the content, one of the other reasons might be because it is something that had the Mark as Final option applied.

Fortunately, Mark as Final is more of an administrative tool than a security tool, it's only purpose is to make others aware that the author of the presentation doesn't want others editing their work. First of all you need to make sure that a presentation indeed has Mark as Final applied. To do so, check the lower left area of the status bar at the bottom of the PowerPoint interface. You should see the Mark as Final icon, as shown highlighted in red within Figure 1, below.

Figure 1: Mark as Final icon

Remove Mark as Final

Follow these steps to remove the Mark as Final option applied to a presentation in PowerPoint 2010 for Windows:

1. Open any existing presentation that has the Mark as Final command applied.
2. To determine whether a presentation is marked as final, look for these two indications:
• A Mark as Final icon in the status bar at the bottom left corner, as shown highlighted in red within Figure 2, below.
• A yellow strip right above the slide area, as shown highlighted in red within Figure 2, indicates that this presentation discourages editing.
• 
  Figure 2: Presentation marked as final
3. At the yellow strip right above the slide area, as shown in Figure 2 above, click the Edit Anyway button, as shown highlighted within red in Figure 3, below, to enable editing for a file.
4. 
   Figure 3: Edit Anyway
4. Alternatively, you can access the File menu, and choose the Info option to open Backstage view with the Info panel. In the Permissions area, click the Protect Presentation button to bring up the menu, as shown in Figure 4, below. Choose the Mark as Final option. This is a toggle option, so clicking it once more removes the Mark as Final state.
5. 
   Figure 4: Mark as Final
5. When you unmark a presentation, the icon disappears from the status bar, as shown in Figure 5, below.
6. 
   Figure 5: Unmarked presentation