[Excel] (Custom functions) Add synchronous support article #5535
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docs/excel/custom-functions-synchronous.md
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Pull request overview
This PR introduces documentation for synchronous custom functions in Excel, enabling developers to support evaluation and conditional formatting processes that require synchronous execution. The documentation explains when to use synchronous support, how to enable it, and includes warnings about limitations.
Key changes:
- Added new article explaining synchronous custom functions and their use cases
- Updated JSON metadata documentation to include the
supportSyncoption - Added
@supportSyncJSDoc tag documentation with proper precedence rules
Reviewed changes
Copilot reviewed 4 out of 4 changed files in this pull request and generated 3 comments.
| File | Description |
|---|---|
| docs/toc.yml | Adds new "Synchronous custom functions" entry to the table of contents under Custom Functions section |
| docs/excel/custom-functions-synchronous.md | New article documenting synchronous custom functions, supported Excel processes, implementation details, and code samples |
| docs/excel/custom-functions-json.md | Updates the options table to include supportSync property and clarifies property precedence rules |
| docs/excel/custom-functions-json-autogeneration.md | Adds @supportSync JSDoc tag documentation and updates related tag descriptions to reflect mutual exclusivity |
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docs/excel/custom-functions-json.md
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| | `supportSync` | Boolean | No <br/><br/>Default value is `false`. | If `true`, the function supports synchronous processes in Excel. A function can only use one of the following three properties: `stream`, `supportSync` or `volatile`. If `supportSync` is combined with `stream` or `volatile`, `supportSync` is ignored. For more information, see [Synchronous custom functions](custom-functions-synchronous.md). | | ||
| | `volatile` | Boolean | No <br/><br/>Default value is `false`. | If `true`, the function recalculates each time Excel recalculates, instead of only when the formula's dependent values have changed. A function can't use both the `stream` and `volatile` properties. If the `stream` and `volatile` properties are both set to `true`, the volatile property is ignored. | |
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There's an inconsistency in the precedence rules documented here compared to line 210. Line 209 states "If supportSync is combined with stream or volatile, supportSync is ignored" (meaning stream/volatile take precedence). However, line 210 states "If the stream and volatile properties are both set to true, the volatile property is ignored" (meaning stream takes precedence over volatile). This creates confusion about the actual precedence hierarchy. Consider documenting a clear precedence order, such as: "stream takes precedence over volatile, and both take precedence over supportSync."
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Co-authored-by: Copilot <175728472+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>
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This PR documents how to support synchronous Excel processes in custom functions add-ins.