HEX2BIN

Converts a hexadecimal number to binary.

If this function is not available, and returns the #NAME? error, install and load the Analysis ToolPak add-in.

On the Tools menu, click Add-Ins.
In the Add-Ins available list, select the Analysis ToolPak box, and then click OK.
If necessary, follow the instructions in the setup program.

Syntax

HEX2BIN(number,places)

Number is the hexadecimal number you want to convert. Number cannot contain more than 10 characters. The most significant bit of number is the sign bit (40th bit from the right). The remaining 9 bits are magnitude bits. Negative numbers are represented using two's-complement notation.

Places is the number of characters to use. If places is omitted, HEX2BIN uses the minimum number of characters necessary. Places is useful for padding the return value with leading 0s (zeros).

Remarks

If number is negative, HEX2BIN ignores places and returns a 10-character binary number.
If number is negative, it cannot be less than FFFFFFFE00, and if number is positive, it cannot be greater than 1FF.
If number is not a valid hexadecimal number, HEX2BIN returns the #NUM! error value.
If HEX2BIN requires more than places characters, it returns the #NUM! error value.
If places is not an integer, it is truncated.
If places is nonnumeric, HEX2BIN returns the #VALUE! error value.
If places is negative, HEX2BIN returns the #NUM! error value.

Example

The example may be easier to understand if you copy it to a blank worksheet.

Show How?

Create a blank workbook or worksheet.
Select the example in the Help topic. Do not select the row or column headers.

Selecting an example from Help
Press CTRL+C.
In the worksheet, select cell A1, and press CTRL+V.
To switch between viewing the results and viewing the formulas that return the results, press CTRL+` (grave accent), or on the Tools menu, point to Formula Auditing, and then click Formula Auditing Mode.

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A	B
Formula	Description (Result)
=HEX2BIN("F", 8)	Converts hexadecimal F to binary, with 8 characters (00001111)
=HEX2BIN("B7")	Converts hexadecimal B7 to binary (10110111)
=HEX2BIN("FFFFFFFFFF")	Converts hexadecimal FFFFFFFFFF to binary (1111111111)