Re: QRe: Legacy Access 2 VB 4 app, Word 11 merge on XP Pro SP2 client

From: John Nurick (j.mapSoN.nurick_at_dial.pipex.com)
Date: 01/30/05

  • Next message: ITJRW: "Re: QRe: Legacy Access 2 VB 4 app, Word 11 merge on XP Pro SP2 client" 
    Date: Sun, 30 Jan 2005 07:55:19 +0000

    On Sat, 29 Jan 2005 17:19:29 -0600, "ITJRW" <justice@community.nospam>
    wrote:

    >Is there an article you could cite that would guide me through the process
    >of doing the above ("creating an Access 2003 database and using linked
    >tables to connect to the legacy .mdb files."). I'd like to further research
    >that as a possible solution at least on an intermediate basis.

    It's so simple that I don't know an article. The general idea is to
    create the database by launching Access 2003, going to File|New, and
    selecting "blank database" or some such. Then use File|Get External
    Data|Link Tables to link to tables in the legacy app's mdb file(s). Once
    you've done that the tables are available within the new database. This
    approach - front end with UI and logic in one mdb file and tables in
    another - is standard practice in Access development. Access 2003 will
    work happily with a back end in an older format.

    One possible complication is security. I don't know what was common
    practice in VB apps in those days, but from the Jet end it was and is
    possible to set a simple password on a whole mdb file, or to achieve
    stronger and finer-grained access control via "user-level security". the
    latter is implemented via a "workgroup file", a database of users and
    permissions, usual extension .mdw.

    If the legacy app asks for usernames and passwords and has installed a
    .mdw file, and if you get "access denied" errors when you attempt to
    create the linked tables, user-level security is a likely cause. In that
    case, make sure you have a backup of the .mdw file, then launch Access
    2003 using the /wrkgrp command-line switch to pass the name and location
    of the workgroup file.

    <snip>

    >> The one thing is
    >> that for DDE and OLE the application wouldn't normally need the name and
    >> location of winword.exe.
    >>
    >I could not get the app to accept the changes to Notepad within the
    >application. I will try to do this in a converted, separate set of the same
    >files and see if I can change it in the mdb file table that contains the
    >word processor information. The option is there for a Lotus product and
    >Word Perfect as well. I should be able to write the path to a different
    >value for these and use them as a fakeout for testing.
    >
    >Again, you have been the most help I've had on this and a great
    >encouragement to try here again in the future. Are you one of the ones who
    >monitors this newsgroup for rapid responses to MSDN and other users?

    Not specially. This is very much peer-to-peer support; one hopes you'll
    be able and willing to help someone else some other time and/or place. 

    --
John Nurick [Microsoft Access MVP]
Please respond in the newgroup and not by email.
  • Next message: ITJRW: "Re: QRe: Legacy Access 2 VB 4 app, Word 11 merge on XP Pro SP2 client"

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