Updating .mdb and .mde databases simultaneously.

[Centauri117]

I am hoping that there is a way to update the .mdb and .mde databases simultaneously. The reason for creating the .mde file is so that the people that will be using my database won't have the opportunity, or chance, to accidentally mess it up. I only want them to be able to get into the forms that I've created and to be able to update the database using the forms, but it would be nice to be able to make changes to the database in the future if any flaws arise. This is the reason that I would like both types of the database to update at the same time so I could just hide the .mdb file in the background somewhere. If you have any ideas they would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

~Jay~

 

[missinglinq]

I'm afraid you're out of luck. The .mde file is to an Access db what an .exe file is to most programming languages. The .mde file cannot be modified after it is saved. You have to go thru the process with each modification to the original .mdb file. If YOU could modify the .mde file ANYONE with enough knowledge could do so.

This process is actually advantageous because mistakes in the original db often show up at this point and have to be corrected before the .mde file can be created.

As an aside, Microsoft points out that a .mde file may not run in future editions of Access, and cannot be converted as .mdb files can be. You may have to convert the .mdb file and then make it .mde.

The Missinglinq

"It's got to be the going,
not the getting there that's good!"
-Harry Chapin