INF: MS Access Distribution Kit Questions & Answers
  
PSS ID Number: Q104385
Article last modified on 10-05-1994
 
1.10
 
WINDOWS
 

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The information in this article applies to:
 
 - Microsoft Access Distribution Kit version 1.1
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  Microsoft® Product Support Services Application Note (Text File)
        WX0867: ACCESS® DISTRIBUTION KIT QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
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                                                   Revision Date: 9/93
                                                      No Disk Included
 
The following information applies to Microsoft Access, version 1.1.
 
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| ACCOMPANY THIS DOCUMENT (collectively referred to as an Application |
| Note) IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER      |
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| the use of this Application Note. This Application Note may be      |
| copied and distributed subject to the following conditions:  1) All |
| text must be copied without modification and all pages must be      |
| included;  2) If software is included, all files on the disk(s)     |
| must be copied without modification (the MS-DOS®  utility         |
| diskcopy is appropriate for this purpose);  3) All components of    |
| this Application Note must be distributed together;  and  4) This   |
| Application Note may not be distributed for profit.                 |
|                                                                     |
| Copyright (C) 1993 Microsoft Corporation.  All Rights Reserved.     |
| Microsoft, Microsoft Access, and MS-DOS are registered trademarks   |
| and Windows is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation.                |
| --------------------------------------------------------------------|
 
1.  Q. My machine appears to hang when I first run the SUFILES utility
       (SUFILES.EXE), whether I start the SUFILES utility by double-
       clicking the SUFILES icon or by selecting SUFILES from the
       first dialog box after starting the Microsoft Access
       SetupWizard. My mouse pointer does not switch from pointer to
       hourglass to indicate that the program is still processing. The
       progress meter remains at 0% and I do not see any hard disk
       activity. Why does this occur?
 
    A. The program is not hung; it just does not update the screen
       regularly. The screen eventually updates, allowing you to see
       the program's progress. This behavior is by design so that you
       can choose the Cancel button at any time.
 
       The amount of time the SUFILES.EXE file takes to run varies,
       depending on the machine type and the amount of memory. Average
       completion time is approximately 20 minutes. For example, using
       a 486/50 machine with 16 megabytes (MB) of memory, the process
       takes approximately 10 minutes to complete; using a 386/16
       machine with 4 MB of memory, the process takes approximately 45
       minutes.
 
       You need to run SUFILE.EXE only once. SUFILE.EXE compresses
       files from the various directories, including the Windows and
       Access program directories, into a subdirectory called SUFILES.
       When you build your distribution disks, the SetupWizard needs
       only to copy the compressed files to the disk directories and
       does not have to recompress all the files each time
       distribution disks are built.
 
2.  Q. At the end of the Microsoft Access installation process, why
       does Custom Setup hang immediately after the SETUP.EXE file
       creates the program group?
 
    A. This problem occurs only when you choose to have the Change
       Workgroups icon installed but have not specified an icon for
       the application.
 
       To correct this problem, run the SetupWizard again. When the
       "Where are your application's initialization, icon, and Help
       files located?" dialog box appears, select an icon file from
       the .ICO File (Optional) list box.
 
       You can also manually modify the STFSETUP.IN_ file. For
       information on modifying the STFSETUP.IN_ file, please refer to
       the "Microsoft Access Distribution Kit Guide," Chapter 3,
       "Creating Your Custom Setup Program."
 
 3. Q. How can I prevent other users from seeing my code?
 
    A. You can control what users of your application see by taking
       the following precautions:
 
        - Using forms and macros to control a user's movements within your
          database
 
        - Securing the objects in your database
 
        - Encrypting your database
 
4.  Q. What is the best way to distribute updates of my application to
       other users?
 
    A. The best way to distribute updates of your application is by
       creating two databases: one database (DATA.MDB) to store the
       application's data, the other database (PROGRAM.MDB) to store
       the application's forms and other objects. This method
       simplifies your application updates, since you can redistribute
       an updated PROGRAM.MDB file (containing updated queries, forms,
       reports, macros, and modules) without destroying your user's
       data.
 
       All objects in the PROGRAM.MDB file should be based on attached
       tables from the DATA.MDB file. When you create a database with
       attached tables, the specific path to these tables is stored in
       the database. If the path to these tables changes, you receive
       the "Couldn't find table <table name>" error message. To avoid
       this problem, have your AutoExec macro, which the Access
       Distribution Kit (ADK) requires, call an Access Basic function
       to verify that the attached tables are indeed attached. If the
       tables for some reason are not attached, your function attaches
       them automatically.
 
       When you start your application, make sure that the
       application's working directory property is set to be the same
       directory in which the .MDB file is located. The SetupWizard
       automatically sets this property in Program Manager. Use the
       CurDir() function to determine the directory from which the
       application is being executed, then attach the files from that
       directory.
 
5.  Q. Why do I get a general protection (GP) fault when I run my
       application's Custom Setup program?
 
    A. Running Setup in Windows standard mode causes a GP fault. You
       should run Setup in 386 enhanced mode. To start Windows in 386
       enhanced mode, type the following command at the MS-DOS prompt:
 
          win /3
 
       Once Setup is complete, your application will run correctly in
       Windows standard mode.
 
6.  Q. When I start the run-time version of my application, the
       following error message is displayed:
 
          A run-time error occurred in module: <module name>. You
          don't have permission to view this module.
 
       Why do I get this error message?
 
    A. This error message appears when a run-time error occurs in one
       of your modules. When this problem occurs in the retail package
       of Microsoft Access, the module is opened and the line of code
       that caused the error is selected. Because the run-time version
       of the application cannot open the module nor display the line
       causing the error, the previous error message is displayed.
 
       To correct this problem, open your application in the full
       retail package of Microsoft Access and correct the error in
       your code from there.
 
 7. Q. I split my database into two files using the COMPRESS.EXE
       utility. After running Custom Setup, I am unable to open my
       database file. How do I put the two .MDB files back together?
 
    A. Once a database file has been split into two files, you must
       use entries in the Custom Setup Information file, STFSETUP.IN_,
       to rejoin the files. The following steps give an example of how
       to combine two fictitious files, called MYAPP.MD$ and
       MYAPP2.MD$, into one file, called MYAPP.MDB:
 
       1. Open the STFSETUP.IN_ file in NOTEPAD.EXE or other text
          editor.
 
       2. In the [Standard Setup Files] section of the STFSETUP.IN_
          file, change the following line
 
              3 , MYAPP2.MD$, RENAME=MYAPP2.MDB, DEST=$(AppPath)
          to
              3 , MYAPP2.MD$, APPEND=MYAPP.MDB, DEST=$(AppPath)
 
           NOTE: If your database file was split into more than two
           files, make similar changes for each entry in the
           STFSETUP.IN_ file.
 
       3. Make similar changes to the [Network Setup Files] and/or the
          [Multiuser Files] sections for any server installations of
          your application.
 
Additional reference words: 1.10
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Copyright Microsoft Corporation 1994.
