I have created a database with mulitple forms and reports and a refernce to an external database in the VBA editor.
My access database compiles, it compacts (with both Access and Jet 4) and is fully functional as an mdb. When I try to create an mde file i get the above message, I have created backups, but only as mdb files and going back for several days they all display this problem. When the message comes up it does not open a form or point to any vba code, simply closes my database. I have even tried the /decompile switch and get the same results, it decompiles, recompiles and compacts but trying to create an mde file ..same result. I have removed the external references and cleaned it all out of my code, guess what...same result. When trying to create a fresh database I can import all tables, all queries and all macros, and create an mde, as soon as I import any form or any report...bam, no mde. I think at this point I have devoted more time to fixing this than recreating it would have taken, but now it's a white whale sort of thing, evenjust knowing what's causing it would help even if it can't be fixed. My wife's answer is to use Filemaker (Mac freak that she is) Any help or any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Well, what I would try doing is everything you said, but then I would rename the external file that you have a reference to, and then try to compile it...aha missing reference, remove the reference and try again....SUCCESS. Somehow (and someone may be able to answer this one) even though the list of references didn't show it there was still a reference to my external mdb file (OOPS) once I renamed the file it was a simple matter of letting the VBA editor error on compiling removing the references and then creating an MDE file. This is weird though, once the editor errored on compiling my external reference reappeared in the llist of references?? I am becoming convinced I hallucinated the majority of this series of events.