Big Fast Bloat in Access 2003 BE

[psinfo]

Hi

I´m an Access Developer and I have a big problem with a BE database that recently become to grow very fast.

In about 8 hours it grows from 100MB to 2GB and then stops working.
This happens when we have about 15 stations adding data every hour.

If we enable only 2 stations then the 2GB is achieved in 3 to 6 days.
The stations use windows XP SP3 and Office 2003.

Now becomes the odd thing. The Access is SP2 and Excel, Word is SP3.
In another installation we have the same FE and BE running with Office SP2, the BE have 800MB and works fine.

I´ve searched the Web and found nothing.
The only problems reported are with the FE because of DAO, deletions, etc.
This is not a problem for me, because everytime the user initiates the program, a script will run and copy a new FE from the server to the station.

Could this be the problem ?
Has anyone already seen anything like this ?

Any help will be appeciated.

 

[boblarson]

What kind of data is being gathered? Are there graphics in it? Are there make table queries? Delete queries? etc.

More info about the internal workings of the database are required to know what might be the problem.

 

[psinfo]

Thanks for the reply.

The data inserted into the database is plain simple, mostly values of samples. The software creates a register in a table named Lote with info like machine, date, shift, etc, and about 20 registers in a table named Lote_Analysis. For each register in Lote_Analysis it creates more or less 4 registers in a table named Lote_Analysis_Values. This all for the user to have a screen to edit the values of the samples. It creates about 2.000 registers a day.

The fields are mostly type Text, Long or Single. There is no field type OLE with graphics or images, etc. There is no make tables or delete querys. The registers are inserted using DAO.

In the troubled installation we tried excluding the registers before 2007. The compacted database size reduced from 400MB to 90MB but it continues to grow fast.
In the installation that works the table Lote_Analysis_Values has about 4,3 mi registers. The database size is 800MB.

This software I developed about 10 years ago and is working fine since then.
Ok, sometimes happens some problems but quickly resolved with compacting.
The last update was last year so nothing changed in the structure.

This problem is killing me because in the other installation it continues to work, with the same kind of data.


Thanks for the help

 

[Darth Vodka]

how many tables are there in the BE?

i'm thinking worse case scenario, maybe seperate them out into their own BE databases

 

[psinfo]

The BE database has 53 tables but only 5 has significant amount of registers.
The tables have 75000, 85000, .58mi, 1.7mi and 4.3mi registers.

But this on the installation that is working OK.

The troubled one has about 1/5 of this. The problem persisted after reducing the amount of registers.

I believe the problem is in the Office SP but i researched and got nothing.

thanks in advance!

 

[RuralGuy]

I would try SP3 but also apply the HotFix.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/945674

 

[psinfo]

Im trying to convince the IT people to go to SP3 or go back to SP2.

thanks