Can i open old mdb & accdb with Office 365 ? (1 Viewer)

shenty

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Hi - long time since i posted & would appreciate a little advice prior to upgrading from Office 2010 to Microsoft 365.

We have a database to manage our customers, quotes, orders etc which stores all the backend data in .mdb files on a raid NAS box.
The front end is on 10 other computers in .accdb/.accde format.

We are about to ditch Office 2010 & upgrade to 365 Business Standard (which has pc intall of new MS Access). Could anyone tell me whether these are compatible without hiccups or if there will be issues to be addressed, what are the most likely.

There is a lot of VBA & a few modules currently in the .accdb files.

Thank you
 

theDBguy

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Hi. Opening the accdb files shouldn't be a problem. The mdb files would depend if they're created pre 2000-2003, then you might have a problem.
 

Mike Krailo

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You should be able to import the backend data into a new database.
 

Pat Hartman

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You should convert the .mdb to .accdb before you upgrade in case the .mdb is too old for O365 to open.
 

shenty

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Hi - thanks.
If i convert the backend .mdb to .accdb in 2010 prior to upgrading, would it still operate as a multiuser backend ?
I don't know why but in the back of my mind i seem to recall the backend needing to remain in .mdb when the frontend was changed to .accdb.

Also the current 2010 is 32bit & i've read in the forums something about changing the code to suit 64bit. Can anyone elaborate on this.

Many thanks.
 

theDBguy

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Hi - thanks.
If i convert the backend .mdb to .accdb in 2010 prior to upgrading, would it still operate as a multiuser backend ?
I don't know why but in the back of my mind i seem to recall the backend needing to remain in .mdb when the frontend was changed to .accdb.

Also the current 2010 is 32bit & i've read in the forums something about changing the code to suit 64bit. Can anyone elaborate on this.

Many thanks.
Using either a mdb or accdb for the backend will not affect multiuser capability. It should still function the same as before.

The 32-bit stuff mostly refer to API code. If you're using any API code, you may have to convert them to 64-bit, unless you are able to install the 32-bit version of Access in M365 (which is preferred).
 

Pat Hartman

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A .accdb FE can link to an .mdb BE but an .mdb FE cannot link to an .accdb BE so if they are both .mdb, convert both.
 

isladogs

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The earliest MDB version that can be opened by both A2010 and A365 is Access 2000 MDB
So if you can open it in A2010, you can still open it in A365.

I would still recommend converting t5he MDB files to ACCDB but it can be done before or after the changeover to A365

The default installation for Microsoft Office 365 is now 64-bit.
However, unless there is a good reason for installing that bitness, I would recommend you do a custom installation and select 32-bit
 

Pat Hartman

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I think A2010 still opens A97. I don't have it installed anymore and I seem to remember having a problem not being able to read some .mdb's when I went to O365 which at the time was probablyA2013
 

The_Doc_Man

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Yep, when my old computer died, I had some issues recovering A97 files from the backup of the old disk. But I got that system back up just long enough to upgrade the .MDB files to something slightly newer.
 

gemma-the-husky

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Current versions have no problem reading A2003 databases.
If your legacy databases are A97, and you need them converting to A2003, I would do that sooner rather than later while facilities are still somewhat available.
 

isladogs

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I think A2010 still opens A97. I don't have it installed anymore and I seem to remember having a problem not being able to read some .mdb's when I went to O365 which at the time was probablyA2013
Sorry, my memory failed me. The above comment is correct.

A2010 will let you SAVE MDBs in A2000 or A2002/2003 format but it will let you open A97 files
If your FE file is A97, you will get a warning message as below if you try to open it directly in A2010:
1612261007283.png


However Access 2010 will allow you to import or link tables from an A97 database without any messages.
Therefore I would recommend you CHECK whether the BE is A97 format by opening it directly in A2010. Does the above message appear?
 

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