How to update tables in the backend of a linked database

[Jason1]

Hello,
My database has been split, and the BE is on a server. I have about 15 user terminals using the database front end through out our facility. I need to add a column to one of the tables in the BE, but it It keeps telling me it is read only because the database is in use. Is there any way to make these changes without making sure all of the terminals have microsoft access shut down?

Thanks,
Jason

 

[theDBguy]

Hi Jason. If you can't lock the table to make design changes, you'll have to either wait until all users are out of it or you need to kick them out.

 

[Jason1]

okay, so no short cuts haha. How do you go about kicking a user out of the database. I haven't done that in the past.

 

[isladogs]

See this link for my approach :
https://www.access-programmers.co.u...base-keeps-shutting-down.295846/#post-1546375

 

[Jason1]

Pat,

I plan on making the changes to database after hours, but I also know that asking everyone to log out of the database before they leave will result in about a 60% success rate, and I'm going to need to be able to get them logged out when they are not here.

 

[Isaac]

@Jason1 ... This is in that category of things where I usually strongly recommend that people come up with an approach to solve, BEFORE splitting the database and deploying it as such. (Of course I understand there's nothing you can do about that now, just mentioning for emphasis).

1 - Have an auto-versioning/auto-distribution system completely intact (so users automatically get a copy of the FE every time you update your master/server copy)
2 - Have a way to kick them out of the back end database.

Of course, you'll have some established process for gently nudging them out, whether that's an advertised downtime or manager communication or a database-driven message, etc. But none of that is substitute for having a way to force them out....it's gotta be in place, because some day you'll probably have to.
For that "brute-force" kick-out, in many cases I've used something extremely simple, such as a text file on the network somewhere with a 0 or a 1 in it, along with a form timer that checks for that.
On some projects, I've never had to use it. On other projects, agreed-upon maintenance hours were, say, after 5 PM--and there were users who would go home every day and literally never close their databases, so they got kicked out every time. "Don't deploy without it".