Map A Drive From A Thumb Drive (1 Viewer)

[Learn2010]

Let me start out by saying that I wanted to put this program on the internet with Access Services but the Access prejudice is very strong here and no one in the right position supports it or will even get involved with it. Many of the Specialists in the following group have iPads. So, here is my solution and a problem we encountered.

I set up a BE database on a shared drive on our in-house network to which this group of Specialists all had access to via a mapped drive Y:. Also, in this environment, each person has their own personal spot on the network. It is the H: Drive. Wherever they log on, they can access their H: Drive. I put a copy of the FE and instructions on the shared drive and each user would copy these to their H: Drive. That way they were always linked to the BE on the Y: Drive when they logged on.

The reason for this is that they could be in any location in our large complex when they need to enter data. So, they would use the nearest computer to log onto their H: Drive and use the FE program.

Now comes the problem. Many of the computers at these locations are set up to open and use one program. You are not allowed to log off and log back on. Therefore, my group can't get onto the computer and change that. They asked if they could use a thumb drive some way. I did something similar years ago where they would populate the database and email it to me. Next time they used it, it would clear the old records before they began data entry.

This would work if not for the fact that many of them need to pull some data from the BE in order to complete their input. My question is this:

Can an Access database be put on a thumb drive and programmed to automatically map to the Y: Drive when they use it? Thus, the FE would be linked to the BE and problem solved. I know it could be slow, but speed is not a priority here.

Thank you.

 

[Learn2010]

I would like to add that all the computers have Access on them. Most have been upgraded to Windows 7 with Access 2010. Some still have XP and a few of them have older versions of Access. But, I believe we are dealing primarily with the first scenario.

 

[missinglinq]

Since being disabled six years ago, I've spent 8-10 hours a day/ 7 days a week, here and on half a dozen other Access Forums, reading and answering questions. From what I've seen during that time, I can confidently tell you...Don't!

There are dozens and dozens of horror stories out there about using thumb/flash drives with Access databases. And the story is always the same; copied Access file to a thumb/flash drive in order to work on at home and...

What follows in the stories varies, as far as the particular symptoms, but they all point to one thing, corruption! Sometimes the file simply won't open, other times it'll open but all of the data is scrambled. And this may happen as soon as the use of the removable drive is initiated, or it may first occur after a prolonged initial period when it works just fine! But once the corruption starts, using these devices, it becomes a boon companion, appearing over and over and over again.

There's been much discussion as to the etiology of the problem, but as is usual when talking about corruption in Access, nothing definite has ever been proven. The nearest thing to an answer I've ever seen is the guess that these devices flash their "Data transfer complete" messages before, in fact, all the data has been transferred, and removal while the transfer is still in progress causes the corruption.

Linq ;0)>

 

[Learn2010]

I'm aware of all the issues that may come about. Can you answer the original question?

Thank you.

 

[gemma-the-husky]

the powers that be need to give these guys a more liberal attitude - why can they not have another shortcut to run a different programme .....

alternatively .. if they can have the app on a thumb-drive - then why can the same app not be on the C drive of the PC.

Either you secure it in some way to prevent "wrong-uns" using it - or they copy it from their thumb drive, and delete it when they are done.

I actually tend to put code into my dbs to stop users running the "network master version". It checks the active drive, and quits if it isnt a certain letter.

 

[Learn2010]

I know all the negatives. Everytime I talk to IT about an issue the first question they ask is "Why are you using Access?" My answer is "Because that is what I know." Then, I shut up because any more than that and I would get myself into trouble.

Does anyone know how to do this?