Question Problems with installing an Access2000 runtime app on a Vista 64-bit pc (1 Viewer)

roverturf

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My company has been successfully selling and deploying an Access 2000 runtime application over the past 9 years. We use a Wise InstallBuilder 8.14 to package and deploy the front-end, back-end, and associated runtime files. We plan to move to Access 2007 or Access 2010 as soon as we can, but in the mean time, we have orders to fill using the old Ac2000.

Recently a customer of ours purchased a new laptop with Vista Home Premium 64-bit, to replace his old WinXP laptop which had been running our app for about two years. We did a remote session and ran our installer and it loaded without any problems. However, when we started our app via its desktop icon, we got the following Microsoft Office error message: "This application must be installed to run. Please run Setup from the location where you originally installed the application."

Our application has installed flawlessly in Win98, Win2000, WinXP, and Vista (32 bit) operating systems. I don't recall if the customer's laptop may have already had a trial version of the Office 12 suite installed or not.

Here is the icon's target path: "C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\ART\Office\MSACCESS.EXE" /excl /runtime /wrkgrp "C:\Harvest Biomed\system.mdw" "C:\Harvest Biomed\HarvestCEMS.mde" The runtime files did in fact install in C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\ART\Office

I may be wrong, but I suspect that the problem is with the Vista 64 registry settings. Using Regedit to open the Vista 64 Registry, I noticed that the company and product keys were missing under the HKEY_LOCAL-MACHINE / SOFTWARE section. I suspect that there should also be registry entries under the HKEY_LOCAL-MACHINE / SOFTWARE / Classes section and the HKEY_LOCAL-MACHINE / SOFTWARE / Classes / Installer / Products section, but I don't know what the differences are between a 32 bit and 64 bit registry.

This is the first time that we have tried to install our app on Vista 64 bit. Not only do we need to get our customer's application installed and running on his new laptop, but we also need to know what changes that need to be made in our installer scripts to handle future Vista 64 bit installs. Thanks
 
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Can you set MSACCESS.EXE to run with compatibility settings? In the meantime, maybe the client can use virtual pc to run a compatible version of windows?
 

roverturf

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Thanks for the suggestion. I've tried opening the app as an Admin, tried different compatibility settings, and turned off the UAC, but nothing so far works.

I just keep getting a Microsoft Office msg box that says, " This application must be installed to run"
 
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Could be a problem with the references, but I don't have much experience wth what's what as far as that goes. I think BobLarson would know.
 

ByteMyzer

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For 32-bit applications, the related Local Machine settings are located under:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\...
 

boblarson

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I think BobLarson would know.

Nope, I'm new to this 64 bit stuff as well and have not installed the run-time (I have full Access 2007 installed on a Windows 7 x64 installation).

I'm not sure what the problem would be; why it wouldn't install properly. I've installed many 32 bit programs on my 64 bit installation and they all seem to work fine. It could just be the install routine for the Access 2007 SDK doesn't do a good job. You might need something like INNO SETUP to be able to create your install packages; I don't know for sure.
 

roverturf

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Thanks guys !

Here's where I'm at so far:

I've checked the compatibility lists, and there should not be any problem with running Access 2000 on a Vista-64 machine. The app contains only Access vba code, no add-on's or dll's.

Access 2000 and Access 2007 full programs can install and run fine, and either can open my app's mde. The problem is only with running my app as an Access2000 runtime.

I still have a feeling that the problem may be in how and where the Wise installer makes entries into the Vista-64 registry.

The app's originally installed target path is: "C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\ART\Office\MSACCESS.EXE" /excl /runtime /wrkgrp "C:\Harvest Biomed\system.mdw" "C:\Harvest Biomed\HarvestCEMS.mde"

However, if I change the target path to: "C:\Harvest Biomed\HarvestCEMS.mde" /runtime , the app runs fine. I do understand that the app is opening in the runtime simulation mode of the already installed Access 2007 - but it does demonstrate that at least the Access 2000 app can open and run on the Vista-64 system, even if only in the Ac2007 runtime sim mode.

The Ac2000 runtime files are present and in the correct location. The app can open and run in Ac2007 normal and /runtime sim mode. Vista-64 just doesn't know that the Ac2000 runtime files are already installed.

I could tell the customer to buy a copy of Access 2007, and I can modify the target path for him, but that doesn't really answer the original question. If I can't find an answer then my next step is to contact Microsoft and SageKey.


Byte: I will take a look at that registry key.
Bob: My current config is Vista-64 with Ac2007. To keep my development pc clean and isolated, I use Virtual PC to run WinXP Pro and Ac2000.

I am so ready to upgrade to Ac2007 and use a SQL Express backend, but I have 156 customers across the USA plus a few outside of the US that are running our app under the Ac2000 runtime. It would be quite a big job to re-deploy our app as a Ac2007 runtime front-end linked to a SQL Express back-end. What can you tell me about using INNO SETUP vs. SageKey/Wise vs. MS-msi ?

Thanks,
-Richard
Harvest Data Systems
Trinity, Florida, USA
 

Alisa

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You should definitely call SageKey, they helped me solve a huge installation problem (that ultimately was not their fault) awhile back, and they were really nice too.
 

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