Setting a database up on a network ...

[Laney]

Hello All,

I'm working on my first completed database for a company. I've done tons of databases just never have done one that needed securities and was going to be put on a network.

I am going to have to go into their office and install it on their computers and set it up with securities on the network and finally train their employees on how to enter time sheets, expense reports, and then train the Owner on how to use the payroll functions, etc.

Any suggestions on different ways to set it up or not to set it up? Just wondering if there have been any good or bad things you've run into in the past?

Also, is it true that if you have the access database set up on a network and it's on my server ... do you have to go around to each computer and set up the securities for each individual inside access or does the actual file control that through the network? Or is there something different that I need to have the network guy set up to make sure that the securities work good for all computers that open that file?

Please let me know. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[The_Doc_Man]

In general, using the O/S security for Access is not wise. Because, you see, Access security doesn't KNOW that external security is in place, so makes some assumptions.

The way you described this, it SOUNDS like you were doing Front-End (FE), Back-End (BE) operations, which is OK, so you would install Access and copy the FE portion to each work station, then put the BE on the server. Or maybe the whole DB is on the server and you are just installing Access to each work station. Either one works.

BUT if you fail to set up Workgroup security, the first thing you will run into is that by default, if you do nothing special, the first person to open the DB wins and all others are locked out. This is because the only way to revoke "Open Exclusive" rights is through workgroup security. The O/S "sharing" protections do not mean diddly-squat to Access.

You need to create a workgroup on the server to go with the DB or BE. The workgroup name really should NOT be SYSTEM.MDW because that is the system default. You don't want that.

Now, the way to enforce this is tricky and has been posted many times before at this site. I strongly urge you to search the site for the topics of Workgroups and Security. I have posted many times myself on the way to secure a DB that prevents the "Exclusive Open" problem from non-cooperative or just plain dumb users. Pat Hartman and Mile-O-Phile, among MANY others, have also offered comments on securing systems. But you might have to go back more than a year in your search.

Now, having said that, I cannot emphasize strongly enough that you ALSO need to O/S security to be set up correctly. You see, it will not enforce sharing of the database - but it can still PREVENT such sharing. So you need to set up security to make sure that sharing is POSSIBLE.

When you search for security topics, you will see several entries that talk about the permissions required for general users of an Access DB on a server. Read those, too.