[AccessD] Broken References in Runtime AXP

Shamil Salakhetdinov shamil at smsconsulting.spb.ru
Fri Jul 18 12:32:48 CDT 2003


> I'm a bit wary of relying on it.
Charlotte,

It works well in 100% of cases - guaranteed - it was tested and used with
several MS Access97 runtime/programs installations having several (sometimes
30+) library databases (together with SageKey for InstallShield5.1 patched
script and when manual (batch file) installations were used with
preinstalled MS Access) on different environments , MS Windows versions, MS
Windows/Office national versions...

The only problem is to properly use RefLibPaths as it's described in online
help - I've been in the same situation like you're now  (I mean your
"banging your head against brickwall") - it wll take some time until you'll
get comfortable with RefLibPaths and maybe custom profiles - I'd recommend
to use them too...

Shamil

----- Original Message -----
From: "Charlotte Foust" <cfoust at infostatsystems.com>
To: "Access Developers discussion and problem solving"
<accessd at databaseadvisors.com>
Sent: Friday, July 18, 2003 7:22 PM
Subject: RE: [AccessD] Broken References in Runtime AXP


> Shamil,
>
> I wasn't ignoring your suggestion but I agree that the help article is
> not accurate.  In fact we started out putting the code library in the
> same folder with the application.  Guess what?  When the app was
> installed in a different folder from the one the setup was created from,
> Access found the file and did not report a broken reference but strange
> things happened that were only cured by unchecking and resetting the
> reference.
>
>  I've played with RefLibPaths but I did not see it resolve any
> references automatically, at least not when I broke one deliberately, so
> I'm a bit wary of relying on it.  The  search for solutions continues
> ...
>
> Charlotte Foust
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Shamil Salakhetdinov [mailto:shamil at smsconsulting.spb.ru]
> Sent: Thursday, July 17, 2003 7:28 PM
> To: Access Developers discussion and problem solving
> Subject: Re: [AccessD] Broken References in Runtime AXP
>
>
> > I'm just going off to sit in the corner and gibber.
> Charlotte,
>
> I'm sorry I don't particiapte actively in this thread - please reread
> very carefully this paragrapgh of MS Access online help:
>
> <<<<<<<<
>   d.. If you set a reference to a project or type library from Microsoft
> Access and then move the file that contains that project or type library
> to a different folder, Microsoft Access will attempt to locate the file
> and reestablish the reference. If the RefLibPaths key exists in the
> registry, Microsoft Access will first search there. If there's no
> matching entry, Microsoft Access will search for the file first in the
> current folder, then in all the folders on the drive. You can create the
> RefLibPaths key by using the Registry Editor in Windows, under the
> registry key
> \HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\version\Access. For more
> information about using the Registry Editor, see your Windows
> documentation.
> >>>>>>>>
> I think this is the key sentence "Microsoft Access will search for the
> file first in the current folder, then in all the folders on the drive."
> - I mean that MS Access will search first in the CURRENT folder, then in
> ALL the folders on the drive. I don't think it's 100% accurate - if MS
> Access have been searching in ALL the folders on the drive for a broken
> reference then it would have worked ages to resolve such refs on MS
> Access program start-up. So I think it searches first in the current
> folder and then starting from the current folder in all the subfolders
> and probably in all the parent folders of the current folder and their
> subfolders and then (of before?) in all the folders listed in PATH
> environment variable. This extra-intelligence of MS Access sometimes
> drives developers crazy...
>
> Solution, which I used was to develop MS Access projects on different
> drive(s)/under different paths than deployment drive/directory and NEVER
> put referenced MS Access databases in the directories from PATH
> environment variable.
>
> I've also used RefLibPaths separatley and with SageKey scripts to
> install
> runtime(Access97) and its environment. Please reread again the sentence
> above - when RefLibPaths is used then MS Access FIRST searches for
> broken references in the directoriy from RefLibpaths...
>
> But if the reference ISN'T broken then  even if RefLibPaths is specified
> MS Access DOESN'T use its value for resolve a reference on runtime - I
> think this is contr-intuitive and this is why is good to force the refs
> being broken by having your development drive/directory different from
> deployment ones...
>
> Why you can't use RefLibPaths with your rutime environment?
>
> Shamil
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Charlotte Foust" <cfoust at infostatsystems.com>
> To: "Access Developers discussion and problem solving"
> <accessd at databaseadvisors.com>
> Sent: Friday, July 18, 2003 4:38 AM
> Subject: RE: [AccessD] Broken References in Runtime AXP
>
>
> > Well, I'm now officially round the bend.  I just sat here and kept
> > seeing the idiot thing report that it found the broken reference in
> > the right location, which is where the file *is* but not where the
> > reference actually pointed.  The FullPath property of the reference
> > returned the right location instead of the broken one!  Then I watched
>
> > the referenced library pop up in the project explorer even though it
> > wasn't there when I opened the project!  I'm just going off to sit in
> > the corner and gibber.
> >
> > I'm running Windows XP and I wonder if that has anything to do with
> > it. I've also seen it report a broken reference and say it fixed it in
>
> > runtime and have the app appear to run OK but then when I opened it
> > normally and held down the shift key, the reference was broken.
> > Usually if it's broken it stays broken ... But not always!
> > Aaarrrgggghhhh!!!
> >
> > Charlotte Foust _______________________________________________
> > AccessD mailing list
> > AccessD at databaseadvisors.com
> > http://databaseadvisors.com/mailman/listinfo/accessd
> > Website: http://www.databaseadvisors.com
>
>
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