[AccessD] Mdw File Growing in Size, then Corrupted

Hi Greg:

My first question would be to ask if anyone has changed the access rights to
a specific folder...For example: the directory where the lock-file is
created must allow both read, write and delete rights or the file will not
get created or/and written to when a user logs in and will not be written to
or/and deleted when the user or last user logs out.

Maybe put the FE and lock-files on the user stations.

The security mdw file may be totally corrupted and will required recreation.

It might be time to create a new FE and BE databases... (Create a blank DB
and copy all the objects from the old to new DB.) I have found that I/O
errors, like abruptly losing connection to the BE data is the fastest way to
corrupt a MDB database.

HTH
Jim

-----Original Message-----
From: accessd-admin at databaseadvisors.com
[mailto:accessd-admin at databaseadvisors.com]On Behalf Of Greg S
Sent: Wednesday, March 12, 2003 8:21 AM
To: accessd at databaseadvisors.com
Subject: [AccessD] Mdw File Growing in Size, then Corrupted


Hello everyone!

I have a real puzzler (for me).  The database is secure using Access's
security.  It's Access 97, SP2.  The database is split, with the application
(Front End) residing on each user's workstation, and the Back End residing
on the server.  The mdw security file is also on the same server as the BE,
but in a different folder.  The number of users at any given time varies
from 10-20, with a maximum of 12 actually entering/modifying data.  There
are five viewing stations where the Public can access records, but no data
entry is allowed.  There are also 5 Terminal Servers allowed access, but,
like the Public, they can only view records (uhh, so I guess that makes a
maximum of 22 users...).  The BE is about 500 MB.  The mdw file
(RecUsers.mdw) is usually only about 140Kb.

This setup has been working since May 2002 without this happening.  Then,
about two weeks ago, some of the users started getting the message "File
Locked by Another User..." or something similar to that for the RecUser.mdw
file when they tried to start Access on their workstation.  Those who were
currently in the database (and, accordingly, in the mdw file as well) were
unaffected until they closed Access and tried to open it again.  The only
resolution to it, once one person has been locked out, is to kick EVERYONE
out, delete the corrupted mdw file, replace it with a copy, and let'em all
back in.  HOWEVER, that isn't always easy either becuase some of the time
the system will not allow us to delete the mdw file (In use, or so Windows
thinks), so we end up having to reboot the server (which makes the County
Recorder unhappy...), breaking any real or imagined link to the mdw file,
then delete it and replace it with a fresh copy.

The server, an HP, is a 4-drive raid and has had to have two drives replaced
within the last 3 months.  We noticed that during this last 'binge' of
lockouts, one of the drives was down and it had to be replaced.  The
corruption of the mdw file occurred more often during the time when the
drive was down, but it still occurs when all drives were ok, but just not as
often.  I can't see WHY this would make any difference at all, but there was
a relationship of number of corruptions in a given time frame to one of the
drives being down.

The RecUser.mdw file, after it has been 'corrupted' or starts locking people
out, will not allow me to open it with Access, which I can normally do, but
states that it's not a recognized database type or it's corrupted.  If I run
repair, it's then ok and can be opened normally and even reused by everyone.

Has anyone seen this kind of behavior before?  If so, was there a fix?  Any
clues or suggestions would be appreciated.

TIA!!!

Greg Smith
Weeden1949 at hotmail.com
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