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How to determine why Access is unable to create an MDE database.
Q: I tried to compile my MDB database into an MDE file, but I received the error: "Microsoft Access was unable to create an MDE database." There weren't any other error messages. How can I find out what the problem is?
A: Microsoft Access error messages occasionally turn out to be less than helpful. You'll need to do some sleuthing to determine the exact reason for the failure, as there are a number of conditions that will make the conversion to an MDE format fail. Here is the "Can't make an MDE!" checklist that you should follow to determine what the problem is. If any of your answers are "No," then you've found one of the stumbling blocks that is preventing Access from converting your database into an MDE format.
The "Can't make an MDE!" checklist:
- Does the code compile? (This is the most common reason for failing to create the MDE format.)
- Is the database format the same version of Access as that being used to create the MDE? (For example, the default database format for Access XP and 2003 is 2000, but one needs to convert the database to the current version before making an MDE database out of the MDB database.)
- Do you have sufficient permissions on the Windows directory where the MDE file is going to be created? (Read, create, and modify)
- If the database is secured using user-level security, are you currently logged in as the owner of the database, or at least a member of the Admins group? (For best results, make sure that you are logged into the workgroup as the owner of the database. Being a member of the Admins group will usually work, but not always.)
- If you aren't the owner of the database, do you have sufficient user-level permissions? (Open/run database, open exclusive, modify design or administer for all tables, and read design permissions for all objects.)
- Do you have exclusive access to the MDB file? (You can open the database file in shared mode, but no other user or process can be using the database while you create the MDE database. To prevent interference from others, you may want to open the MDB file in exclusive mode, but this isn't required.)
- Is there sufficient disk space available for the new MDE file?
- Are you attempting to create an MDE from Access 2000, but with applications from Microsoft Office XP, or Microsoft Office 2003, or Microsoft Visio 2002 also installed on the computer, but without Microsoft Office 2000 Service Packs 1, 2 and 3 already installed?
- Is the database no longer replicated, if it once was?
- If there's a VBA password, have you already opened the VB Editor with that password so that the code is accessible?
- If this database references other Access databases as libraries, have they all been converted to MDE files already, including any that are part of a chain of library databases?
- If this database references other Access databases as libraries, and if you aren't the owner of those database libraries, do you have sufficient user-level permissions? (Open/run database and read design permissions for all objects)
- If this database references other Access databases as libraries, do you have sufficient permissions on the Windows directory where the library MDE files are located? (Read, create, and modify)
- If this database uses external tables as data sources, are all of the connection strings valid? (Linked tables, VBA code, connection strings for data sources of database objects, including valid user ID's and passwords and valid database passwords.)
- Does this database have a reasonable number of database objects that each require a TableID (tables, linked tables, bound forms, queries, reports, record sets, et cetera), so that the added TableID's required to make the MDE database file don't exceed 2048 for Jet 3.51 and 4.0 (or 1024 TableID's for Jet 3.0 and 3.5)? (There's no way to be precise, but try to count one TableID for each table, each query, each table mentioned in the SQL statement of each query, each bound form, each bound combo box, each bound list box, each report, each recordset, and each table mentioned in the SQL statement of each recordset; two TableID's for each linked table and each master/child-linked subform.)
- Do any forms or reports contain ActiveX controls? Does the ActiveX control version used to create the control on the form or report currently exist on the computer that is trying to create the MDE file? Is this version registered in the Windows Registry? (Upgraded versions of ActiveX controls will often prevent the MDE creation, due to incompatibilities with the previous version.)
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How to convert an Access 2.0 database with Access 2003 without contacting Microsoft Product Support Services.
UPDATE! 16 Sept. '04: Download the new Microsoft Access 2.0 Converter For Access 2003 from Microsoft's Download Center:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=91C944F8-F3AB-41E 9-902A-2255A66E1C4A&displaylang=en
Q: When I try to convert my old Access 2.0 database with Access 2003, I receive the error: "You must install the Microsoft Access 2.0 Converter in order to convert this file. To get the Access 2.0 Converter from the Microsoft Office Web site, click 'Microsoft Office Online' on the Help menu." I follow the links to Microsoft's support Web site, but there's no file to download, just a list of the two files I need and an advisory that I must contact Microsoft Product Support Services to obtain the tool. Is there some place else I can get this tool? Why wasn't it included in Access 2003? Why isn't it available online? I've never had this problem with earlier versions converting my Access 2.0 databases.
A: Apparently you've encountered the extremely frustrating Microsoft Product Support Services, where you'll wait on hold for extraordinary amounts of time, only to have someone speaking garbled English at 100 mph from a staticky phone connection answer your plea for help, only to pass you on to the next three 100 mph, garbled English-speaking tech support people who can't understand your questions either, and you will do anything — anything — to avoid this misadventure again.
If you own Microsoft Access 97, 2000, or XP, then the two files that you need, MSAcnv30.EXE and MSAcnv30.DLL, are already at your fingertips. Just copy both files from any of the Office 97, Office 2000 or Office XP directories to the Microsoft Office Access 2003 directory. The default directory for Office 2003 is:
C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office11
Now, open Access 2003 again and try to convert the Access 2.0 database. If you don't have an old copy of Access 97, 2000, or XP, then you can probably find someone who does, and they'll be happy to convert your Access 2.0 file for you just to keep you from complaining about Microsoft throughout eternity.
And why didn't Microsoft include this conversion tool in the latest version of Access or allow a download from their support Web site? It seems like it's to teach us to never run up a big tech support bill, in case we hadn't already learned this lesson. But it's more likely a legal contract issue. Microsoft isn't the original developer of some of the technology used in Access, so there are probably expiration dates applied to some of this technology. October 2003, when Microsoft Office 2003 was published, likely exceeded the time limit.
Be aware that Access 2.0 Access Basic code and functionality can be different from Access 2003 VBA 6.2. The conversion problems include many issues with 16-bit DLL's, which aren't available in many Windows operating systems that support Microsoft Office 2003. Integer parameters in calls to 16-bit functions will need to be changed to the long data type. References will be broken (because they don't exist in the Access 2003 environment), so you'll need to make Reference changes and code changes, then recompile. Specifically, Utilities.MDA is no longer a library used by more current versions of Access, since the functionality of this library has been incorporated into other libraries. However, if a programmer referenced functions, methods or properties in the Utilities.MDA library, the equivalents will need to be found and recoded to work in Access 2003.
So, even after you convert the database with the conversion tool, you will probably have your work cut out for you if you have a moderately complex database application. But if all you have are tables full of data, you shouldn't have many problems to deal with, other than tracking down the conversion tool.
If you have multiple versions of Access, you may note that the MSAcnv30.EXE and MSAcnv30.DLL files for all three versions of Access have the same version numbers, but the date on the Access 97 files are newer than the dates on these files for Access 2000 and XP. We're scratching our heads on this one. The files may be identical, but it's probably best not to mix 'n match between the versions. And these two files are probably available for Access 95, too, but we haven't tested this ourselves.
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