Review: Total Access Startup Eases Access Deployment

Microsoft Access Advisor Zone, June 15, 2003

Use the tool to launch a database with the appropriate version of Access every time

FMS is offering the Total Access Startup tool to help you deploy and manage Microsoft Access databases. You can use it to launch a database with the appropriate version of Access every time. FMS suggests you use it for scenarios such as when you're upgrading Office but still need to run legacy Access applications.

You can make sure users do the following:

• Start the Access version you specify. For example, your users will always run Access 97 with your Access 97 databases, regardless of what Access versions are installed on their machine or what Windows considers the default for .MDB files. This helps you avoid the task of converting existing Access applications to later versions, while safely migrating to the newest version of Office.

• Detect and run the latest version of your Access database. If you want, Total Access Startup can automatically install and update a user's local copy when you release a new version.

As FMS explains, many companies keep multiple versions of Access to avoid the cost of converting old Access databases to the latest version. Total Access Startup lets you maintain your investment while supporting new Access versions. If the user doesn't have the right version of Access installed on his machine, Total Access Startup displays a customized message showing the error along with your contact information.

If your users are running your application for the first time, Total Access Startup installs the database for them. If other files are required, you can also launch a batch file or setup program.

When you update your database, the user's local copy is automatically updated the next time he launches it. You can also launch a batch file or setup program if you need to install additional files (different from what you run for the initial installation).