Workgroup files (2000)

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I want to try and get to grips with security proper – I had a go a year or two ago and managed to end up with a situation that I could not open any other databases!!

It seems to me I need to not only open the database but also open the associated workgroup file and then when I exit out go back to the original one!

Firstly, is this right?
Secondly, how do I do it?

Thanks

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If you weren’t able to open any other databases, you probably mucked up the default workgroup System.mdw. Don’t play around with permissions without first ensuring that you are using a workgroup other than the default.

The easiest way to refer to the correct workgroup file as well as to go back to the default when you are done is to use the /wrkgrp option in a shortcut that opens your database, e.g. one of my shortcuts has as its target:

“C:Program FilesMicrosoft OfficeOfficeMSACCESS.EXE” “L:DatabaseClinicalDM DatabasesB25-LG-304B25-LG-304.mdb” /wrkgrp “L:DatabaseClinicalDM DatabasesDataman.mdw”

An alternative is to use Workgroup Administrator to specify the workgroup to use, but that choice “sticks”; i.e. whatever you choose becomes the default workgroup until you specify a different one.

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Did you use the wizard to apply security the first time? If so that was probably the cause of your grief. It REALLY secures a database. Often, you just want to sort of limit who can edit what and keep track of the user name so you can spot user training problems. In those cases you can simply give the Admin user a password, and everyone starts getting a prompt, assuming that you have them all pointing to the right workgroup file.

Doug’s approach sets the workgroup for a specific database, which may be what you want, but you may want a single workgroup file for everyone. In that case you can use the program called the Workgroup Administrator which stores the default path to the system.mdw (or whatever you call it) in the registry. We often either link users to a networked file, or copy the file to their local hard drive if you have lots of users. You do need to reset things in situations where Office or Access has to be reinstalled. Hope this helps.

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thanks to both of you. Initially I am trying to secure a single database – as indivduals can have their own over which I have no control. But the ideas re overall security will be useful for my knowledge file!

Roberta

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