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  1. #1
    kdbailey is offline Competent Performer
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    Batch file to automatically digitally sign my access database


    As I am having difficulty keeping my database at work digitally signed due to other users using the database; I was curious if I could create a batch file to automatically run at night to sign the database, so that it can automatically update in the AM, without being prompted questions. Or something of this sort?

  2. #2
    JoeM is offline VIP
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    As I am having difficulty keeping my database at work digitally signed due to other users using the database.
    Others using it shouldn't discard your signature, unless they are changing key components of it, like Macros or VBA.
    What exactly are the users doing to it?

    I believe that digital signatures are specific to the machines they were physically created on, so I think it would have to be signed from your computer. Don't know about making a batch file to do it, never heard of such a thing, and don't know if that could actually be a security vulnerability to allow that.

  3. #3
    kdbailey is offline Competent Performer
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    I'll give you an example, I have 2 pc's at my desk, one of them having admin rights. When I sign the database on the one pc, I can go over to the other and when I make any change that affects a table (make-table query, tables in general, append query's) it discards the signature. I figured the same thing, that only vba and macros should affect the signature.

  4. #4
    kdbailey is offline Competent Performer
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    I just tested it out by creating a make-table query, it discards the signature by creating a new one as well. Select query's seem to not have an affect.

  5. #5
    JoeM is offline VIP
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    Make-table queries change the structure of the database, as they add new tables, and therefore discard your signature. Usually, you do not want your database to do that.

    I would recommend switiching to using an Append Query, which would write the data to existing tables, and therefore does not add any new objects (tables). You can use a Macro or VBA code to clear out that table each time if you need it to be empty before adding new data to it.

  6. #6
    kdbailey is offline Competent Performer
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    For the most part I do use append queries, but I do a lot of database research, resulting in needing to create tables anyway. So I can't stick to a specific limit of tables.

  7. #7
    JoeM is offline VIP
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    Why do need need to create new tables?
    Why not just use pre-made "template" tables which can be cleared after every use?
    Or better yet, why not just leave the data in query form?

  8. #8
    kdbailey is offline Competent Performer
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    I'm not sure 2003 has template tables, and the database I work with has huge tables with many fields, and many thousands of records. Leaving things as query's slows the database down tremendously, plus I am constantly using and creating new fields which need other references based on relationships. It's ever-changing, creating tables is going to happen whether I want to or not (I avoid it if all possible).

  9. #9
    JoeM is offline VIP
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    When I saw "template tables", I really mean you creating table "shells" to place your data in. If you fields are constantly changing, that probably won't work. If you need to create tables on-the-fly, I fear that using Digital Signatures may not work for you.

    If your reasoning for using Digital Signatures it to bypass the "Enable Macros/VBA" warnings, you may be better off setting Trusted Locations on the users computers.

  10. #10
    kdbailey is offline Competent Performer
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    That's exactly what I am trying to avoid, how do I assign trusted locations?

  11. #11
    JoeM is offline VIP
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    Upon further review, it looks like Trusted Locations didn't become available for Access until Access 2007. It looks like you might still be on Access 2003.
    Might be time to upgrade...

    Otherwise, I don't know that it is possible to do what you want. You are going to need to digitally sign the database every time you make a structural change (like adding a new table) to it.

    I don't know if splitting the database will help (into a separate front-end and back-end). I am guessing if you are changing the structure, you would need to change both ends anyhow, which brings you right back to where you started with this program.

  12. #12
    kdbailey is offline Competent Performer
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    Haha, go figure that's the case. I appreciate your time, thanks for trying to come up with alternatives.

  13. #13
    JoeM is offline VIP
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    Sorry I wasn't be able to be more help. Its possible that there may be other alternatives that I do not know of.

Please reply to this thread with any new information or opinions.

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