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  1. #1
    Duncan Pucher is offline Advanced Beginner
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    Users on a network don't log off during scheduled maintenance how notify I am closing app?

    I have a DB with multiple users who work in separate offices. The DB is split and users access the BE through one central Front end with desktop icons and no password is used. At times a user will leave the application open and so I can't edit the front end because Access says I don't have exclusive rights to the DB because someone else has access. I often can't figure out who has the DB open. How can I notify the person to quit? If I can't find out who it is and notify them to close, what is the best way to close their connection? I don't know if it matters but I see the DB is open because of the locking file record (*.laccdb).

    Thank you,

  2. #2
    Micron is offline Virtually Inert Person
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    the lock file may contain enough information to enable you to figure out who has it open, but even if it does, that requires a phone call with no guarantee that they will answer. You could know who that is if you logged every user in, password or not. That only requires that you grab their Windows login info and match their Login ID against your table of users. You could also code to terminate their connection by setting a table flag that a hidden form's timer event looks for and start a log off routine. That might cause data integrity issues if you terminate a connection while someone is in the middle of a record edit.

    Regardless of what you do, there is the widely held view that multiple user of 1 front end is a recipe for corruption and isn't a matter of if, but when. That might be a problem in waiting that can be more damaging than what you're faced with now.
    EDIT
    I should mention that if every user has their own fe, it doesn't prevent you from making development changes. When you release a new version and have each fe verify it is up to date, users are typically forced to update rather than be allowed to use an outdated version. The effort it takes to force a user to download is typically worth the problems it prevents - updating fe's being one of them.
    The more we hear silence, the more we begin to think about our value in this universe.
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  3. #3
    isladogs's Avatar
    isladogs is offline MVP / VIP
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    Agree with Micron.
    Each user need to have their own copy of the FE on their own workstation. Using a shared FE means corruption will occur at some point and it is quite possible all data may be lost. Fix that as a priority.
    I also strongly recommend that each user logs in with a user name / password.

    For managing logging out users for essential maintenance, I use a BE table tblKickout with a boolean field Kickout and only one record.
    The field is set to True to initiate a forced closedown procedure
    I explained it in more detail in post #4 of this thread https://www.access-programmers.co.uk...d.php?t=295174.
    In fact you may find the example app in that thread useful as it lists users logged into a database
    Colin, Access MVP, Website, email
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  4. #4
    CJ_London is online now VIP
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    I agree with the other responses - a shared front end is just asking for trouble and is completely against the advice provided by Microsoft. See this link https://support.office.com/en-us/art...a-68da245a0446 - share a split database section

    At times a user will leave the application open
    for your purposes this can also happen if a connection is lost - either through power failure or an interruption to the network. And the only way to clear that is to get the user to log in and out again (which might not work anyway) or reboot the server which I'm sure will please everyone no end.

  5. #5
    Duncan Pucher is offline Advanced Beginner
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    Thanks everyone for the advice. I have work to do to distribute the front end file. I don’t want to get corrupted data. I’ll look through the info about user passwords and logging people out. Your thoughts are appreciated.

  6. #6
    Micron is offline Virtually Inert Person
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    FWIW in many cases I don't see the point in passwords when you can compare user Windows login id against a table of registered users. If not there, they don't get in. If everyone shares a common Windows login that's a different story.

  7. #7
    isladogs's Avatar
    isladogs is offline MVP / VIP
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    I think we've discussed passwords before. In many work environments, more than one person shares a PC and will not always log in individually.
    In other cases, users will log in to Windows and stay logged in all day but their PC may be accessible to others.
    Also certain users may have access rights that are not common to all users.
    In any of those situations, having a user name / password combination to log into an Access app may be essential
    Colin, Access MVP, Website, email
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  8. #8
    Micron is offline Virtually Inert Person
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    I think we've discussed passwords before.
    Yes, and I gave you that much in my comment, which may not have been all that clear in retrospect.
    If everyone shares a common Windows login that's a different story.

  9. #9
    Duncan Pucher is offline Advanced Beginner
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    I am creating an executable file and circulating it to the users but I encountered a problem with the existing FE and BE file that users were sharing. It shows a lock because someone is using it but no one but the last person who logged off has it open. I can copy it and start over but I want to clean up the Windows folder and can't get rid of either the FE or BE file since they won't allow me to delete them because it says the DB is in use by another user. Is there a way to get rid of the locked file or should I leave it and use another folder?

  10. #10
    Duncan Pucher is offline Advanced Beginner
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    P.S. Could this be caused by creating shortcuts to the FE file?

  11. #11
    CJ_London is online now VIP
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    please clarify where FE and BE are stored - at the moment sounds like the advice given earlier in this thread has not been followed. With regards removing the lock file, you probably need to reboot whatever machine the file is stored on

  12. #12
    Micron is offline Virtually Inert Person
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    no one but the last person who logged off has it open
    Quite possibly this person's permissions are not set correctly (they are not able to delete from that folder) thus the lock file remains. I have read that if someone who does have the correct permissions logs in then out, the file can get updated to reflect one user, whose logout then removes it. Also, the file contains information regarding who has it locked - usually the only useful bit is the machine id. Try going to that pc, closing any open Access db's and opening task manager to see if there are any Access instances still active. You may have a hidden or ghost session running, which can be caused by opening other db's either explicitly or implicitly in code and not terminating them - which can still be a permissions issue.

  13. #13
    Duncan Pucher is offline Advanced Beginner
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    User group,

    Someone logged off and the lock went away. I think the computer they were on had to reset itself. Thanks for the help.

  14. #14
    Duncan Pucher is offline Advanced Beginner
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    User Group,

    I distributed an ACCDE file that downloads to user desktops. It is working great! Thanks.

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

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