Repairing a Damaged MS Access
Database
Author: David Nishimoto
Overview:
Preparation is the key to protecting your MS Access data. Because of MS Access versatility it can be used as a client/server application, active server page web application, or a desk top database with forms and reports. Protecting yourself against potential loss of data is a must. This article covers strategic recovery steps if your MS Access database becomes corrupted.
Compacting and Repairing the MS Access database
1. On the tools menu selected Database Utilties, and then click Compact and Repair Database. A message will appear indicating whether the database compacted and repaired successfully. If the database fails to repair try to recover your database objects, one at a time.
Damaged table
If the damage to the database requires table recovery and the repair database is unable to fix the table then the data can be rescued by exporting the damaged table's data to an ascii delimited text file and reimporting the ascii delimited field data back into a pristine database's table or the existing database. The pristine database should have the table structure recreated so when the imported data will use the existing table structure to map field information back into the table. Choosing to keep the table in the existing database requires exporting the damaged table contents, removing all table relationships, deleting the table, recreating the table structure, and reimporting the ascii delimited data back into the table.
1. Export the table to an Ascii file
a. Select Menu Item File -> Export
b. Save as text file
c. The Export Text Wizard will appear
Choose the Delimited Option
Click Next
You can use a semicolon, comma, space, or other as a field delimiter. Content for the field is enclosed using the text qualifier as one of the following selection double quote, single quote, or none.
Click Next
Input the text file name to hold the resulting exported data.
The ascii delimited file can be imported into the new database either into a new table or an existing table. If the operator selects a new table each data field's type
will be text.
Damaged Report or Form
1. If the damage is a form or a
report, the objects can be restored
from a backup first by removing the
form or report then importing the
backup form or report. It is
important to schedule frequent
backups of your MS Access database.
Basically, ask your self what loss
of data can be tolerated. Backups
reduce risk of data loss. Its
important to test your backup
eliminating serious surprises.
Backups which have not been tested
are very unreliable. So test, test,
test!
Losing Power during a write
Would you get out of a car with
out first puting it in park? The same
is true for MS Access databases,
after usage the database needs to
shut down properly and not
terminated while the database is
writing records or shutting the
power off from the PC. Also,
applications need to close the
database after usage. If such an
interruption occurs, MS Access
marks as suspend corrupt.
In short, MS Access can store
vast amounts of data. Often
companies segment their data up
into large numbers of database.
Independently these databases can
be used to store vast amounts of
data. However, I've been involved
in many centralized projects that
consolidate MS access databases
into a central Oracle database.
Because Oracle allows data to be
partitioned, no lost of performance
is realized. Middle layer objects
take advantage of the data
partitioning returning data in
remarkably fast speeds.
Read more from David Nishimoto
here
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