Previous Topic

Next Topic

Book Contents

Book Index

Connecting to MS Access

Prerequisite Software

No software is needed in order to access a MS Access database (mdb file). The necessary ODBC Driver is present in the standard Windows install.

If not, you can download the MS Access ODBC Driver from https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=54920

Furthermore, you do not need Microsoft Access in order to access an MS Access database with AQT. See Database-specific notes - MS Access for more on this.

Signing onto an MS Access Database

You have three methods of signing accessing an MS Access database:

The first method is useful if you are accessing a particular database on a frequent basis.

Setting up an ODBC Datasource for your Access Database

The general procedure for this is descibed in Configuring a Database Connection.

Once you have done this, the ODBC Datasource name for your Access database will appear in the list of databases in the AQT signon window.

Setting up and using a Generic Datasource

This sets up a datasource which you can use for accessing any mdb file.

To set this up, follow the steps in the previous section, however do not select a mdb file (leave this blank). It is recommended that you give this Datasource a name such as Access Databases.

To use this generic datsource:

Open the mdb file with AQT

To do this, right-click the mdb file, select Open With > Choose Program. Click on Browse to select AQT. You can check Always use the selected program to open this kind of file if you want to always open mdb files with AQT.

Opening an Accdb file

MS Access 2007 and later will (by default) create an accdb file, rather than an mdb file.

The standard MS Access ODBC Driver installed on your PC may not be able to open a file of this type, but only mdb files.

The solution is to install a more recent version of the MS Access ODBC Driver. This can be downloaded from https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=54920

Other Notes

Advanced Query Tool
https://www.querytool.com
© 2023 Cardett Associates Ltd. All rights reserved.