Data Access Page Mapped to Database (2003)

[Arturo]

I posted this yesterday and got a reply from Sylvain Lafontaine telling me to
use SQL because you can't use Access as the Connection String with a Data
Access Page on the internet. Or, at least that what it souned like to me. The
post seemed to disappear so I could not reply. Here is the post:

START OF POST
I have a folder named Students. In it I have a database named MYBE.mdb. I
created a DAP named Students using a table in MYBE.mdb. As you know, it
created a DAP in the folder named Students.

I first put a record in the DAP using the Connection String
"C:\Students\MYBE.mdb." It worked great. I then put the folder and the two

files on the web. I added a second record, closed the site, returned to the
site, and the records were still there.

It was working great. Then, through some checking, I found out it was
updating the database C:\Students\MYBE.mdb and not the database in the web
folder. I will use fictitious names to illustrate what I did next.

The DAP is located at "http://www.sitename.us/Students/Students.htm." In the
Connection String of the DAP, I put the location
"http://www.sitename.us/Students/MYBE.mdb."

When I open the web page I get two Microsoft Internet Explorer error
messages. The first is "Data provider could not be initialized." The second
is "Not a valid file name."
END OF POST

HERE IS MY REPLY
We intend to use SQL at a later time. Due to time constraints and employee
availability, I have volunteered to help if I could do this in Access. We
need to gather information right now and I can manage the data if I can get
it into Access. Later, we will convert all this to SQL as Sylvain explained.

Right now, I need to know: If you can't use Access as a Connection String
file, or, if you can. If you can, would you please tell me how to fix my
dilemna?

Thank you.

 

[Sylvain Lafontaine]

--
Sylvain Lafontaine, ing.
MVP - Windows Live Platform
Blog/web site: http://coding-paparazzi.sylvainlafontaine.com
Independent consultant and remote programming for Access and SQL-Server
(French)

I posted this yesterday and got a reply from Sylvain Lafontaine telling me
to
use SQL because you can't use Access as the Connection String with a Data
Access Page on the internet. Or, at least that what it souned like to me.
The
post seemed to disappear so I could not reply. Here is the post:

START OF POST
I have a folder named Students. In it I have a database named MYBE.mdb. I
created a DAP named Students using a table in MYBE.mdb. As you know, it
created a DAP in the folder named Students.

I first put a record in the DAP using the Connection String
"C:\Students\MYBE.mdb." It worked great. I then put the folder and the two

files on the web. I added a second record, closed the site, returned to
the
site, and the records were still there.

It was working great. Then, through some checking, I found out it was
updating the database C:\Students\MYBE.mdb and not the database in the web
folder. I will use fictitious names to illustrate what I did next.

The DAP is located at "http://www.sitename.us/Students/Students.htm." In
the
Connection String of the DAP, I put the location
"http://www.sitename.us/Students/MYBE.mdb."

When I open the web page I get two Microsoft Internet Explorer error
messages. The first is "Data provider could not be initialized." The
second
is "Not a valid file name."
END OF POST

HERE IS MY REPLY
We intend to use SQL at a later time. Due to time constraints and employee
availability, I have volunteered to help if I could do this in Access. We
need to gather information right now and I can manage the data if I can
get
it into Access. Later, we will convert all this to SQL as Sylvain
explained.

Right now, I need to know: If you can't use Access as a Connection String
file, or, if you can. If you can, would you please tell me how to fix my
dilemna?

Thank you.

It's not just the Connection String, the provider itself (either ODBC or
OLEDB) for JET cannot work over the WAN (Wide Area Network); only over a
local LAN or through a VPN. (The VPN will emulate a LAN over the WAN but in
the case of JET, the performance will be probably abysmal up to a point of
making it unusable.)

Even in the case of SQL-Server, you must be careful about the performance
when you work over the WAN. If you don't know how to do this properly, the
performance might also abysmal (unless the required design are simple; with
few and simple queries).

In my opinion, if you want to access a database over the Internet (WAN, not
LAN), the easiest way would be to use remoting such as Terminal
Server/Citrix or Thinsoft. (Thinsoft seems to be the lest costly of all but
I never used it personally). If you have only a handful of machines, you
could also use Remote Desktop to an installed desktop machine but this
should be seen as a solution of last resort.

Even in the case that you want to switch to SQL-Server, using Remoting is
probably the way to go if you want to keep Access as the FrontEnd instead of
going with other technologies such as ASP.NET or .NET Forms. To keep Access
as the Frontend over the Internet without using TerminalServer, Citrix or
Thinsoft, you must really know what you are doing; even with SQL-Server as
the backend.

As your primary question was about DAP, I would suggest to repost about
using Remoting if you want some further advice on this.

--
Sylvain Lafontaine, ing.
MVP - Windows Live Platform
Blog/web site: http://coding-paparazzi.sylvainlafontaine.com
Independent consultant and remote programming for Access and SQL-Server
(French)

 

[Arturo]

Thanks for your quick reply. I have an SQL programmer that I am working with.
We can set up an SQL backend. If we do this and put it out on our website,
will the DAP pages still work well with the SQL?

The reason I ask this is that if they do, I can create the DAP's very
quickly while he and I build the SQL backend. What do you think? Will this
work or do I have to use something like ASP.Net?

 

[Sylvain Lafontaine]

Thanks for your quick reply. I have an SQL programmer that I am working
with.
We can set up an SQL backend. If we do this and put it out on our website,
will the DAP pages still work well with the SQL?

The reason I ask this is that if they do, I can create the DAP's very
quickly while he and I build the SQL backend. What do you think? Will this
work or do I have to use something like ASP.Net?

This will work but I will be surprised if you really can build the DAP's
very quickly; unless your forms are very simple.

 

[Arturo]

Thanks again. I'll let you know how it goes.

This will work but I will be surprised if you really can build the DAP's
very quickly; unless your forms are very simple.


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