lock computer

[Guest]

I have set up an access application to check for emails from outlook and do
certain things when certain criteria are met eg. check inbox, extract
attachments, import data, move email to other folders, etc. . This is set to
check through the timer interval and on timer event on the start up form
which remains open, which all works well, except...when the computer is in
the "lock computer" state it does not do anything i.e. the timer stops.
once the "lock" is removed all starts working again.

As this application is on a server with other applications that we don't
want just anybody to look at we would like to keep it in the locked state.

Any thoughts on getting around this. Is the on timer event in the right
place or is there other ways of doing the same things (i.e. checking outlook
inbox, etc.)

We are running windows XP professional, access 2002 (in 2000 format).

Any help much appreciated

Thanks

David

 

[Arvin Meyer [MVP]]

If you are running on a server, you can set the application to run as a
service and simply log off. It will still run. I do not think that this can
be done on a workstation.

 

[Guest]

Hi Arvin

thanks for quick reply. how do you set it to run as a service. i'm not an
expert on networks and the like.

thanks

David

 

[Guest]

Access doesn't run on a server unless someone installed the Access program on
the server. Having said that, the .MDB files can be there. Here's what I do
in a similar situation.

For the database .mdb file, I password protect it so that only those who
know the password can get to it. That keeps it somewhat safe out on the
network. You can also restrict network permissions to the folder holding the
database files to the appropriate users.

I run the database on a stand-alone computer or one that will always be
running. I've never had a problem with a locked computer stopping the timer
from running. Possibly that's because I've never interacted with Outlook. By
"Locked" I mean the lock set by the screen saver.

 

[Arvin Meyer [MVP]]

Hi Arvin

thanks for quick reply. how do you set it to run as a service. i'm not an
expert on networks and the like.

It's been a while since I've had to do this, but I used a server resource
kit file called srvany.exe. It may be different for newer servers. Check
out:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/137890

at Microsoft. Also you can google or use Microsoft's MSDN search facility.

 

[David W. Fenton]

If you are running on a server, you can set the application to run
as a service and simply log off. It will still run. I do not think
that this can be done on a workstation.

That breaks the rules MS has for a system service, which is not
supposed to interact with the desktop or provide UI. That is,
there's no guarantee that everything in your app would work (a
simple exqample: SendKeys would likely break, if you were unwise
enough to have used it).

 

[Arvin Meyer [MVP]]

That breaks the rules MS has for a system service, which is not
supposed to interact with the desktop or provide UI.

I don't know that his code provides for a UI, or interacts with the desktop.
I believe that checking email, must be done with Outlook open, which may be
a rule breaker. Now that I think about it, Outlook rules can be set to do
most of what he wants anyway, without having Access or anything else run
code.

 

[David W. Fenton]

I don't know that his code provides for a UI, or interacts with
the desktop.

If it requires running Access, then it does.

I believe that checking email, must be done with Outlook open,
which may be a rule breaker.

Depends on how you do it. Certain kinds of automation may work, just
as they do when you don't make them visible in a console logon
session.

That might be the way to get around it -- launch your app not from a
command line, but by running a VBScript that creates an Access
application object and opens the MDB you want to run. As long as you
don't make the application object visible, it should run without
violating the system service rules.

Now that I think about it, Outlook rules can be set to do
most of what he wants anyway, without having Access or anything
else run code.

And you could still run code that does things through MAPI instead
of using Outlook, if that allows you to accomplish what you need to
accomplish.