Weird problem with reports !?!

[mscertified]

I had a user contact me saying she can no longer print reports in a database
(gets 'open was cancelled' message). All was fine until yesterday. Systems
did something with printers but no-one else using the database is affected.
So default printer may have changed. Each user has own copy of front end.

Went to her PC and opened the database, I cannot do anything with reports.
Cannot open any report in design view, wizard says it is 'unable to create
report'. No messages, just nothing happens. I can print from Notepad and Word
etc.
Any clues as to how to debug./fix this?

 

[Jeff Boyce]

Is there a chance that the front-end installed on that user's PC has lost
its connection to the Windows default printer?

Can you open an empty .mdb file and import one of the questionable reports,
then modify it there?

Have you replaced the copy of the front-end on this user's PC with a "fresh"
copy of the application, just in case?

Good luck!

Regards

Jeff Boyce
Microsoft Office/Access MVP

 

[mscertified]

In Access, cursor on printer icon says 'no printer'.
In immediate window:
application.printers.count = 4
application.printer.devicename = default printer
application.printers(0).devicename = non default printer.

No missing references
Code compiles ok
Tried refreshing front-end copy = no difference
Tried rebooting = no difference
Tried creating a new Access db = same problem
Only this user has this problem, no others
User can print to same printer via Word

Am now going to re-try reinstalling Access
Clutching at straws...
Any other ideas?

 

[Allen Browne]

This can happen if:
a) there is no printer installed, or
b) there is a fault with the driver for the default printer, or
c) there is a problem with the way a network printer is installed.

You've eliminated (a) by testing Printers.Count
You can work around (b) by making a different printer the default.
Access 2003 seems particularly sensitive to (c)

 

[mscertified]

Thanks for the response.
I actually did some debugging based on a post of yours from 2004!
If there was a problem with the printer driver, would it not affect all
Access users? Only this single user is having this problem and only from
within Access. The printer can be used with no problem via Word, Notepad etc.
Also, is it not odd that hovering the cursor over the printer icon displays
'no printer', whereas the application.count shows 4 printers?
I already tried making a different printer the default and the problem
remains.

 

[Allen Browne]

As I said, A2003 is particularly susceptible. The problem does occur with
Access, even when other apps (including Office 2003 apps) have not problem
printing.

The fact that Access acknowledges "no printer" strongly suggests that this
is the issue. You might try uninstalling that network printer, and
installing it again to see if that works.

It's a pig of a thing to trace down, but this does sound like the same issue
others have faced too.

 

[rickhaus218]

Is there a chance that the front-end installed on that user's PC has lost
its connection to the Windows default printer?

Can you open an empty .mdb file and import one of the questionable reports,
then modify it there?

Have you replaced the copy of the front-end on this user's PC with a "fresh"
copy of the application, just in case?

Good luck!

Regards

Jeff Boyce
Microsoft Office/Access MVP







- Show quoted text -

I too have had this strange problem. In one case I was able to rename
the endusers profile to .old and create a new profile and they were
able to print their reports from access.
I tried this in another case and it worked one time and then came back
with the same problem after log out and log in. I am a a loss as to
what to do to fix this problem permantly. Also I found that I can
open the same reports from my machine which is on the same network and
open and print the same reports with no problem. I am convinced it is
a profile problem but do not have a permanent fix.