What determines a form's contribution to the overall size of the .mdbfile?

[Chrisso]

Hi All

I have a .mdb file that is much bigger in file size than I expect even
after running compact and repair. I have MS Access 2003 and the
this .mdb file is much bigger than similar MS Access projects I have
created.

After doing a few tests involving importing objects into a fresh/
blank .mdb it seems that my forms are mostly to blame.

What determines a form's contribution to the overall size of the .mdb
file? Does anyone know?

Is it the number of controls or subforms? The amount of formatting or
conditional formatting? Is it the amount of VB code in the form's
module.

Thanks for any ideas,
Chrisso

 

[Bob Quintal]

:

Hi All

I have a .mdb file that is much bigger in file size than I expect
even after running compact and repair. I have MS Access 2003 and
the this .mdb file is much bigger than similar MS Access projects
I have created.

After doing a few tests involving importing objects into a fresh/
blank .mdb it seems that my forms are mostly to blame.

What determines a form's contribution to the overall size of the
.mdb file? Does anyone know?

Is it the number of controls or subforms? The amount of formatting
or conditional formatting? Is it the amount of VB code in the
form's module.

Thanks for any ideas,
Chrisso

All of the above, plus embedded images, references to external
hyperlinks, etc....

And it's all relative to the amount of data in the .mdb
If the database contains no data, the contribution from forms is 100 %
put 1.5Gig of data into that mdb, the contribution from the forms
becomes insignificant.

 

[Arvin Meyer [MVP]]

The largest influence on a form's size is images. Images on the form, on
controls on the form, including buttons, or anything with an embedded
external original source. The average form with a few controls, some code,
and no images, generally adds between 50K and 150K. A single image can
easily quadruple that.

 

[John W. Vinson]

I have a .mdb file that is much bigger in file size than I expect even
after running compact and repair.

How big is "big"? Are you approaching the 2 GByte limit?

 

[Chrisso]

The largest influence on a form's size is images. Images on the form, on
controls on the form, including buttons, or anything with an embedded
external original source. The average form with a few controls, some code,
and no images, generally adds between 50K and 150K. A single image can
easily quadruple that.
--
Arvin Meyer, MCP, MVPhttp://www.datastrat.comhttp://www.mvps.org/accesshttp://www.accessmvp.com











- Show quoted text -

Thanks. I think this is the answer to my question as I do have
embedded images.

Chrisso

 

[Chrisso]

How big is "big"? Are you approaching the 2 GByte limit?

No I am not reaching the limit but this .mdb is much bigger in size to
comparable .mdb files I have created before. I believe the reason is
images on the form and for buttons that I have not used before.

Thanks,
Chrisso

 

[John W. Vinson]

No I am not reaching the limit but this .mdb is much bigger in size to
comparable .mdb files I have created before. I believe the reason is
images on the form and for buttons that I have not used before.

Images do indeed take an inordinate amount of space.

Is this database "split" - a Backend with just the tables, and a Frontend with
all the queries, forms, reports and code? If it's a shared database it
certainly *should* be. This will ease your space concerns (since the tables
will be one place and the images another).

 

[Arvin Meyer [MVP]]

Thanks. I think this is the answer to my question as I do have
embedded images.

As John mentioned, make sure the database is split. Even if you are a single
user and everything resides on your PC. That way the data is segregated and
protected from anything that goes wrong on the front-end. Make a copy of
your front-end (besides your regular back-up copies of everything) so that
you can replace it quickly if something goes wrong.