Show Windows File Copy Progress Bar in Access-VBA (2016) - ms-access

Copying many files from several sources to several destination over our network using MS Access 2016. Can use SysCmd to show Progress Bar on status Bar. Can also show file copy counter as a msg on status bar via Application.Echo True, "msg". But neither is as informative or visually appealing as that used by Windows file copy progress bar. Have looked at several customized progress bars on forms. If I could develop each to show the same information and progress bar as the one used by Windows, it'd be fine. But I wonder if there's a way to call the one used in Windows from MS Access VBA. Thank you in advance.


As far as I know, the only way to achieve this is to create a custom COM library. Because the explanation is rather long, I will refer you to some resources (you will need some version of Visual Studio to create the library, and some experience with either C# or VB.Net).
You will want to call FileSystem.CopyFile in your library, with ShowUI set to AllDialogs (https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms127965(v=vs.110).aspx?cs-save-lang=1&cs-lang=vb).
See http://www.geeksengine.com/article/create-dll.html for instructions how to create the library, and register it in Access.

Related

VBA to create a form and load an attached image to it

Client has asked me to create a self contained tool in MS Access, versions 2007 and 2016. It needs to be self contained because it will be copied to and from various laptops at various times. The tool may not create, delete, or modify any file except the accdb database itself. When the tool is in use, the user is unlikely to have network or internet access.
One of the criteria is the creation of new forms each time it is run. I realize that Access is meant to have all the forms and their controls already built before deployment, but client doesn't want that. I have solved that problem, creating x number of forms upon certain conditions, and creating 30-40 controls on each form based upon certain conditions, each with their own events, etc.
Now, how do I load his logo into a control on each form? Remember, the accdb must be self contained, so I can't count on the logo being in a certain directory or even on the machine in use, and I can't write it to the file system myself.
I can and have loaded the logo (jpeg) into one of my tables in an attachment field. It will be the only attachment in that field. It would be just as easy for it to be its own table, if that helps.
I can create attachment controls with VBA, but I don't know how to set the ControlSource to the FileData inside the attachment with VBA.
I also have had poor success attempting to embed the picture in an image control in a hidden form and setting the .picture property to the image name. It only seems to be working on my machine.
So, how do I display an attached jpeg on a newly created form?

Just asked and answered in SO access-vba. Here's one solution.
Saving Image as OLE Object, in Access
Many others on google and SO search
EDIT: You must read the whole question to see the author's answer
Answer:
So, what I ended up doing was following this
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/210486
I use the readBLOB function to read the file and save it into the
database. Then, when I run a report or open a form that has the
picture, onload, I use the WriteBlob function to write the file to a
temp folder and then use that path to populate an Image object.

Access - change DB icon

Is there any way to change a desktop icon for only one Access DB ? And not using shorcut for icons ?...I've found some examples for doing this, but nothing seems to work for me.
Any help much appreciated !

not sure if this is what you're looking for but in Office 2010 for example Go to
Access Options & Click Current Database. Under Application Options, in the Application Icon box, you can either type in the full Path of the icon that you want or browse to the file location.
https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Add-a-custom-title-or-icon-to-a-database-0e43e135-dd0d-4451-84ea-4f547e14480e

I dont know why answer was deleted, but once again - you can't change Access DB icon for only 1 file, except using shortcuts method - which is not same.

I am pretty sure that you can do this using the package and distribute wizard. You can then distribute the database as an executable file, I think (not 100%). this would show without the shortcut arrow on the desktop.
File> save and publish> package solution
You may first have to go to options> add-ins > manage com add-ins and enable the package solution add-in.

Is it possible to change an .accde file icon to a custom image?

I am trying to make my Access (2013) application look less like Access and more like a "real" piece of software. One of the things I am trying to accomplish is changing the icon from the normal A/grid/lock to an image of my choosing.
Is this possible? If not really, what is my next best option?
Thanks!

You can change the icon that Access shows when running your database, it's under Options -> Current database.
You cannot change the icon that Explorer shows for your .accde file.
Of course you can create a shortcut with the commandline to MSACCESS.EXE and your database, and that shortcut can have a custom icon.
You may also be interested in this answer by Albert D. Kallal: https://stackoverflow.com/a/24638829/3820271

I just developed this method yesterday to allow an Access Executable to have a custom icon. It does involve making some additions to your computer's registry. Be aware I did this for Access 2010 on a Windows 7 machine. I have not tested this for windows 8 or 10, but I do think it will be the same.
I know the entries of .14 ONLY refer to Access 2010. Access 2013 should be .15 and Access 2016 should be .16.
When you export your "accde" registry entries to a .reg file, stick with the .14, .15, or .16 that is exported for your specific system. The only thing you will be changing is any occurrence of "accde" to "accxx" with the "xx" being your new letters for your chosen suffix for the Access executable database.
Below is the .reg file that will perform the registry "fixes" and I have included a few notes along the way. This is not for the beginner, but I do believe a seasoned Access developer should be able to follow. Are you a little uncomfortable with the registry? Use Google to help you find a write-up or two about the registry and how to make changes to the registry.
OK, the .reg file:
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.accVR]
"Content Type"="application/msaccess.exec"
#="Access.ACCVRFile.14"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.accVR\Access.ACCVRFile.14]
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.accVR\Access.ACCVRFile.14\ShellNew]
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\
FileExts\.accVR]
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\
FileExts\.accVR\OpenWithList]
"a"="MSACCESS.EXE"
"MRUList"="a"
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\
FileExts\.accVR\OpenWithProgids]
"Access.accVRFile.14"=hex(0):
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Access.ACCVRFile.14]
#="Microsoft Access ACCVR Database"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Access.ACCVRFile.14\CLSID]
#="{73A4C9C1-D68D-11D0-98BF-00A0C90DC8D9}"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Access.ACCVRFile.14\DefaultIcon]
#="C:\\_Work\\VR\\VR Logo.ico"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Access.ACCVRFile.14\shell]
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Access.ACCVRFile.14\shell\Open]
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Access.ACCVRFile.14\shell\Open\command]
#="\"C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Microsoft Office\\Office14\\MSACCESS.EXE\" /NOSTARTUP \"%1\" %2 %3 %4 %5 %6 %7 %8 %9"
"command"=hex (7):79,00,6b,00,47,00,5e,00,56,00,35,00,21,00,21,00,21,00,21,00,\
21,00,21,00,21,00,21,00,21,00,4d,00,4b,00,4b,00,53,00,6b,00,41,00,43,00,43,\
00,45,00,53,00,53,00,46,00,69,00,6c,00,65,00,73,00,3e,00,32,00,41,00,5a,00,\
7e,00,60,00,4f,00,37,00,71,00,43,00,3f,00,4f,00,57,00,2c,00,66,00,65,00,5a,\
00,79,00,63,00,78,00,68,00,20,00,2f,00,4e,00,4f,00,53,00,54,00,41,00,52,00,\
54,00,55,00,50,00,20,00,22,00,25,00,31,00,22,00,20,00,25,00,32,00,20,00,25,\
00,33,00,20,00,25,00,34,00,20,00,25,00,35,00,20,00,25,00,36,00,20,00,25,00,\
37,00,20,00,25,00,38,00,20,00,25,00,39,00,00,00,00,00
From top line down:
Any .reg file has to start with the correct name of the regedit.exe you will be dealing with. In this case I am dealing with Windows 7, therefore version 5.00.
The rest of the code in this file came straight out of the registry.
Within [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT] I scrolled down to the entry ".accde"
Right click on this and select the "Export" option from the drop down menu.
Provide the folder and file name to export to.
Now you need to do the same within [HKEY_CURRENT_USER]. Here you will need to:
Scroll to Software, then Microsoft, then Windows, then CurrentVersion, then Explorer, then FileExts, and finally .accde.
Right click, select Export, etc.
And lastly, within the [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT] scroll to "Access.ACCDEFile.14"
Right click on this and select the "Export" option, provide the saving info and save the file.
Put these three files together, leaving out the Windows Registry Editor Version line from the second and third files.
What I did from here was to create my own suffix rather than use the Microsoft .accde. I used the initials of the company this software is being written for. In this example, I will just use my own initials, VR. Keeping the ".acc" and just changing the "de" to whatever I will be using for the new suffix in order to use my custom icon.
You do not need to stay with only two characters.
In this new .reg file, carefully work your way through the file changing the "de" (or "DE") within any accordance of "accde" (or "ACCDE") you find.
For example, one of the places you will find "ACCDE" is in the string "[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Access.ACCDEFile.14" Change the "DE" to "VR" (for this example) giving you the new string "[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Access.ACCVRFile.14"
When you are finished, I suggest you search for the string "accde" within the file to be sure you have changed them all to the new suffix you are going to use.
Before using this .reg file to update your registry, BACKUP YOUR REGISTRY!!!

Create a standalone form shortcut in Microsoft Access 2013

I currently have a functioning form that searches through my database by calling a query. What I'm trying to do is turn this into a standalone application where I can simply open a file and only the form opens, running the database on the back-end. I have tried running a macro that opens the form, and I have tried creating a shortcut to my desktop, but nothing has worked.
Does anyone have any suggestions? Anything that will only show the form and the search results would be good (desktop shortcut, HTML file, etc.).
Thanks!

You will need to split your database so that the tables are located in a separate back-end file (which can be kept on a server). These instructions apply to Access 2007 and 2010 but the process is very similar for 2013.
Once this is done, your tables will become linked tables (stored in a separate file) and your front-end .addcb file will only contain queries, forms and reports.
You can control which form opens when the application loads through File -> Options -> Current Database. There are also several other useful controls here for limiting what the user can do; ie.
Hiding the list of database
Hiding the tabs (you will therefore need to create buttons to move between forms)
Hiding the Ribbon and/or status bar
Disabling Layout View
It's safest to change these settings on a copy, so you don't inadvertently lock yourself out; however, by holding down shift when opening the file from within Access, most of these options will be bypassed and you will be able to edit the database / revert these settings should you need to.
In terms of making it a "stand-alone application", it is possible to create a copy that will open without requiring the full version of MS Access on the user's PC (instead using Access Runtime).
I always distribute my front-ends as .accde format (File -> Export ACCDE). The benefits are as follows:
Smaller file size
Optimise memory usage / improves performance
VBA code runs but cannot be viewed or edited

I think what you're looking for is here:
http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/access-help/command-line-switches-for-access-HA010166605.aspx
and
http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/access-help/command-function-HA001228801.aspx
Basic idea, create a macro called AutoExec that checks for a command line argument when opening the database. Setup a shortcut with a command line argument (whatever you decide to name it, I'll use 'lookuponly' as the example.) like this:
"C:\Users\%Username%\Desktop\MyDatabase.mdb" /cmd "lookuponly"
when you double click the shortcut it should auto-run the macro and open your lookup form. Of course under newer versions of access you'll have to set the location of the database as a trusted location or access will attempt to block the database.
http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/access-help/decide-whether-to-trust-a-database-HA010256412.aspx

OpenFile Dialog MS Access 2010

I followed the suggestion by Cody Gray about halfway down the page in this thread but I'm having no luck.
Unless I'm missing something, this is supposed to allow me to navigate from Access, using the Windows API Dialog Box, to the relevant folder and open a file, no? I'm trying to open a Word doc which has a Mail Merge coming back to the same Access Db. I needed the dialog because there are multiple files that may be selected at different times.
I added all the suggested code and while the process runs without error, when I get to the final step, the selected file doesn't open. Nothing happens.
I realize this is not much help without an error message. Any thoughts nonetheless?

As I understand the situation, you have code which uses a string variable named strFileToOpen to hold the path to a Ms Word document. And now you want to open that file in Word.
You can use the FollowHyperlink method.
Application.FollowHyperlink strFileToOpen
Look at the Access help topic for that method. It offers other options you may wish to use.
Also I suggest you look at the help topic for FileDialog Object. It is simpler than the Windows APi method in the code you linked.