MS Access VBA FileSystemObject does not accept path with spaces in them - ms-access

How do I get around the limitation VBA have of not allowing spaces in file path when using the FileSystemObject?
Here is my code:
from= "C:\Users\MyAccount\Desktop\a.txt"
to= "C:\Users\MyAccount\Desktop\Folder Name With Spaces\b.txt"
Dim fso As New FileSystemObject
Set fso = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject")
fso.CopyFile from, to
I have already tried the trick with adding " before any spaces, it doesn't work. The "Bad FileName or Number" error actually pops up.
I have also tried to replace any spaces with %20, which also does not work.
To clarify, I don't know the path beforehand, it is entered by the user.

There's no restriction around having spaces in filenames or paths, either in VBA or when using the FSO. You must have some other problem.
For example I don't think FSO will create a destination folder if it doesn't already exist.
Also: you don't need to use Createobject if you Dim ... As New ...: your object is created in the Dim statement.

My solution to the same issue:
Dim folderPath As String
folderPath = "D:\MyData\BackUp\capdat\City Name"
If Len(Dir$((folderPath & "\OLDData" & Format(Date, "-ddmmyyyy") & ".accdb"))) > 0 Then
Kill (folderPath & "\OLDData" & Format(Date, "-ddmmyyyy") & ".accdb"
Else
Do something
End if

its a while since I did any VBA but I think you need to enclose your strings in quotes to negate the spaces in the paths, so does this work:
fso.CopyFile """" + from + """", """" + to+ """"
EDIT:
This site suggested this routine:
Private Function GetQuotedArgument(ByVal argument As String) As String
Const Quote As String = """"
Return String.Format("{0}{1}{0}", Quote, argument)
End Function
giving:
fso.CopyFile GetQuotedArgument(from), GetQuotedArgument(to)
Failing that you'll have to resort to short forms of the file names... Microsoft article on doing that here, not sure if it applies to VBA though

Related

Save a query as text tab delimited but include ".ail2" in the saved name. (ACCESS)

I want to export a query as a text file from an access database but using vba. The issue is I need to save it with .ail2 in the name.
basically I want it of the form: "currentdate_version.ail2".txt (the quotations are very important otherwise it won't work).
So for example todays first version would look like:
"20182910_1.ail2".txt
I have tried exporting it manually and saving it as this but the export wizard doesn't seem to like the quotation marks in the saved name. I have therefore been exporting it (using a custom saved export that i've labelled test1 - it includes the headers of each column, sets the text qualifier as 'none', the field delimiter as 'tab' and file format is 'delimited').
I am using the following code in access, the first part just makes sure the folder with the current date exists.
Private Sub ExportExcel()
Dim myQueryName As String
Dim myExportFileName As String
Dim strSheets As String
Dim sFolderPath As String
Dim filename As Variant
Dim i As Integer
strSheets = Format(Date, "yyyymmdd")
sFolderPath = "M:\AIL2Files\" & strSheets & ""
Dim fdObj As Object
Set fdObj = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject")
If fdObj.FolderExists("" & sFolderPath & "") Then
Else
fdObj.CreateFolder ("" & sFolderPath & "")
End If
i = 1
filename = Dir(sFolderPath & "\*" & i & ".txt")
Do While Len(filename) > 0
filename = Dir(sFolderPath & "\*" & i & ".txt")
i = i + 1
Loop
myQueryName = "001_querytest"
myExportFileName = "" & sFolderPath & "\" & Chr(34) & "" & strSheets & "_" & i & ".ail2" & Chr(34) & ".txt"
DoCmd.TransferText acExportDelim, "test1", myQueryName, myExportFileName, True
End Sub
test1 isn't being picked up even though its a 'saved export'. I assume I'm doing this part wrong... but even still I reckon the save won't be successful and will not include the quotation marks.
Thanks.
EDIT:
I have tried doing the following instead:
DoCmd.TransferText transferType:=acExportDelim, TableName:=myQueryName, filename:=myExportFileName, hasfieldnames:=True
It now saves, but again not including the quotation marks as desired. Whats interesting is when I type ?myExportFileName in the immediate window, it displays my desired filename but the command is clearly not working correctly as I get it of the form:
_20181029_1#ail2_
Instead...
Here is image if I use save as:
I end up getting:
There are some misconceptions here.
Windows file names cannot contain double quotes ", period. And you don't need them, either. Just save your file as filename.ail2.
This is what you get when doing "Save as". Tell Explorer to show file extensions, and you'll see that you don't have "filename.ail2".txt but filename.ail2.
You only need
myExportFileName = sFolderPath & "\" & strSheets & "_" & i & ".ail2"
test1 isn't being picked up even though its a 'saved export'.
DoCmd.TransferText doesn't use saved exports, but export specifications. See here for the difference:
Can I programmatically get at all Import/Export Specs in MS Access 2010?
Addendum
DoCmd.TransferText could throw a runtime error when given an illegal file name, but apparently it tries to save the day by exchanging the illegal characters by _, hence _20181029_1#ail2_ (.txt)
A workaround to this is first saving the file as a .txt using DoCmd.TransferText, but running a shell and renaming. Like such:
myExportFileName = sFolderPath & "\" & strSheets & "_" & i & ".txt"
DoCmd.TransferText TransferType:=acExportDelim, SpecificationName:="034_AILFILE Export Specification", TableName:=myQueryName, filename:=myExportFileName, HasFieldnames:=True
Set wshShell = CreateObject("Wscript.Shell")
strDocuments = wshShell.SpecialFolders("M:\AIL2Files\" & strSheets & "")
oldFileName = myExportFileName
newFileName = sFolderPath & "\" & strSheets & "_" & i & ".ail2"
Name oldFileName As newFileName
There is undoubtedly cleaner ways of doing this but I imagine that this method could be used to save any files that have non traditional extensions, but fundamentally follow the format of a .txt file.

How do I call a function in Access 2010?

I know this question has been asked over and over, but I can't follow any of the guides I've found.
I'm a total beginner with Access and writing VBA, so I found some code that will help me import A LOT of files into separate tables in Access.
I have tried several variations of putting the code in and calling from a macro or a button...none of them have been successful.
There might be something wrong with the code, but I don't know enough to figure it out. I'm also pretty sure I'm doing something else wrong when trying to call the function. Please help me!
Here's the code:
Option Compare Database
Option Explicit
Function DoImport()
Dim strPathFile As String, strFile As String, strPath As String
Dim strTable As String
Dim blnHasFieldNames As Boolean
' Change this next line to True if the first row in EXCEL worksheet
' has field names
blnHasFieldNames = True
' Replace C:\Documents\ with the real path to the folder that
' contains the EXCEL files
strPath = "C:\Documents and Settings\user\Desktop\folder"
' Replace tablename with the real name of the table into which
' the data are to be imported
strTable = "tablename"
strFile = Dir(strPath & "*.xls")
Do While Len(strFile) > 0
strPathFile = strPath & strFile
strTable = Left(strFile, Len(strFile) - 4)
DoCmd.TransferSpreadsheet acImport, acSpreadsheetTypeExcel9, _
strTable, strPathFile, blnHasFieldNames
' Uncomment out the next code step if you want to delete the
' EXCEL file after it's been imported
' Kill strPathFile
strFile = Dir()
Loop
End Function
To call this procedure it either needs to exist in the current form where the button is or reside in a Module of its own.
Because the function does not return a value or have any arguments to call it you would type the following VBA code in a button's On Click event:
DoImport
If you wish to make sure the code is actually running you can set a breakpoint by pressing F9 on an executable line of code
Or type the word Stop where you want to debug
The code itself will not be very useful until you have made the changes to the literal strings as the code comments suggest
The code itself as it stands is not very reusable so as a next step you should research using arguments so when you call the function at runtime you can supply the folder name and table name et cetera.
The code itself will search a particular folder for Excel files and attempts to import each file into Microsoft Access, using the filename as the table name.
How about creating a new Module and pasting the below code into it. Save it and name it whatever you want.
Public Function DoImport(strPath AS String, strTable AS String, _
blnHasFieldNames AS Boolean, RemoveFile AS Boolean)
Dim strFile As String
strFile = Dir(strPath & "*.xls")
Do While Len(strFile) > 0
DoCmd.TransferSpreadsheet acImport, acSpreadsheetTypeExcel9, strTable, _
strPath & strFile, blnHasFieldNames
if RemoveFile Then Kill strPath & strFile
strFile = Dir()
Loop
End Function
Then you can call the function via the following:
DoImport "C:\imports\Excel\", "MyTableName", True, True
This allows you to pass the path, table name, whether the files contain field names and if you want to remove the file after import. That way you don't have to potentially change the code of the function constantly.

Text-search in properties Access objects

Is there a way in Access to search for a certain text in object properties and so on? Just not only in the VBA source code.
I'm asking this because if I change for example the name of a field in a table I've to check a lot of object properties (Record Source, Control Source, Order By, ...). This can be done by trail-and-error or by checking all properties of each control of the forms, but that takes a lot of time.
One option is the Find and Replace tool (nice tool!), but it's a bit of overkill for me. I don't need a text replace (only 'find') and it's 37 dollar for a tool I'll only use a few times a year.
Other suggestions?
There is something I often use to find out where some function or query may be hidding somewhere unexpected (in a bound control's RowSource of within a sub-query for instance).
I use an undocumented feature to export all Access objects as raw text files.
Using a text editor that can search within files recursively under a folder(like the free Notepad++ for instance) I am then confident that I find all occurrences, however buried, of a particular string.
The Code for exporting all objects includes my IsBlank() function:
'====================================================================
' Name: DocDatabase
' Purpose: Documents the database to a series of text files
' From: http://www.datastrat.com/Code/DocDatabase.txt
' Author: Arvin Meyer
' Date: June 02, 1999
' Comment: Uses the undocumented [Application.SaveAsText] syntax
' To reload use the syntax [Application.LoadFromText]
' Modified to set a reference to DAO 8/22/2005
' Modified by Renaud Bompuis to export Queries as proper SQL
'====================================================================
Public Sub DocDatabase(Optional path As Variant = Null)
If IsBlank(path) Then
path = Application.CurrentProject.path & "\" & Application.CurrentProject.Name & " - exploded view\"
End If
On Error Resume Next
MkDir path
MkDir path & "\Forms\"
MkDir path & "\Queries\"
MkDir path & "\Queries(SQL)\"
MkDir path & "\Reports\"
MkDir path & "\Modules\"
MkDir path & "\Scripts\"
On Error GoTo Err_DocDatabase
Dim dbs As DAO.Database
Dim cnt As DAO.Container
Dim doc As DAO.Document
Dim i As Integer
Set dbs = CurrentDb() ' use CurrentDb() to refresh Collections
Set cnt = dbs.Containers("Forms")
For Each doc In cnt.Documents
Application.SaveAsText acForm, doc.Name, path & "\Forms\" & doc.Name & ".txt"
Next doc
Set cnt = dbs.Containers("Reports")
For Each doc In cnt.Documents
Application.SaveAsText acReport, doc.Name, path & "\Reports\" & doc.Name & ".txt"
Next doc
Set cnt = dbs.Containers("Scripts")
For Each doc In cnt.Documents
Application.SaveAsText acMacro, doc.Name, path & "\Scripts\" & doc.Name & ".txt"
Next doc
Set cnt = dbs.Containers("Modules")
For Each doc In cnt.Documents
Application.SaveAsText acModule, doc.Name, path & "\Modules\" & doc.Name & ".txt"
Next doc
Dim intfile As Long
Dim filename as String
For i = 0 To dbs.QueryDefs.count - 1
Application.SaveAsText acQuery, dbs.QueryDefs(i).Name, path & "\Queries\" & dbs.QueryDefs(i).Name & ".txt"
filename = path & "\Queries(SQL)\" & dbs.QueryDefs(i).Name & ".txt"
intfile = FreeFile()
Open filename For Output As #intfile
Print #intfile, dbs.QueryDefs(i).sql
Close #intfile
Next i
Set doc = Nothing
Set cnt = Nothing
Set dbs = Nothing
Exit_DocDatabase:
Debug.Print "Done."
Exit Sub
Err_DocDatabase:
Select Case Err
Case Else
MsgBox Err.Description
Resume Exit_DocDatabase
End Select
End Sub
To use it, just call DocDatabase from the Immediate window in the Access IDE, it will create a set of directories under and 'Exploded View' folder that will contain all the files.
Another option is to temporarily turn on the NAME AUTOCORRECT option. It's a badly implemented feature and can damage your database if left on for production deployment, but I very often use it when taking over an Access app created by somebody else in order convert it to use my naming conventions.
You basically turn it on, let it build the dependencies table, then make your changes. You can then walk the tree of dependencies to confirm that it got them all. When you're done, you turn it off.
However, it doesn't work for VBA code. But for changing field names and the like, it's pretty useful if used carefully.
I amended the code above to strip out temporary objects with "~" in the object name as follows:
Set cnt = dbs.Containers("Scripts")
For Each doc In cnt.Documents
If Not doc.Name Like "~*" Then
Application.SaveAsText acMacro, doc.Name, path & "\Scripts\" & doc.Name & ".txt"
End If
Next doc

Problem with CopyFile, FileSystemObject, comma in path name cases problems

I can successfully create folder directories with commas included in the name using the FileSystemObject
The problem that I am having is if a comma is included in the directory name I cant then use 'CopyFile' with this path name.
The sub routine I use is below
Sub CopyFiles(sDoc As String, dDoc As String)
Dim fso As New FileSystemObject
fso.CopyFile sDoc, dDoc, False
Set fso = Nothing
End Sub
I cant really avoid the use of commas, how can i prevent this from being a problem?
Thanks in advance for any help.
Cheers
Noel
How about quotes:
fso.CopyFile """" & sDoc & """", """" & dDoc & """", False

how do you view macro code in access?

I have a Microsoft Access database and there is a macro there. How do I view the code of the macro?
Open the Access Database, you will see Table, Query, Report, Module & Macro.
This contains the macros which can be used to invoke common MS-Access actions in a sequence.
For custom VBA macro, press ALT+F11.
You can try the following VBA code to export Macro contents directly without converting them to VBA first. Unlike Tables, Forms, Reports, and Modules, the Macros are in a container called Scripts. But they are there and can be exported and imported using SaveAsText and LoadFromText
Option Compare Database
Option Explicit
Public Sub ExportDatabaseObjects()
On Error GoTo Err_ExportDatabaseObjects
Dim db As Database
Dim d As Document
Dim c As Container
Dim sExportLocation As String
Set db = CurrentDb()
sExportLocation = "C:\SomeFolder\"
Set c = db.Containers("Scripts")
For Each d In c.Documents
Application.SaveAsText acMacro, d.Name, sExportLocation & "Macro_" & d.Name & ".txt"
Next d
An alternative object to use is as follows:
For Each obj In Access.Application.CurrentProject.AllMacros
Access.Application.SaveAsText acMacro, obj.Name, strFilePath & "\Macro_" & obj.Name & ".txt"
Next
EDIT:
Per Michael Dillon's answer, SaveAsText does save the commands in a macro without having to go through converting to VBA. I don't know what happened when I tested that, but it didn't produce useful text in the resulting file.
So, I learned something new today!
ORIGINAL POST:
To expand the question, I wondered if there was a way to retrieve the contents of a macro from code, and it doesn't appear that there is (at least not in A2003, which is what I'm running).
There are two collections through which you can access stored Macros:
CurrentDB.Containers("Scripts").Documents
CurrentProject.AllMacros
The properties that Intellisense identifies for the two collections are rather different, because the collections are of different types. The first (i.e., traditional, pre-A2000 way) is via a documents collection, and the methods/properties/members of all documents are the same, i.e., not specific to Macros.
Likewise, the All... collections of CurrentProject return collections where the individual items are of type Access Object. The result is that Intellisense gives you methods/properties/members that may not exist for the particular document/object.
So far as I can tell, there is no way to programatically retrieve the contents of a macro.
This would stand to reason, as macros aren't of much use to anyone who would have the capability of writing code to examine them programatically.
But if you just want to evaluate what the macros do, one alternative would be to convert them to VBA, which can be done programmatically thus:
Dim varItem As Variant
Dim strMacroName As String
For Each varItem In CurrentProject.AllMacros
strMacroName = varItem.Name
'Debug.Print strMacroName
DoCmd.SelectObject acMacro, strMacroName, True
DoCmd.RunCommand acCmdConvertMacrosToVisualBasic
Application.SaveAsText acModule, "Converted Macro- " & strMacroName, _
CurrentProject.Path & "\" & "Converted Macro- " & strMacroName & ".txt"
Next varItem
Then you could use the resulting text files for whatever you needed to do.
Note that this has to be run interactively in Access because it uses DoCmd.RunCommand, and you have to click OK for each macro -- tedious for databases with lots of macros, but not too onerous for a normal app, which shouldn't have more than a handful of macros.
This did the trick for me: I was able to find which macro called a particular query. Incidentally, the reason someone who does know how to code in VBA would want to write something like this is when they've inherited something macro-ish written by someone who doesn't know how to code in VBA.
Function utlFindQueryInMacro
( strMacroNameLike As String
, strQueryName As String
) As String
' (c) 2012 Doug Den Hoed
' NOTE: requires reference to Microsoft Scripting Library
Dim varItem As Variant
Dim strMacroName As String
Dim oFSO As New FileSystemObject
Dim oFS
Dim strFileContents As String
Dim strMacroNames As String
For Each varItem In CurrentProject.AllMacros
strMacroName = varItem.Name
If Len(strMacroName) = 0 _
Or InStr(strMacroName, strMacroNameLike) > 0 Then
'Debug.Print "*** MACRO *** "; strMacroName
Application.SaveAsText acMacro, strMacroName, "c:\temp.txt"
Set oFS = oFSO.OpenTextFile("c:\temp.txt")
strFileContents = ""
Do Until oFS.AtEndOfStream
strFileContents = strFileContents & oFS.ReadLine
Loop
Set oFS = Nothing
Set oFSO = Nothing
Kill "c:\temp.txt"
'Debug.Print strFileContents
If InStr(strFileContents, strQueryName) 0 Then
strMacroNames = strMacroNames & strMacroName & ", "
End If
End If
Next varItem
MsgBox strMacroNames
utlFindQueryInMacro = strMacroNames
End Function
In Access 2010, go to the Create tab on the ribbon. Click Macro. An "Action Catalog" panel should appear on the right side of the screen. Underneath, there's a section titled "In This Database." Clicking on one of the macro names should display its code.