Where do files reside

[Bikerbabe]

I have an application in Access that I am putting on
multiple desktops. The desktops will just have a runtime
version on them to run the mde. I will keep the mdb and
the be_mdb on the server. My question is: When the desktop
mde is opened, does it bring down just the record it is
currently working on or does it download the whole table?

 

[Wladyslaw Surzyn]

kocham was i prosze kontakt z wami.

 

[Albert D. Kallal]

mde is opened, does it bring down just the record it is
currently working on or does it download the whole table?

it depends on well the application was designed. If the table has a index on
it, and your designs good, then only the one record get send down the wire.

So, it is poor design to simply have a dumb form, and open that form to
table.

Can you imagine if a Instant teller machine loading everyone's account name
into it BEFORE you start? So, then why load up a ms-access form without
first figuring out what the user needs!

Fact is, if you need to work on a invoice number, then ask the user for what
invoice, and then simply load the form with a where clause to the one
record. It makes no sense to design and write software any other way.

I been developing software for 20 years. The basic application loop for
EVERY application I have is:


loop
what record to edit?
load that one record
let user edit one record
save one record.

until user wants to quit

In other words, you don't just want to be lazy, and just open a form to a
big table and let the user have at it. However, ms-access does a not bad job
when you open a form to a bound table without any restrictions. It don't
load the whole thing in...but often it drags in a lot more records then you
need. And, if the user starts moving around, or hits ctrl-f in a non indexed
field, then you WILL drag the whole table down the wire.

So, if as a general rule, if your application asks the user what they need,
and then opens a form to that request, then you will not be wasting that
VERY precious resource called your network. So, no, ms-access does not drag
the whole table down. However, if you don't design your application to
minimize the amount of data for that form, you likely will windup dragging
too much down the wire.

So, ask the user what they want, and then load the form to that request. It
is plain silly to open up a form to one large table without any idea as to
what the user wants to look for!

If you want a good example of how to prompt a user BEFORE you open a form,
you can read the following of mine:

http://www.attcanada.net/~kallal.msn/Search/index.html

 

[Larry Linson]

it depends on well the application was
designed. If the table has a index on
it, and your designs good, then only the
one record get send down the wire.

Implied, but not stated, in Albert's comment is that (as much of) the index
(as would be accessed no matter where it is) to find the record will first
have to come across the network -- that's not necessarily even the whole
index, but enough to determine the one (or few) actual data records to bring
down. The file in the shared folder is used just as it would be if it were
on the local hard drive (only access is at the combination of remote hard
drive speed plus network speed, rather than local hard drive speed).

Larry Linson
Microsoft Access MVP