Professional access 2013 programming

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PROFESSIONAL

Access® 2013 Programming

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PROFESSIONAL

Access 2013 Programming
®

Teresa Hennig
Ben Clothier
George Hepworth
Dagi (Doug) Yudovich

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Professional Access® 2013 Programming
Published by

John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
10475 Crosspoint Boulevard
Indianapolis, IN 46256
www.wiley.com
Copyright © 2013 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana
Published simultaneously in Canada
ISBN: 978-1-118-53083-2
ISBN: 978-1-118-53082-5 (ebk)
ISBN: 978-1-118-78961-2 (ebk)
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To my family and my dearest friends — you are my inspirations, role models and
mentors. Whatever I am facing, I can find strength and guidance by thinking of
what my Mom, Papa, Dad, or brother might say or do. Every day I have reasons
to say thank you for teaching us to work, to accept responsibility for our actions,
to do the right thing, and to help others. You taught us to do what we enjoy and
to do our best. What a great formula to be happy, energized, and resilient, and to
appreciate all that we have! You set the foundation for me to embrace the thrills,
lessons, and adventures in life. And, throughout life, to be compassionate and to
give generously — especially laughter and smiles, a hug or a helping hand.
—Teresa Hennig
To Suzanne and Harry, for being just plain awesome. I couldn’t have done it
without you two!
—Ben Clothier
I want to dedicate my part in this book to my mother and father, who not only
brought me into the world, but showed me how to live properly once I got here.
Family comes first, but that is easy when you have a family like mine. To my
siblings, JoAnna, Tom, Sam, Jack, Nancy, and Jane: Your encouragement (and
unusually high tolerance for bad jokes, lies, and war stories) helps keep me going.
Thanks. I promise I’ll update the family website again soon. I also need to make

special mention of my daughter, Lyndsey; you give me reason to be proud every
day. Love ya, sweetie. We’ll make up for the missed weekend dinners soon.
—George Hepworth
To my wife, Lisa, who still patiently picks up the slack as I dive head-first into
new adventures. None of it would have been possible without you. I love you.
—Dagi Yudovich

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CREDITS
EXECUTIVE EDITOR

PRODUCTION MANAGER

Robert Elliott

Tim Tate

PROJECT EDITOR

VICE PRESIDENT AND EXECUTIVE GROUP
PUBLISHER

Christina Haviland

Richard Swadley
TECHNICAL EDITORS
VICE PRESIDENT AND EXECUTIVE PUBLISHER

F. Scott Barker
Jerry Dennison
Jerry Wood

Neil Edde
ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER

PRODUCTION EDITOR

Jim Minatel

Christine Mugnolo
PROJECT COORDINATOR, COVER
COPY EDITOR

Katie Crocker

Nancy Rapoport
PROOFREADER
EDITORIAL MANAGER

Sarah Kaikini, Word One New York

Mary Beth Wakefield
INDEXER
FREELANCER EDITORIAL MANAGER

John Sleeva

Rosemarie Graham

COVER DESIGNER
ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF MARKETING

Wiley

David Mayhew
COVER IMAGE
MARKETING MANAGER

© iStockphoto.com/PhekThong Lee

Ashley Zurcher
BUSINESS MANAGER

Amy Knies

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ABOUT THE AUTHORS

TERESA HENNIG has been an Access developer and business consultant since 1997,
when she decided to start her own business on the second day that she used Access.
Her company’s name, Data Dynamics Northwest, aptly reflects her dynamic personality and her innate ability to quickly grasp a situation, formulate and implement
a solution, and motivate others. With a strong background in business and project
management, Teresa focuses on providing intuitive, cost-effective solutions that support all levels of an organization. One of her favorite aspects of being a consultant is working with
an endless variety of businesses across many industries and in numerous locations.

As a self-taught developer, Teresa quickly became involved with the Seattle Access Group and
has been the President since 1999. It wasn’t long before she was asked to help run, and then

became President of, the Pacific Northwest Access Developer Group. Her fi rst book Access 2003
Programmer’s Reference (Wiley, 2003) opened the door to new opportunities to help fellow developers share their passion and expertise with the community. Over the past 10 years, Teresa has helped
dozens of colleagues to become authors, editors and contributors. This is her sixth book, and she
already has requests to do more.
Teresa has been recognized as a Microsoft MVP continuously since 2006, and has twice earned
INETA’s National Community Champion award. Teresa thrives on challenges, project management,
and creating cost-effective solutions. Her skills for motivating and helping others are reflected in
her contributions to the developer community and support of numerous non-profit organizations.
She is expanding her reach by doing presentations and offering customized training, mentoring,
and consulting for database development as well as business and project management. You can
contact Teresa at to learn more about any of these services. You
can also read about some of her adventures and charitable endeavors by visiting her website,
www.DataDynamicsNW.com.
BEN CLOTHIER is a Lead Developer with IT Impact, Inc., a premier Access and SQL
Server development shop based in Chicago, Illinois. He has worked as a freelance
consultant with notable shops including J Street Technology and Advisicon, and has
worked on Access projects from small, one-man solutions to company-wide lineof-business applications. Notable projects include job tracking and inventory for a
cement company, a Medicare insurance plan generator for an insurance provider, and
order management for an international shipping company.

Ben is an administrator at UtterAccess and was a coauthor, with Tim Runcie and George Hepworth,
on Microsoft Access in a SharePoint World (Advisicon, 2011), and a contributing author for Access
2010 Programmer’s Reference (Wiley, 2010). He is a certified MySQL 5.0 Developer and a Microsoft
Certified Technology Specialist for SharePoint 2010 configurations. He has been a Microsoft MVP
since 2009.
Ben lives in San Antonio, Texas with his wife, Suzanne, and his son, Harry.

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GEORGE HEPWORTH began his Access career by creating tools to track sales and
exam results for his business, which created and sold training and exam materials.
Realizing that Access databases were more interesting and rewarding than writing
training materials, he soon transitioned to full-time Access development and started
his company, Grover Park Consulting (www.GPCData.com), specializing in resuscitating “owner-built” Access databases for small- and medium-sized organizations. As a
self-taught developer, George believes that any day on which he doesn’t learn at least one new thing
is a day wasted.

George is a database developer for Data and Domains, a development organization near Bellevue,
Washington, creating Access and Access/SQL Server solutions for clients in the Puget Sound region.
George is part of the administrator team, and a regular contributor, at UtterAccess, the most popular Access support site on the Internet. He is the author or contributor to several books on Access,
and a presenter at the Pacific Northwest Access Developer Group and Seattle Access Group.
George holds a BS in English and an MA in TESL from Utah State University. And now, George’s
daughter and his money go to Seattle University.
DAGI (DOUG) YUDOVICH is the Assistant Director of Departmental Computing for the

University of Washington School of Medicine. One of the department’s primary BI
responsibilities is developing database solutions using Access and SQL Server.
Doug is an Administrator on UtterAccess forums and the UtterAccess wiki. Doug
was a contributing author to Microsoft Access Small Business Solutions and the
Access 2010 Programmer’s Reference. Additionally, Doug is an active member of
the Pacific Northwest Access Developers Group (PNWADG) and a presenter in the Seattle Access
Group (SAG). Doug has been awarded the Access MVP award since 2009.

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ABOUT THE TECHNICAL EDITORS/
CONTRIBUTORS
JERRY DENNISON has over 20 years of professional experience in the design and

development of Microsoft Access database applications. He was one of the coauthors
of Microsoft Access 2010 Programmer’s Reference (Wiley, 2010) and a contributing
editor on other Access books. Jerry was a four-year recipient of the Microsoft Office
Access MVP award and is considered by his peers to be one of the foremost experts
on the forms of data normalization.
Jerry is the owner of TradeIt! Software Support Services, where he provides database consulting
for businesses and other Access developers. He is an automation engineer at Rexam Healthcare
Packaging, where he has worked for 22 years providing design, installation, and service support for
automated inspection and test systems.
Jerry lives with his wife of 24 years in Hixson, Tennessee.
PATRICK WOOD is the founder of Gaining Access Technologies, which provides consulting and custom software development. Originally a minister with a bachelor’s degree
in biblical studies, he decided one day while he was between churches to develop an
application to manage the many tasks involved with small- to medium-sized churches.
That sparked his interest in Microsoft Access development, which led to the founding of
his company. He learned ASP.NET to build the company website, and began developing
SQL Server and Azure SQL databases. Pat’s articles about cutting-edge technology software development have been featured on several websites. He received the MVP Award for Microsoft Access in 2011.

Pat still preaches at a small country church and enjoys taking walks, playing the guitar, hunting and
fishing, and spending time with his wife and three young grandsons.
F. SCOTT BARKER is the owner of AppsPlus, where he develops software for industries

ranging from government agencies, insurance companies, banks, medical analysis fi rms, and even for Microsoft. Scott is a former Microsoft MVP and Microsoft
employee, and was a member of the original Access team. He is also the author of a
number of books on programming techniques using Microsoft technologies.
LEO (theDBguy™) is an Access MVP and moderator of the UtterAccess (UA) Forums.
Since joining UA in 2007, Leo has made over 50,000 posts responding to questions and
solving worldwide database dilemmas. Leo is a renowned Access expert with over 17
years of experience creating complex and intuitive Access solutions. He currently works
as a Knowledge Manager for the Navy and manages the SharePoint portal for his command, which supports over 1500 sites and more than 5500 users.

Leo’s free time is dedicated to his family and to helping others leverage the powers of Access. In addition to
being an active member and presenter at the Access User Group of San Diego, he also shares his expertise
through his website at www.accessmvp.com/thedbguy and his blog site at www.thedbguy.blog.com.

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TECHNICAL CONTRIBUTORS

GREG LINDHORST is the Principal Program Manager for Microsoft Access. He has been a member

of the Microsoft Access engineering team since 2006, specializing in Access web apps and the programming model. Greg is a 20-year veteran at Microsoft, where he has worked on a wide range of
application development tools in Office and Visual Studio.
TOM VAN STIPHOUT is an Access MVP and the software development manager for Kinetik I.T.

(www.kinetik-it.com), a premier provider of website design, SEO Internet marketing, software
development, and computer network services and solutions in Phoenix, Arizona. Tom can be
reached at
JACK D. LEACH is an Access MVP with a strong background in the manufacturing business.
He runs Dymeng Services (www.dymeng.com), a software development company in upstate
New York, specializing in database and website solutions for small businesses. Jack can be found
on www.utteraccess.com as jleach and at
PETER DOERING is an Access MVP from Bamberg, Germany and an expert on migrations to SQL
Server as well as SQL Azure and Office 365. He’s been an independent developer on international
projects for over 20 years. Peter is an acclaimed speaker at developer conferences in Europe and can
be reached at
GLEN KRUGER is an Access MVP and the Developer/Owner of KNK Consulting, assisting clients
using Access and Visual Basic. Glen graduated from NAIT’s Computer Systems Technology (CST)
program. He is an administrator of the UtterAccess Forums, and can also be reached at

RIK HEPWORTH is a Microsoft vTSP and is the IT Director and head of the SharePoint Practice at

Black Marble in the UK. With over 20 years in IT, Rik has worked in nearly every aspect of computing. As a technology evangelist, Rik is a regular presenter at events around the UK and Ireland. He
is easiest to fi nd on Twitter as @rikhepworth.
JONATHAN SAMPSON is an IE MVP and the Director of Support at AppendTo (appendTo.com).

Jonathan is a full-stack developer who participates on stackoverflow.com and produces content for
sampson.ms. Jonathan can be found on Twitter at @jonathansampson.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

AS A TEAM, WE WOULD LIKE TO EXPRESS our respect and appreciation for all of the people who
contributed to the content, editing, and production of this book. This project truly epitomizes the
concept of team work and community — especially the MVP community. We wanted this book to
reflect a wide perspective of expertise, but we didn’t anticipate the extent that would become. We
reached around the world to leverage the expertise and passion of more than a dozen MVPs and
experts from multiple disciplines. They invested an unprecedented amount of time, research, and
resources to create this book and all of the supporting fi les and examples. Much like creating a solution for your clients, the team has invested hundreds of hours to create or enhance developer tools
that you can incorporate directly into your fi les.

Over the course of a number of months, we conquered many hurdles, forged new connections, and
helped to expand the functionality for Access web apps. We couldn’t have done it without the timely
and invaluable efforts of our editors and technical contributors. These guys stepped up the moment
they were called upon — and yes, that often meant at a point of near panic and urgency! Whether
it was to resolve a version confl ict, expand into associated technologies, or to share tools and techniques, they generously shared their expertise and passion with the community and you, the readers.
Please take a moment to read about our contributing editors and technical contributors.

Of course, we wouldn’t have anything to write about if it weren’t for the incredible people on the
Microsoft Access team. Their passion, dedication, and commitment to continuously expand and
enhance Access are truly remarkable and inspiring. And we wouldn’t have a book without all of the
editors and teams at Wiley — Bob, Rosemarie, Mary Beth, Nancy, and so many more. Plus a very special thank you to Chris Haviland for her remarkable skills, attitude, and encouragement while guiding
us through months of reviews and production. Hmm, we’ve lost track of all the IOUs, but suffice it to
say they should include a spa day, margaritas, chocolate dipped strawberries, and many massages!

—The Authors

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FIRST AND FOREMOST, I WANT TO EXPRESS heartfelt appreciation to my family and dearest friends. I

am immensely grateful for the opportunities, encouragement, and support that you continue to give
me — personally, professionally, and for so many charitable endeavors. From the summit of Mt. Rainier
to Uganda, and from fundraisers to books, you help me to stay focused, energized, and positive. Life
can take us on quite a roller coaster ride filled with excitement, challenges, accomplishments, and lessons. People and life have so many facets to relish and cherish; thank you for sharing the adventures. I
also want to thank my colleagues, especially my MVP family, and everyone working on this book.
This project has been like no other. When we started planning over 12 months ago, no one could
have foreseen the amount of time and effort, or the extensive and ongoing changes, that would be
involved. On behalf of myself and the entire Access community, I want to thank Ben and George
for their vision, perseverance, and dedication to not only proving that an Access 2013 web app
can be a robust business solution, but also providing a model and guide for others to follow. At
critical moments, we also gained the invaluable expertise of Greg, Rik, and Jonathan. And to
ensure that the traditional Access solutions demonstrate multiple perspectives and signifi cant new
approaches, Doug and I incorporated content and tips from several of our MVP colleagues. Their
involvement was also instrumental in completing a second round of technical reviews and testing;
with many thanks to the Herculean efforts by Leo, who reviewed nearly all of the web chapters!
Over the months, the team has undergone major transitions. Starting with a team of four authors,

we added more than a dozen experts with a seeming exponential increase in coordination tasks.
(Talk about lessons in project management!) Fortunately, those challenges also enriched my life
with new friends as they joined our team. In working countless hours with Leo, Glen, Jack, and Pat,
I gained the utmost respect for their expertise and dedication. Similarly, it is always a pleasure to
work with my treasured colleagues, Tom, Peter, Jerry, and Scott. Your contributions helped make
our book a truly remarkable and invaluable resource for all Access users. I am grateful for being
able to share both the opportunity and the credits with so many. In recognition of the invaluable
part that they played, we have designated a new role, Technical Contributor. These are remarkable
people, so please take a moment to read their bios. This is truly a team effort and it epitomizes the
spirit of the MVP community.
With all of the turmoil on the book, I essentially took a 4+ month hiatus from consulting to support
the team. So I also want to thank my clients for understanding the delays and for working with
me to prioritize and schedule tasks so that we could meet their immediate needs and defer others.
THANK YOU!
I must also express very special, heartfelt appreciation to Christina Haviland — for her patience,
guidance, humor, and compassionate understanding. Thank you for doing whatever it took to pull
all of the pieces together to get everything to production and print! Your entryway should be overflowing with gift baskets, massage certificates, and a lifetime of gratitude.
This project has tested and strengthened us individually and collectively. We did this for you, the
Access community. Our greatest reward is helping you to help others, so it is with great pride that
we present this book. As you benefit from this compilation of resources, we hope that you too will
realize that it is indeed priceless.
This demonstrates yet again that life is fi lled with opportunities — celebrate them all!

—Teresa Hennig

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WITHOUT THE HELP OF MANY WONDERFUL PEOPLE, this book would not have happened. Thank

you, Greg Lindhorst, for helping us to set the parameters and providing guidance. Thank you, Rik
Hepworth and Jonathan Sampson, for your excellent contribution when we found ourselves deep
in the new and brave world of SharePoint and web development. I’m indebted to Jerry Dennison,
Patrick Wood, and Leo theDBGuy™ for their meticulous diligence. Thank you, Christina Haviland
and Teresa Hennig, for your guidance in the project. And most importantly, thank you, George
Hepworth, for putting up with me!

—Ben Clothier

THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF VARIOUS PEOPLE have been of great help in this journey. Greg Lindhorst,

Access Program Manager at Microsoft, was an early and on-going source of key information about
Access web apps. His help was invaluable. Later, when it became clear we had ventured some distance into the SharePoint realm, we were fortunate to obtain the assistance of Rik Hepworth in
shoring up that part of the narrative. We also appreciate Jonathan Sampson for his important contributions in reviewing some of the JavaScript code. I also want to thank the partners at Data &
Domains, Eric Change and Frank Wilson, for their generosity in allowing me time off to work on
this book. We also want to acknowledge the contributions of Leo “theDBGuy” and Jerry Dennison
for their excellent reviews and comments that helped make the book better.

—George Hepworth

SPECIAL THANKS to my coauthors — Teresa, Ben, and George. It’s been a wild ride, but riding along
with you made it all worthwhile. Your support during the project was nothing short of amazing.
Extra thanks to Teresa for leading the project with an unlimited amount of energy and enthusiasm.

To my fellow MVPs and friends, Tom van Stiphout and Peter Doering — thank you for your help,
insight, and input. Your knowledge seems boundless, and I’ve learned a lot from you. I’d also like to
thank Pat Wood for taking the time to solve the puzzle after fi nding a missing piece.
To Chris, our project editor, thank you for your patience and guidance throughout the project and
for being a calm port in the storm. To the technical editors, technical advisors, and anyone else who
helped iron out the wrinkles — thank you.

—Dagi Yudovich

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CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

xxvii

PART I: ACCESS WEB APPLICATION DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION TO ACCESS WEB APPS
AND ARCHITECTURE

Deprecated Components

3

4

Access Data Projects
Jet Replication
Menus and Toolbars
Import/Export/Link to Jet 3.x and dBASE Files
PivotTables and PivotCharts

Collect Data via E-mail
SharePoint Workflow
Source Code Control Extension
Packaging Wizard
Upsizing Wizard
Creating Access Web Databases

New Components Added

5
6
6
7
8
8
8
9
10
10
11

12

Database Compare
Audit and Control Management Server

What Is an App?
How Is an App Hosted?
How Is an App Distributed?

12
13

13
15
16

App Marketplace for Publicly Available Solutions
App Catalogs for Internal-Facing Solutions

How Are Security and Trust Managed in Apps?
Setting Up a SharePoint Site for Your Apps
Setting Up an Office 365 Trial Account

Solving Business Problems
The Maid To Order Work Schedule Database
Summary

16
16

18
20
21

24
24
24

CHAPTER 2: DESIGNING TABLES

25

Creating a Blank App
Keeping Your Log Ins Straight

26
27

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CONTENTS

Creating Tables

29

Creating Tables Using Nouns
Creating Tables from Imported Data Sources
Creating Tables the Traditional Way
Tables and Their Related Views

Data Type Changes from Previous Versions

29
31
36
37

38

Text Data Type
Hyperlink Fields
Numeric Data Type
Date/Time Data Type
Image Data Type
Lookup Data Type

38
39
39
40
40
40

Field Properties
Linking SharePoint Lists
Summary

40
41
42

CHAPTER 3: UNDERSTANDING THE NEW USER INTERFACE

Web Navigation

45

46

Navigation Tools
The New Approach to Layout
The New Ribbon

Mobile Devices Support
SharePoint and Office 365
Creating a Web App via Team Site
Deleting Web Apps
Sharing Web Apps with Others

Summary

46
51
55

60
65
67
69
69

70

CHAPTER 4: DESIGNING VIEWS

View Design Surface

73

74

Ribbon
Tiles
Links and Creating Views
Field List
Popup Properties
Manipulating Control Placement
Duplicating a View

75
76
78
79
84
88
92

Action Bar and Action Bar Buttons

93

Action Bar Button Properties
Default Action Button
Custom Action Buttons
xvi

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93
94
95


CONTENTS

Controls

96

Changed Controls
New Controls
Common Properties
Client Controls with No Counterparts
Web Browser Control

Summary

96
103
108
109
110

114

CHAPTER 5: CREATING QUERIES AND WRITING EXPRESSIONS

Query Architecture

115

116

SQL Server Views
Table-Valued Functions

116
117

Changes in the Query Designer
Creating, Editing, Saving, and Previewing Queries
Action Queries
Parameterized Queries
Aggregates, Unique Values, and Top Values
Query Properties

Functions and Expressions

119
119
125
125
126
127

128

Delimiters
Operator Differences
New Constants
Data Type Inspection and Conversion
String Functions
Date and Time Functions
Math Functions
Other Functions
Availability by Context

Summary

129
129
131
132
135
139
141
145
146

148

CHAPTER 6: Creating Macros

149

Why We Need a New Web-Compatible
Macro Language

Where We’ve Been
Access’s Traditional Role as Tool of First Choice

Macro Designer

150
150
151

152

Action Catalog
Expressions and Expression Builder
Data Macro Tracing
Parameter Box
Macro Links
Interacting with the Macro Designer

153
153
154
155
155
155
xvii

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CONTENTS

Different Types of Macros

157

UI Macros
Data Macros
Data Macro Architecture
UI Macro Architecture
Block Macro Action

157
157
158
159
160

Creating and Editing Data Macros
Creating a Standalone Data Macro
Using the Action Catalog
Using the Add New Action Drop-Down
Using Program Flow Actions
How to Use the LookupRecord Data Block
How to Use ForEachRecord and EditRecord
How to Use DeleteRecord

Creating and Editing UI Macros
How to Use SetProperty
How to Use ChangeView and OpenPopup
How to Use RequeryRecords

How to Use Data Entry Operations

160
162
162
162
162
165
165
166

166
168
169
171
171

Using UI and Data Macros Together

172

How to Create and Use Parameters
How to Return Values

172
174

Summary

175

CHAPTER 7: DESIGNING THE TABLE STRUCTURE

New Data Types

177

178

Short and Long Text Fields
Number Fields
Date/Time Fields
Currency
Yes/No
Hyperlink
Image
Calculated Fields
Lookup Fields

Validation Rules and Text
Field Level Validation
Record Level Validation
Editing Validation Rules with Existing Data
Validation Rules Design Consideration

178
182
183
187
188

188
189
190
191

193
193
195
195
196

Leveraging Calculated Fields

197

Creating Concatenated Fields

197

xviii

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CONTENTS

Configuration Tables
Tally Table
Utility Table

199
199
200

Summary

200

CHAPTER 8: DESIGNING THE USER INTERFACE

Naming Convention for Web Apps
Planning the User Interface
Reusing Create, Read, Update, and Delete Views
Effective Navigation Design
Traditional Navigation Patterns
Web Design Principles
Tile-Bound View and Popup Views

Creating a Splash Screen
Designing an Index Form

203

204
205
205
206
206
211
215

216
219

List View: Searching on a field
Summary View: Searching on an Aggregated Value
Datasheet: Filtering Cumulatively

Creating a Query By View

219
223
230

237

SQL Construction
Techniques for Filtering
Design Requirements
Creating Filter Tables
Creating Data Macro to Clear Selections
Creating Query By View
Filtering Query
Building Data Macros to Populate Filter Tables
Building a Popup View to Display the Filter Results
Building a Click Event Handler

Summary

237

241
246
248
249
249
252
257
260
261

263

CHAPTER 9: SOLVING BUSINESS PROBLEMS WITH MACROS

Macro Design Considerations

265

266

When to Use Data Macros
When to Use UI Macros
On Start Macro

266
268
269

Using Freestanding Macros

270

Cloning a Record
Generating a Set of Records with Variable Parameters
Generating Records in Different Tables
Updating and/or Deleting Several Records

Using Table Events

270
278
290
294

296

Performance Considerations

297
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xix


CONTENTS

Preventing Deletions of Completed Records
Acquiring Default Values from Other Tables
Maintaining a History of Change

Summary

298
300
301

303

CHAPTER 10: EXTENDING WEB APPS

Integration Options

305

306

Security Considerations
Introduction to Web Services

307
310

Linking a Web App for Additional Functionality

311

Locating and Adding the Locations Mapper App
Configuring and Using the Locations Mapper App

311

315

Inlining a Web App in Access Web App
Adding a PayPal Button
Getting the PayPal HTML
Authoring a Custom Page in SharePoint Designer
Allowing Framing of Custom Page
Adding the PayPal HTML
Showing a PayPal Button on an Access Web App

Adding a Site Mailbox

322
333
333
336
338
339
340

341

Configuration for a Site Mailbox
Setting Up the Site Mailbox
Team Site Mailbox as a Shared Tool

Using APIs with a Web Browser Control
Building a Page to Handle JavaScript Code
Development Experience
Adding the Charting Page to Access Web App

Consuming ZIP-Lookup Web Services in the Client
Creating a User Account for the Web Service
Library References and Code

Summary

342
343
347

362
363
366
368

371
372
373

394

CHAPTER 11: CONNECTING TO YOUR WEB APP

Info Backstage
Connections

397

398

399

Enable/Disable Connection
Getting Connection Details
Reset Passwords

Using the Access Client

400
401
401

401

Adding VBA Code to Relink
Best Practices
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406
409


CONTENTS

Using Excel

412

Creating an ODC Connection
Creating an Excel Table
Creating an Excel PivotChart
Creating an Excel PivotTable
External Data Considerations
Sharing Excel Workbooks on the Web

Using SSMS

412
415
416
420
421
425

430

Connecting to a Web App Database
Adding a Linked Server on the Web App Database
Querying Data in a Linked Server
Using Linked Server Programmability Objects

Summary

430
433
437
442

446

CHAPTER 12: WEB APPS IN THE ENTERPRISE

Creating a Document Library
Creating a Custom Content Type
Importing Image Files
Customizing a Library
Customizing a Library Ribbon
Version Control

Customizing an App Package
Linking to a Template File
Synchronizing Data Between App Databases
Local Differential Backup
Choosing Approaches

449

450
452
455
456
458
460

463
467
468
468

479

Summary

479

CHAPTER 13: IMPLEMENTING SECURITY MODELS
FOR THE ACCESS WEB APP

Security Considerations

481

482

File-Based Security
Agent-Based Security
Securing Web Apps on SharePoint
Security in the Application Layer

SharePoint Security

482
482
483
484

485

Team Sites and Personal Storage

Managing User Accounts
Extending Permissions
External User Accounts
Anonymous Access

486
486
490
491
492
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CONTENTS

Securing Web Apps in the Web Browser
Using Subsites to Restrict Users to Specific Apps
Sites and Subsites

Traditional Methods for Security in Client Solutions
Web App Linked File Security
DSN-Less Linking and Relinking
Password Storage/Non-Storage
Local SQL Server

Summary

494

498
499

509
513
514
515
532

537

CHAPTER 14: DEPLOYING ACCESS WEB APPS

Deploying Access Web Apps
Web Apps and App Catalogs
On-Premises SharePoint Server
Versioning Web Apps

Summary

539

540
540
541
551

562

PART II: CLIENT-SERVER DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT

CHAPTER 15: MANAGING DATA SOURCES

Normalization

565

566

First Normal Form: Eliminate Repeating Groups
Second Normal Form: Eliminate Duplicate Data
Third Normal Form: Eliminate Fields That
Do Not Depend on the Key
Other Normalization Forms

Normalization Examples

566
567
567
568

568

Un-Normalized Table
First Normal Form: Eliminate Repeating Groups
Second Normal Form: Eliminate Duplicate Data
Third Normal Form: Eliminate Fields That
Do Not Depend on the Key

Primary Keys

Overview of Access Files and the Database Engine
Other Data Sources
Overview of ODBC Linking
Managing Linked Objects

Querying External Data Effectively
Linked Object Performance and Query Optimization
Passthrough Query and T-SQL
Comparing Access SQL and T-SQL

Summary

568
568
569
569

570
572
572
573
576

579
579
580
581

582

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CONTENTS

CHAPTER 16: PROGRAMMING USING VBA, APIS, AND MACROS

VBA

585

586

Procedures
User-Defined Functions
Error Handling
Debugging

586
586
591
596

Leveraging Queries

597

Enhancing Query Techniques

Query by Form
Creating a Query On the Fly Using VBA

API

597
604
606

608

Obtaining Documentation for API Functions
Mapping Data Types
VBA User-Defined Types and C-Style Structs
Pointers and Handles
32-Bit vs. 64-Bit
Putting It All Together: Create and Manage an Explorer Window
API Declaration
Declaring the Enumeration Function
Declaring the Callback Function
Determining the Class Name of a Window
Preparing the EnumChildProc for Two Different Uses
Creating the Main Procedure
Retrieving Window Information
Tips and Techniques

Introduction to Data Macros

609
609

610
611
611
613
617
618
619
619
620
620
621
622

624

Why Use Data Macros?
Differences in Client and Web Data Macros
Use Cases for Data Macros

Creating Data Macros

625
625
626

628

Maintaining Calculated Values to Support Indexing
Maintaining Quantity On Hand to Support Business Logic
Data Macros and VBA

Summary

628
631
640

641

CHAPTER 17: CREATING INTUITIVE FORMS

Creating Intuitive Forms

643

644

Clean Layout
Guiding the User Through the Process
Showing and Verifying Data in a Timely Manner
User-Friendly Messages and Tips

645
645
646
646
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