Access 2003 SP1 WebPage Question

[MSW]

Hello I've created a simple Access database and have setup a Data Access Page
which I have placed on an IIS Server for access via the web.

I can run this page from my computers IE with the Http://publicIp/filename
but when I go to other systems I get all sorts of security type messages.
What am I missing here? The page is a view only no adding or editing of the
data just a report that lists current information..

Thanks for your help..Scott

 

[Sylvain Lafontaine]

Even if you don't need it, MS is behind your back to protect you from the
devil. To solve these security problems; you must configure each station:

Add the site to the Trusted Sites list and set the option « Access data
sources Across domains » for the Trusted sites to ON.

If you want to serve these pages from the hard drive, then you must set the
option « Allow Active Content to run in file on MyCompter » that you will
find in the Advanced tab for the Internet Options.

S. L.

 

[MSW]

Thanks for your help however I'm not sure I know exactly where these options
are located so that I can change them. I'm pretty sure the trusted sites is
located on the workstation running ie under internet options / security
right? But where is the
option « Allow Active Content to run in file on MyCompter » in the Advanced
tab for the Internet Options. If it's under IE on the user workstation then
I'm just not seeing it..

Thanks again..

 

[Sylvain Lafontaine]

Yes, the Trusted Sites is located in this place. To modify the setting, you
must click on the button « Custom Level ... ». You can also modify the
custom level for the « Local Intranet », as your site is probably on the
LAN, but I would discourage changing the setting for « Internet ».

For the other setting, the « Advanced » tab is at the same level than the
« Security » tab in IE - Internet Options. On this tab, you will found many
sections; one with the name Security. The « Allow Active Content to run in
file on MyComputer » is right at the top of this Security section. Don't
confuse this Security section with the other one (the one with the Trusted
Sites list and the like).

Please answer back if you still have problem. Also, this description if for
WinXP Pro; I'm not sure for the other versions of Windows.

S. L.

 

[MSW]

I feel really dumb here but I'm still not finding the « Allow Active Content
to run in
file on MyComputer » I've looked on a users workstation both XP and 2000 in
IE6 under tools/internet options security tab and the advanced tab and I just
don't see it?

I'm currently getting this message on the users workstation when I try to
open the website: "Data Provider could not be intialized, click OK" then I
get this message "The Microsoft Jet Database Engine cannot Open the File
\\pathto MDB it is already open exclusively by another, or you need
permission to view its data".

Will the above fix this message or are there other things that I need to be
doing as well..

Thanks again for all of your help...Scott
»

 

[Sylvain Lafontaine]

For the « Allow Active Content to run n file on MyComputer », it is quite
possible that this option is installed with the SP2 for WinXP. I'm not
sure, as all of my installations are now with SP2 and it would take me some
time to make a full re-installation of a WinXP-SP1 to make sure.

Now, for your specific problem, it's another thing. From your first post,
the sentence « ... I get all sorts of security type messages» make me
believe that you were trying accessing the web site from a LAN (or Intranet)
or a VPN and that you did have a direct access to your back-end database but
that you were confronted with a security problem.

However, with the precision that you have added in your last message, it's
now another story about your real situation: when you are using an Access
MDB file used as the backend, you cannot get access to it over the Internet
(WAN) without using an intermediate transport layer, such as a VPN or RDS.
If you want to access your database over the Internet by opening a DAP page,
then you must either install RDS or use something else as the backend, such
as MSDE (free from Microsoft) or SQL-Server.

The OLEDB provider for MSDE/SQL-Server can work over the Internet, the
JET-OLEDB provider cannot.

The RDS is the OLEDB remote provider and it must be set up correctly on the
web server before working properly. It is not installed by default and its
use has been deprecated by Microsoft many years ago for security concerns.
If you are still wanting to use the RDS layer on your web server for
accessing your MDB file over the internet, then you will find the
appropriate information there:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/dnacc2k2/html/deploydap.asp

Don't forget to notice the old publication date for this article.

S. L.

 

[MSW]

Sorry if I mislead you in my earlier post, I thought I was clear when I said
I can go to the publicIP address and run it but know one else can, sorry for
the confusion I've caused..

Your post is full of information that I really don't understand so maybe
this is way over my head at this point.

What direction would you suggest I go since I'm not familiar with much of
this internet stuff, is there any program that will allow me to continue
working in Access 2003 creating DAP's while getting the data from a SQL
source?

Thanks..Scott

 

[Sylvain Lafontaine]

The error is mine, I should have read more carefully.

Also, accessing a database over the internet, whatever the technology used,
is not an easy task and you must be prepared for some though rides. For the
directions that you may take; there is many possibilities but none of these
are easy.

In my opinion, trying to use DAP to access an Acces MDB file over the
internet is a dead end.

There is also the possibility of using DAP to access a SQL-Server ($) or
MSDE (free); however, your web site host must provide the service for
SQL-Server or MSDE and must not block the port 1433 with a firewall. (By
the way, don't confuse SQL-Server with a SQL source. SQL-Server (or MSDE)
is a SQL source and Access is also a SQL source but Access is not SQL-Server
or MSDE.)

Unless you are the owner of the web site (owner of the machine itself) or
that your web site hosting service provide access to a SQL-Server or to
MSDE, the only solution that I could see to your problem will be to use ASP
or ASP.NET.

There are some other possibility, like MySQL, but it's not my intention to
start a book here on all possibilities.

Finally, don't forget that there is a newsgroup about DAP:
m.p.a.dataaccess.pages.

Hope that will help you and Happy New Year!

S. L.