Vista and Access

[Johnny]

What is the oldest version of Microsoft Access that will work with Vista?
I've been using Access 97 and just got a new computer with Vista. When I
tried to load it, I got a message saying this operating system would not work
with it. So, what version will I have to use with Vista?

 

[Tom Wickerath]

Hi Johnny,

Interesting question....I don't know the specific answer, however, if your
new PC has plenty of RAM (1 GB minimum recommended) and hard drive space, you
can install Virtual PC, and then create separate virtual machines to
completely isolate different versions of Access. This will eliminate the very
long wait that others encounter with 2003 and 2007 installed on the same
machine, when they switch between versions.

You will need to have the Business, Enterprise or Ultimate version of Vista,
in order for Virtual PC 2007 to work. Vista Home Premium is not compatible (I
just recently discovered this on a new laptop PC that I purchased).

You can install an earlier operating system as the guest operating system,
as long as you have a valid license to do so.

Virtual PC is a free download from Microsoft. More information here:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/downloads/virtualpc/default.mspx


Tom Wickerath
Microsoft Access MVP

http://www.access.qbuilt.com/html/expert_contributors.html
http://www.access.qbuilt.com/html/search.html
__________________________________________

 

[Allen Browne]

Access 97 does work on Windows Vista.

If you have one of the early versions of Access 97, it will not run on a
computer with 1GB or more of RAM. Apply the service packs, to fix this
problem.

Try creating a shortcut to your msaccess.exe file.
Right-click the shortcut, and check the box under:
Shortcut | Advanced | Run As Administrator.

If you have multiple versions of Access running, see:
Errors using multiple versions of Access under Vista
at:
http://allenbrowne.com/bug-17.html