Export Objects (Access 2000)

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Afternoon All,

I’ve seen many ways of protecting db’s and objects within a db…and most of them work nicely. My question is….if I really want to get in one that is protected…all I really have to do is create a new db, select “tables”, “new”, “import”, go the location the db I want to get into, select it, select everything I want …and well…I have in effect….the db that was protected…..HOW can that be prevented….WITHOUT using the mass security protection from Microsoft?

Also, I’ve only seen 1 db where it required me to put a password in “On Open” of the db…how is that accomplished? Using this procedure … one couldn’t import ANY objects from the db the way I described above?

Thanks for any input.

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Hello Roberta,

I don’t know what you mean by “mass security protection from Microsoft”. Do you use this term to indicate what is usually called user-level security?

As you noted, there are several ways of protecting a database:

• Setting startup options to hide the database window, standard toolbars etc. This is only useful for preventing users from accidentally opening tables directly etc. Even if you disable the Shift key as bypass key, it is still possible to import database objects into another database.
• Creating an MDE file. This is effective for preventing users to see the design of forms and reports, and to hide code, but it doesn’t protect the data in the database at all.
• Setting a database-level password (Tools | Security | Set Database Password…). Although this prevents users from importing the data into another database, it is not very secure. Microsoft didn’t use a string encryption mechanism, so it is easy to break. If you do a Google search for “Access password cracker” or something like that, you’ll find lots of tools to break this kind of protection.
• User-level security. This is the only (reasonably) secure protection Access offers. The encryption used is much stronger than that for the database password. User-level security seems intimidating at first, but it is really not that difficult. Even without experience, you can have it up and running within an hour, if you take the time to read up on it before you start. Access moderator WendellB has a good tutorial on his website, with lots of useful links (his profile contains a link to his website).
  [/list]I think that investing some time in reading about user-level security will pay for itself in the long run, since all other options are less secure.

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Good morning here

1st question: You could employ user level security to secure your databases, that will stop anybody who is not a user of the workgroup to access the database.

2nd question: You can put a password on the database. This requires a user to enter a password to access the database. You do this by Tools/Security/Set Database Password.

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Thanks to both replies,

As suspected, it all comes back to the user level security. It was intimidating the first several times I attempted it…getting it past the IS/IT guru’s is the issue. NOT ME!!!!

I’m currently working on projects ( I do consulting work)…and this company has far far toooooo many unprotected db’s….and a lot of prying eyes….not to mention nosey ones…..and although there are the tricks such as the bypass the shift key the fact remains….objects as well as code can be extracted….here the IS/IT folks don’t want to (perhaps they don’t know how to…with all the losely written dbs around here) set up user level security.

I have the capabilities to make the db a program after ALL designing is complete….I just thought there might be another solution to protecting my labor without packaging it up.

Thanks.

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It depends on what you want to protect. It’s also possible to put all or most of your code in a library database and make than an MDE. However, that can cause reference problems if the MDE winds up somewhere other than where Access expects it. Another method is to use an mdb or mda code library and apply security to *that*.

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If its just to protect your own App’s cant you put in userlevel security anyway but with its own .mdw file so that it only affects your Apps?
Peter

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