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Free Resources from FMS |
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"Thank you! Thank you! I just finished reading this document, which was part of a link in the recent Buzz newsletter. I have printed it for others to read, especially those skeptical on the powers of Access and its capabilities." - Darren D. |
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Microsoft
Access Resource Center
Simulating the Access Runtime during Development
Provided by: Molly Pell, Program Analyst
The Access runtime allows you to distribute your Access applications to users who do not have a full license of Access. Owners of the Office Developer Tools (or Developer Extensions for Office 2003) can freely distribute unlimited copies of the runtime with their applications.
The runtime is similar to the full version of Access, but several of the features that exist in the full version are not available in the runtime. For example, the database window is not accessible, built-in toolbars are not supported, and the Visual Basic IDE is not available.
Because of the differences, it is important to ensure that your application works properly in the runtime environment prior to deployment. Microsoft Access makes it easy to simulate the runtime environment using the /runtime command line.
Follow these steps to create a shortcut that runs your application simulating the runtime environment:
1. In Windows Explorer, select File > New > Shortcut.
2. When prompted to enter the location of the shortcut, enter the location of Access, followed by the location of your database, followed by the /runtime switch. For example:
"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\MSACCESS.EXE" "C:\MyDB.mdb" /runtime
3. When prompted for the shortcut name, type a descriptive name. For example:
MyDB.MDB Runtime
By testing your application in this environment, you can find runtime-specific problems before deploying your application.
For more information, see Developing Access Runtime Applications.
Important Note about Testing Environments
Before releasing an application, you should test it thoroughly on a computer that only contains the lowest operating system supported by the application (with no updates), the Access runtime environment (if applicable), and any programs, controls, and DLLs that are installed by your application. If your application is distributed to public, you cannot be certain of the environment in which users will run your application.
For example, you may have developed your application in an environment with Office installed and expect products like Word, Excel or other Office components to be available. Since these parts of Office are not installed with the Access runtime, your users without Office products will encounter errors when they come across functionality that depends on them.
By testing in a minimal configuration, you can determine if there are dependencies that you did not address, and adjust your application or your dependencies accordingly.
