Access Always Asks for Authentication

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Guest

I have a client that has been using Microsoft Access 2000.

Now when they open a database or try and create a new one, it prompts for a
username and password.

I have read KB #321905 and #243895 and while #321905 may be the cause, it
doesn't give me a resolution.

If I try and goto to Tools | Security | User and Group Accounts it prompts
me for the same settings.

This is running on a Windows 2000 Server in TS application mode. (2000
Build 2195 Service Pack 4

Access version is 2000 (9.0.3821 SR-1)
 
Hi, Andrew.

Neither of those KB articles will help your client, because the client is
using user-level security (this requires a User ID and user password), not
shared-level security (this requires only a database password).

To prevent having to provide a user name and password every time Microsoft
Access attempts to open a database or create a new one, the client will need
to do one of the following:

1.) Use the Workgroup Administrator to join the default workgroup (the
default location for this file depends upon the operating system, but you
may find it in: C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\System.MDW), or

2.) Join some other workgroup that does not have a password assigned to the
Admin user, or

3.) Remove the password from the Admin user for his current workgroup.

To find out more about Access security, you can read the Security FAQ on
this Web page:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=/support/access/content/secfaq.asp

HTH.

Gunny

See http://www.QBuilt.com for all your database needs.
See http://www.Access.QBuilt.com for Microsoft Access tips.

(Please remove ZERO_SPAM from my reply E-mail address, so that a message
will be forwarded to me.)
 
Hi,

Thanks for the reply. Been such a long time since I've used Access, I'd
forgotten about that.

However, when I try and run the System.mdw, it still prompts for a username
and password. Is there a default?
 
Hi, Andrew.
However, when I try and run the System.mdw, it still prompts for a username
and password. Is there a default?
Click to expand...

That's the default workgroup information file, not the Workgroup
Administrator. (Although it _is_ an Access database file, just a special
type of database file.)

Use the Access Workgroup Administrator (WRKGADM.EXE) to join this default
workgroup. The default directory for the Workgroup Administrator file is:

C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office\1033

HTH.

Gunny

See http://www.QBuilt.com for all your database needs.
See http://www.Access.QBuilt.com for Microsoft Access tips.

(Please remove ZERO_SPAM from my reply E-mail address, so that a message
will be forwarded to me.)
 
Ok, now we are starting to get somewhere.

I am hesitant to change the workgroup as there is already one listed as
<path>\system.mda

Access is running via Terminal Services and they have a site wide
application running in access. Without this, they cannot operate. The
current workgroup is pointing to a System.mda file that is in that (access)
application directory.

If I change this, is it likely to break the application?
 
Hi, Andrew.
I am hesitant to change the workgroup as there is already one listed as
<path>\system.mda
Click to expand...

Everyone using Access is joined to some workgroup, but it's usually the
default workgroup to make things less complicated.
Access is running via Terminal Services and they have a site wide
application running in access. Without this, they cannot operate. The
current workgroup is pointing to a System.mda file that is in that (access)
application directory.
Click to expand...

I've never run Access via Terminal Services, so any decision you make for
your next steps must be on your own best judgement. I can give you
explanations on how Access operates, though, so you should be able to make a
somewhat informed decision, unless you can get a definitive answer from
someone else who has experience with Access via Terminal Services -- and
then you'll know for sure.
The
current workgroup is pointing to a System.mda file that is in that (access)
application directory.
Click to expand...

The System.MDA file is the name of a default workgroup information file from
Access 95 and earlier versions of Access. This is not a guarantee that
yours is an older workgroup information file, but it is a very strong
probability. While logged into your current computer as your Access user,
you are authorized to open any of the databases secured by that workgroup.
That "current workgroup" that you see is _your_ current workgroup, not the
rest of the users' workgroup.
If I change this, is it likely to break the application?
Click to expand...

I don't know exactly how Terminal Services affects the equation (to be
honest, I don't think Terminal Services affects the equation at all), but if
Terminal Services wasn't in the equation, joining a workgroup means that you
as an individual user have joined that workgroup. No other user's session
is affected. If you join a different workgroup, then any database that was
secured using the first workgroup will _not_ open for you, unless your
current workgroup has a User ID and PID exactly the same as the User ID and
PID of a user in the different workgroup (and you can supply the correct
password for each workgroup, of course).

In other words, if the System.MDA file was used to secure the database on
the network server and you joined a different workgroup, then you probably
wouldn't be able to open the database located on the network server (i.e.,
it would "break" for you). However, you would be able to open any database
secured with this different workgroup, as well as any database that is
unsecured.

But even if the database application won't open for you while you are joined
to a different workgroup, remember that you can _always_ use the Workgroup
Administrator to rejoin that System.MDA workgroup at any time. So, is that
safe enough for you? You can always reverse your steps to get back to where
you were, as long as you know the directory path and file name of the
workgroup information file to rejoin. (Write it down if you have to.)

As a matter of fact, to make it easy, most folks stay joined to the default
workgroup (so that they don't have to enter a User ID and password every
time they open an Access database) and just use a shortcut to open the
secured database with the workgroup file so that the secure workgroup is
used with the secured database. The syntax for such a shortcut would be:

"<Full path to Office>\MSAccess.EXE" "<Full path to DB>\MyDB.MDB" /wrkgrp
"<Full path to secure workgroup>\Secure.MDW"

HTH.

Gunny

See http://www.QBuilt.com for all your database needs.
See http://www.Access.QBuilt.com for Microsoft Access tips.

(Please remove ZERO_SPAM from my reply E-mail address, so that a message
will be forwarded to me.)
 
Andrew said:
Ok, now we are starting to get somewhere.

I am hesitant to change the workgroup as there is already one listed
as <path>\system.mda
Click to expand...

Are you seeing this when you run Access on your computer, or when you open
Access during a TS session? It makes a difference.
Access is running via Terminal Services and they have a site wide
application running in access. Without this, they cannot operate.
The current workgroup is pointing to a System.mda file that is in
that (access) application directory.
Click to expand...

Every session of Access, whether on TS or not, uses a workgroup file.
system.mda (that's an older version- 2.0) is the one that ships with Access
(since 2.0 it has been called system.mdw).

Is your database secured? Your original message suggested to me that it
wasn't, since you said 'now it asks for a username/password' as though it
hadn't before.. If your database was never secured, then Access (on the TS)
has been joined by default to a workgroup that has a password set for the
Admin user, or someone ran the security wizard while joined to the standard
system.mda.

I would start a TS session, and do a search for all the mdw/mda files you
find, noting their paths. Then, while in a TS session, use Start, run,
wrkgadm.exe and post back with what it is joined to by default.

In addition, does each user have a separate copy of the frontend on the TS?
Also when they start the TS session, is there a program/path that has been
set to start when the TS client starts?

This is unrelated to your problem, but I urge you to update to the latest
service packs (I think it's up to SR-3 for version 2000).
 
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