"Invalid argument" error message when trying to use a combo box

  • Thread starter Thread starter Tim
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T

Tim

I have an Access 2000 backend database on a Windows 2000
Small Business server. Front end is an MDE database. I
have a subform with a combo box that works fine on the
front end when working on the server, however when working
in the front end on a Windows XP computer the combo box
gives me the "invalid argument" error and there are no
options in the drop down box to select from. I have other
combo boxes on the same subform that work fine. Any
thoughts? Thanks.
 
Sounds to me as if the query that is the Row Source for the combo box has an
error when trying to use a function that is one of the query's fields.
Often, this can be because a Null value is the value of a field that is an
argument for a function that is being called.

You will need to check the query to see which functions it may be using, and
then check your data.
 
-----Original Message-----
Sounds to me as if the query that is the Row Source for the combo box has an
error when trying to use a function that is one of the query's fields.
Often, this can be because a Null value is the value of a field that is an
argument for a function that is being called.

You will need to check the query to see which functions it may be using, and
then check your data.

-- I'm not new to Access, but basically self taught and
Click to expand...
not very knowlegable, so I'm not sure that I understand
your possible solution to the problem that I'm having. I
don't understand why the combo box works fine on a Windows
2000 computer but not on a Windows XP computer. Could the
problem be related to XP and not to the Row Source query?
 
Could be that the references are messed up on the Windows XP PC. If
references are messed up, functions may not work correctly and you can get
that Invalid argument message then, too.

Try following these steps (from a post by Douglas Steele, MVP):

This can be caused by differences in either the location or file version of
certain files between the machine where the application was developed, and
where it's being run (or the file missing completely from the target
machine). Such differences are common when new software is installed.

On the machine(s) where it's not working, open any code module (or open the
Debug Window, using Ctrl-G, provided you haven't selected the "keep debug
window on top" option). Select Tools | References from the menu bar. Examine
all of the selected references.

If any of the selected references have "MISSING:" in front of them, unselect
them, and back out of the dialog. If you really need the reference(s) you
just unselected (you can tell by doing a Compile All Modules), go back in
and reselect them.

If none have "MISSING:", select an additional reference at random, back out
of the dialog, then go back in and unselect the reference you just added. If
that doesn't solve the problem, try to unselect as many of the selected
references as you can (Access may not let you unselect them all), back out
of the dialog, then go back in and reselect the references you just
unselected. (NOTE: write down what the references are before you delete
them, because they'll be in a different order when you go back in)

For far more than you could ever want to know about this problem, check out
http://members.rogers.com/douglas.j.steele/AccessReferenceErrors.html
 
Thanks Ken. I checked the references to the extent that I
could since the database on the XP computer is an MDE. I
then put the MDB from the server onto the XP computer to
see if the combo box worked. It doesn't. I'm stumped!
 
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