ACC2000: Unexpected Data in List Boxes, Combo Boxes, and Reports of Access Project

In a Microsoft Access project, after you change the connection to point to a different database, you see unexpected data in combo boxes, list boxes, and reports. You may also notice that the data is from the previous database that you were connected to.

An Access project actually has two connections to your database. A secondary connection is used for combo boxes, list boxes, and reports. When you switch the connection, either by clicking Connection on the File menu or programmatically, the alternate connection does not change. This causes you to see data from the previous database in combo boxes, list boxes, and reports.

To resolve this problem, obtain Microsoft Office 2000 Service Release 1/1a (SR-1/SR-1a).

To obtain SR-1/SR-1a, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: To temporarily work around this problem, after you change the connection, immediately close and reopen the Access project.

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article. This problem was corrected in Microsoft Office 2000 SR-1/SR-1a.

Steps to Reproduce Behavior

These steps involve creating a new copy of the NorthwindCS sample database to demonstrate this behavior. To re-create these steps, you must have access to a computer that is running either Microsoft Data Engine (MSDE) or Microsoft SQL Server 7.0 that has a copy of the sample NorthwindCS database installed.

1. Create a new Access database.
2. In the Database window, click Modules, and then click New.
3. On the Tools menu, click References.
4. Click to select the Microsoft SQLDMO Object Library check box, and then click OK.
5. Type the following line in the Declarations section if it is not already there:

   Option Explicit
   						

6. Type the following procedure:

    
   Function CopySQLDB(strLogin As String, strPwd As String, _
   strSrv As String, strDatabase As String, strNewName As String)
   
   '===============================================================
   ' Parameters
   ' --------------------------------------------------------------
   ' strLogin:  Name of the Login account used.
   ' strPwd:  The Password for the login account.
   ' strSrv:  The server to which you are connecting.
   ' strDataBase:  The name of the database you want to copy.
   ' strNewName: Desired name of the new copy of the database.
   '===============================================================
   
      Dim sql As Object
      Dim db As Object
      
      Dim strMDFfilePath As String
      Dim strMDFfileName As String
      Dim strLOGfile As String
         
      On Error GoTo CopySQLDB_Err
      
      'Create Objects
      Set sql = CreateObject("SQLDMO.SQLServer")
      Set db = CreateObject("SQLDMO.Database")
      
      'Connect to the server
      sql.Connect strSrv, strLogin, strPwd
      
      'Set the database object
      Set db = sql.Databases(strDatabase, "dbo")
         
      'Determine the location of database files, primary and log
      strMDFfilePath = db.PrimaryFilePath
      strMDFfileName = _
      Trim(db.FileGroups.Item(1).DBFiles.Item(1).PhysicalName)
      strLOGfile = Trim(db.TransactionLog.LogFiles(1).PhysicalName)
   
      'Clear out the database object
      Set db = Nothing
      
      'Detach database to allow copying
      sql.DetachDB (strDatabase)
   
      'Copy database files to new names
      FileCopy strMDFfileName, strMDFfilePath & strNewName & ".mdf"
      FileCopy strLOGfile, strMDFfilePath & strNewName & "_log.ldf"
      Debug.Print "Database Created"
   
      'Re-attach original database
      sql.AttachDB strDatabase, strMDFfileName & "," & strLOGfile
      sql.AttachDB strNewName, strMDFfilePath & strNewName & _
      ".mdf" & "," & strMDFfilePath & strNewName & "_log.ldf"
      
      'Set database object to the new database
      Set db = sql.Databases(strNewName, "dbo")
   
      'Change data in one table for testing purposes
      db.ExecuteImmediate ("Update categories Set " & _
      "CategoryName = CategoryName + 'X'")
      
      
   CopySQLDB_End:
      'Clear out the objects before ending
      Set db = Nothing
      Set sql = Nothing
      Exit Function
               
   CopySQLDB_Err:
      'Basic error handling.
      MsgBox Err.Description, vbInformation, "SQL OLE Automation"
      Resume CopySQLDB_End
   
   End Function
   					

7. Type the following code in the Immediate window, and then press ENTER:

   ?CopySQLDB("sa","","(local)","NorthwindCS","NwindCS")
   						

   NOTE: This is an example that may work in most cases. If your server is not local, you should instead type the name of the server to which you are connecting instead of the keyword "(local)". In addition, this example presumes that sa is logging on with no password. You can also log on with another account that has similar permissions.
8. When you see the words "Database Created" in the Immediate window, close the Access database.
   
   At this point a copy of the NorthwindCS SQL server database has been created with the name NwindCS. It also has made a slight change to the Categories table in NwindCS.
9. Open the Access project NorthwindCS that is on that same server.
10. Open the Products form, and then click the Category combo box. In the combo box, note that you see the name of the categories as expected.
11. Close the Products form, and then on the File menu, click Connection.
12. In the middle of the Data Link Properties dialog box, click the arrow for the box that is named Select the database on the server. Note that NwindCS appears in the list.
13. Select NwindCS, and click OK. The Access project is now using NwindCS.
14. Open the Categories table. Note that the Category names in this database each have an X at the end. This is a small change made by the function that you ran earlier. Close the table.
15. Again open the Products form, and then click the Category combo box. Note that the categories listed do not have an X at the end.
    
    Even though the Access Project is now using the NwindCS database for tables, stored procedures, and views, it is still using NorthwindCS for combo boxes, list boxes, and reports.
    
    Close NorthwindCS and reopen it.
16. Open the Products form, and then click the Category combo box. Note that the categories now have an X at the end.

The Access project is now using all the objects from the database specified in the Data Link Properties dialog box, as expected.