ACC2000: Error Starting Microsoft Access with Custom Profile (266769)
The information in this article applies to:
This article was previously published under Q266769 Advanced: Requires expert coding, interoperability, and multiuser
skills. This article applies only to a Microsoft Access database (.mdb).
Important This article contains information about modifying the registry. Before you modify the registry, make sure to back it up and make sure that you understand how to restore the registry if a problem occurs. For information about how to back up, restore, and edit the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: 256986 Description of the Microsoft Windows Registry SYMPTOMS When you start Microsoft Access 2000 or a run-time
application with a custom profile, you receive the following error message:
An error occurred and this feature is no longer
functioning properly. Would you like to repair this feature now?
After you click Yes or No, you receive the following error message: Microsoft Access couldn't find file 'system.mdw'. This file is required for
startup. CAUSE Microsoft Access is unable to locate a workgroup file
(System.mdw) during startup. This occurs when all of the following conditions
are true:
- The workgroup file is not located in the same folder as
Msaccess.exe.
- The shortcut that you are using to start Microsoft Access
does not contain a /Wrkgrp switch that points to a valid workgroup file.
- The custom profile that you are using does not contain a
Jet subkey that points to a valid workgroup file.
RESOLUTION Either use the /Wrkgrp switch in the shortcut to point to a workgroup file or include a
Jet subkey in the custom profile that points to a workgroup file.
Note You must also make sure that the Everyone and the TERMINAL SERVER USER groups have full permission on the
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\TypeLib\{4AFFC9A0-5F99-101B-AF4E-00AA003F0F07}\9.0
registry key. To do so, follow these steps: WARNING: If you use Registry Editor incorrectly, you may cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that you can solve problems that result from using Registry Editor incorrectly. Use Registry Editor at your own risk. - On the Start menu, click
Run.
- In the Run box, type
Regedt32, and then click OK.
- In Registry Editor, locate the
following registry key:
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\TypeLib\{4AFFC9A0-5F99-101B-AF4E-00AA003F0F07}\9.0 - On the Security menu, click
Permissions.
- In the Permissions for 9.0 dialog box,
under Security, locate the Everyone and the TERMINAL SERVER USER groups and verify that both of them have full
control.
Note If the Everyone and the TERMINAL SERVER USER groups do not exist , add both the groups, and then provide them
full control. - Click OK, and then exit the
Registry Editor.
Use the /Wrkgrp Switch to Specify a Workgroup File The easiest approach to resolve the problem is to include a /Wrkgrp switch in the shortcut that points to a valid workgroup file. For
example, create a shortcut on the desktop with the following
command-line. NOTE: The paths to Msaccess.exe and the System.mdw file may be
different on your computer. Make sure the paths in your shortcut accurately
reflect the location of Msaccess.exe and System.mdw on your computer.
"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office\MSACCESS.EXE" /Wrkgrp "C:\MyApplication\System.mdw" /Profile Test
For additional information about using command-line switches
with Microsoft Access, click the article number below to view the article in
the Microsoft Knowledge Base: 209207 ACC2000: How to Use Command-Line Switches in Microsoft Access
For
additional information about writing macros and switches for shortcuts in the
Package and Deploy Wizard, click the article number below to view the article
in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: 236519 MOD2000: How to Write Macros and Switches for Shortcuts in the Package and Deployment Wizard
Include a Jet Subkey in Your Custom ProfileWARNING: If you use Registry Editor incorrectly, you may cause serious
problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft
cannot guarantee that you can solve problems that result from using Registry
Editor incorrectly. Use Registry Editor at your own
risk. To create a Jet subkey in your custom profile to
specify the path to the workgroup file, follow these steps:
- Create a custom profile and a shortcut by following the
steps in the "Creating a Custom Profile to Use with Microsoft Access" section
later in this article.
- In Registry Editor, locate the following key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Test\MyApp\1.0
- Create the following subkeys
Jet\4.0\Engines
to create the following key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Test\MyApp\1.0\Jet\4.0\Engines
- Under the subkey Engines, create the following string value:
SystemDB
- Set the value of the SystemDB string value to the path of your workgroup file, for example,
C:\Workgroup\System.mdw
NOTE: If your application requires any other Jet-specific
modifications, such as loading the installable ISAMs, you must create the
appropriate subkeys or values (or both) under the Jet key of your custom
profile. STATUS This behavior is by design. MORE INFORMATION When you open a database (.mdb) file in Microsoft Access,
the Jet database engine requires a workgroup file (System.mdw) in order to
start. To determine the path to the workgroup file to use, Microsoft Access
goes through several steps. If the shortcut contains a /Wrkgrp switch that points to a valid workgroup file, Microsoft Access
uses that workgroup file. If the shortcut does not contain a /Wrkgrp switch, Microsoft Access searches the Windows registry and uses
the location specified in the Jet subkey of the profile in use. When
you use a custom profile to start your application, Microsoft Access does not
use the default Access profile found at
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Office\9.0\Access when it starts.
Instead, it uses the subkeys of the custom profile that you created. If the
profile does not contain a Jet subkey with the path to the workgroup file,
Microsoft Access searches the folder where Msaccess.exe is located (for
example, C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office). If Microsoft Access still
cannot locate a workgroup file, it returns the errors that are mentioned in the
"Symptoms" section of this article. This issue is more likely to
occur on computers where Microsoft Access 2000 SR-1 was installed from CD,
instead of on computers that were upgraded to SR-1. This is because the default
location for the workgroup file (System.mdw) changed in SR-1 and is not in one
of the paths mentioned earlier. Therefore, if you use a custom profile to start
Microsoft Access 2000 SR-1 on a computer and do not include the /Wrkgrp switch, you will receive the errors that are mentioned in the
"Symptoms" section of this article. Creating a Custom Profile to Use with Microsoft Access The following steps demonstrate how to create a custom profile to
use with Microsoft Access. This example uses the TitleBar string value in the custom profile to customize the titlebar of
the application window when Microsoft Access starts.
- Click Start, and then click Run.
- In the Run box, type Regedit, and then click OK.
- In Registry Editor, expand the following key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Office\9.0\Access\Profiles
NOTE: If the Profiles key is not listed under the Access key, you must create it. To create the Profiles key, right-click the Access key, point to New, and then click Key. Rename the new key to Profiles. - After you click the Profiles key in the left pane, right-click in the right pane, point to New, and then click String Value.
- Under the Profiles key, create a new string value named
Test.
- Set the value of the Test string value to
Software\Test\MyApp\1.0.
- Locate the following registry key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software
- Create the following subkeys
Test\MyApp\1.0\Run-Time Options
to create the following key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Test\MyApp\1.0\Run-Time Options
- Under the subkey Run-Time Options, create the following string value:
TitleBar
- Set the value of the TitleBar string value to My Application.
- Quit Registry Editor.
- On the desktop, create a shortcut with the following
command line.
NOTE: The path to Msaccess.exe may be different on your computer. Make
sure the path in your shortcut accurately reflects the location of Msaccess.exe
on your computer.
"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office\MSACCESS.EXE" /Profile Test
Steps to Reproduce the Behavior- Create a new folder on your computer named
C:\Workgroup.
- Move your current workgroup file (System.mdw) from its
current location to the C:\Workgroup folder. If you do not know the current
location of your current workgroup file, you can use the Workgroup
Administrator (Wrkgadm.exe) utility to locate it.
- After moving the workgroup file, use the Workgroup
Administrator utility to rejoin the workgroup.
- Start Microsoft Access, and then open any database (.mdb)
file to verify that Access is functioning correctly.
- Quit Microsoft Access.
- Create a custom profile and a shortcut by following the
steps in the "Creating a Custom Profile to Use with Microsoft Access" section
earlier in this article.
- Double-click the shortcut to start Microsoft Access. Note
that Microsoft Access starts with "My Application" in the titlebar.
- Open any database (.mdb) file.
Note that you receive the error messages that are mentioned in
the "Symptoms" section of this article. REFERENCES For more information about using custom profiles, click Microsoft Access Help on the Help menu, type custom profiles in the Office
Assistant or the Answer Wizard, and then click Search to view "Customize your application's environment with Microsoft Access user profiles."
Modification Type: | Minor | Last Reviewed: | 1/26/2005 |
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Keywords: | kberrmsg kbnofix kbprb KB266769 |
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