You receive a "Can't find database specified" error message in Access 2002 (304067)

For a Microsoft Access 2000 version of this article, see 235279.

For a Microsoft Access 97 version of this article, see 235280.

For a Microsoft Access 2003 version of this article, see 826137.

Novice: Requires knowledge of the user interface on single-user computers.

This article applies to a Microsoft Access database (.mdb) and to a Microsoft Access project (.adp).

SYMPTOMS

When you click a shortcut to an existing Microsoft Access database, you receive the following error message:

Can't find database specified or you didn't specify a database at all. Specify a valid database name in the command line and include a path if necessary.

CAUSE

This behavior can occur if either of the following is true:

The shortcut points to an earlier version of the Access run-time application, and you chose to remove earlier Office programs during Setup.

-or-
Norton Anti-Virus was installed when you installed Access 2002.

RESOLUTION

To resolve the shortcut issue, follow these steps:

Remove Access 2002.
Reinstall the Access run-time application.
Verify that you can use the shortcut to open the database.
Reinstall Access 2002, and select not to upgrade existing versions of Office.

To resolve the issue where Norton Anti-Virus was installed, follow these steps:

Remove Access 2002.
Remove Norton Anti-Virus.
Reinstall Access 2002.
Verify that you can use the shortcut to open the database.
Reinstall Norton Anti-virus.

If neither of these methods resolves the issue, you must manually create a new shortcut. You must include the path to the correct version of Msaccess.exe and the path and file name of the database that you want to open. For example, in the Target section of the shortcut properties, enter something similar to the following:

"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office10\msaccess.exe" "C:\My Documents\mymdb.mdb"