Recovery Sequence to Overcome MS Access Database Corruption Issues

Access database uses single MDB file for storing all the data, therefore its corruption results in the loss of everything stored in it. Many reasons are responsible for its corruption, which may range from turning off the computer without closing Access, to insufficient hard disk space, to virus attack on the storage media.

To rectify issues of corruption in Access database you perform various recovery measures. Commonly it is seen that despite performing best steps to overcome Access corruption issues many times users become unable to resolve the problem. This is because they do not follow the proper sequence to deal with the general forms of corruption in Access database.

Recovery Sequence to Overcome MS Access Database Corruption Issues

Mentioned below is the recovery sequence that you must follow to when you face Access database corruption issues.

1. Backup: The first requirement is to take the backup of your bad Access database, if you get to know that it is corrupt. This is the thing that user must do as soon as he/she comes across the symptoms of Access database corruption.

2. Uncheck the Name AutoCorrect Boxes: Disabling the name AutoCorrect feature of MS Access can keep you away from various situations of data loss. Follow the below steps to uncheck this option in various versions of MS Access:

a. In Access 2007:

i. Go to Office button

ii.Select ‘Access Options >> Current Database’.

b. In previous versions of MS Access:

i. Go to Tools

ii.Select ‘Options >> General’.

3. Compact and Repair Access Database: It is suggested to compact your Access database as soon as you realize that it can get corrupt anytime. Mentioned below are the steps to use ‘Compact and Repair’ option of Access in its various versions:

a. In Access 2010: Go to ‘Database Tools’ ribbon and select ‘Compact and Repair’ option from there.

b. In Access 2007: Go to Office button, select ‘Manage >> Compact/Repair’.

c. In Other Previous Versions: Go to ‘Tools >> Database Utilities >> Compact/Repair’.

4. Decompile: Enter the following command in the command prompt to decompile the Access database. However, close your Access database before using this command:

“c:Program FilesMicrosoft officeofficemsaccess.exe” /decompile”

“c:MyPathMyDatabase.mdb

Use the path where msaccess.exe is situated in your computer and include the quotes as well.

5. Compact Your Database Once Again: Generally one compact does not work in all the versions of Access hence performing it twice is advised. Open Access by holding down the ‘Shift’ key and compact it once again.

6. Set Minimal References: Setting the minimum references many times saves you from the corruption of your MS Access database:

a. Open the code window

b. Go to ‘Tools’ and select ‘References’.

c. Now uncheck all the references that you do not need.

7. Compile: If you get any error in the code window of your Access database, then using the ‘Compile’ option from the ‘Debug’ menu can fix this error. Repeat this process until the code complies correctly.

8. Set Code Options: Still having error in the code window, then go to ‘Tools >> Options’. Select ‘General’ tab and ensure that Error Trapping is set to ‘Break on Unhandled Errors’ and ‘Compile On Demand’ is uncheck.

Therefore, by following the above steps, you can overcome various inconsistencies that may occur when using Access database. However, if your database has encountered severe corruption, then these methods too will not be able to do any needful. In such cases use of a professional Access database repair software is recommended. Reliable Access database repair software repairs corrupt or damaged Access database without causing any kind of data loss.