Is it safe to run Access 2003 and 2007 at the same time?

Question

My question about the reconfiguration delay when switching between Access 2003 and 2007 the comment was made:

Btw, you can't avoid the reconfiguration between Access 2007 and earlier versions. Access 2007 uses some of the same registry keys as earlier versions and they have to be rewritten when opening Access 2007.

If this is so then is it actually safe to be running/developing databases in both versions at the same time? Do the registry changes affect the operation of Access once it has started up. For example recompiling/saving changes to objects?

Answer 1

It is perfectly safe, I have done it very often (both running and developing). As soon as you open a database in Access 2007, some extra properties will be added to the database. However, this is done in such a way that you can still open the database safely in Access 2003 at a later time.

We also have databases installed in a multi-version environment were different people use the same backend, with the front end opened in Access 2003 or 2007.

Answer 2

It works most of the time but it's not perfectly safe, which is why Microsft refuses to support multiple installations of Microsoft Office on the same pc. The recommended solution is to install a virtual machine and install the second Microsoft Office version on the virtual machine. Then you can switch from one version of Access to the other without them interfering with one another (and no switching time wait!)

Microsoft offers a free download of Virtual PC 2007 in both 32 bit and 64 bit versions:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=04d26402-3199-48a3-afa2-2dc0b40a73b6&DisplayLang=en

Here's the service pack:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=28c97d22-6eb8-4a09-a7f7-f6c7a1f000b5&DisplayLang=en

Answer 3

It seems to me that the instance of Access you open will inherit the registry settings at the time it is open. So, if you open A2K7, you'll get the registry settings that it writes in its "configuring Office" procedures. If while A2K7 is still open, you open A2K3, it will reconfigure the registry settings and inherit those for its session. This will have no effect on the already-running instance of A2K7.

The only possible exception would be if there are some registry keys that the "configuring..." process changes that Access doesn't read upon opening, but later in the session. I have strong doubts that MS would ever design things that way. Professional Access developers been dealing with this kind of thing since MS introduced the MS Installer (first seen by most people with Office 2000), and the A2K7 issues are only slightly worse than with previous versions (though on Vista, it's more complex because of the way Vista handles registry changes). The fact that MS gets the vapors over contemplating multiple versions of Access on a single PC does not mean that it's actually dangerous -- it shows only that they don't want to devote resources to supporting that scenario.

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David W. Fenton
David Fenton Associates

Answer 4

I have access db that is running on a server 2003 and have serveral pc accessing the db via 2003 on XP Pro. I just purchased a three laptop with Vista and Access 2007 I can only open the db from one laptop at a time. When I attempt to open from other laptops the file does nothing.

thanks Lance