How can I make an Access database readable from the web while it is open in MS Access?

Question

I have a website using ASP with an MS Access DB back-end for storing mainly blog posts. My company has a very long software approval process so I am stuck with what I have (i.e. I must use Access). I use server-side javascript to retrieve posts stored in the database using OLEDB calls. Everything works fine except that I cannot read any tables from the database when it is open in the MS Access program. The page displays an error message about the file being in use. This could lead to significant downtime while I am doing any work within Access. How can I make the file readable by my ASP application while it is open in Access?

Answer 1

Make a copy for use by the web application. Make your changes in the original file, and then deploy it by overwriting the copy. You probably don't want to be making live changes in a production database, anyway. Wait until they are 100% baked.

Answer 2

Split the front end from the backend tables. Then when you open the front end it, it won't lock the database that has the database tables. This article has information on how to do this.