Locked out of database - please help

[swaggel1]

As careful as I thought I had been, I have finally done it - I (and all of our users) are locked out of the database.

I have a number of copies of the database, but I seem to be locked out of all of them as well.

The database was secured with the Security Wizard and all was fine. I was messing with security settings (trying to desecure the database, then resecure it). I was following the steps in the MSFAQ on DB security and did the following:
-I am the Admin
-I granted full permissions to the Users group and the Admin user account
-I put the Admin user back in the Admins group and removed the password from the Admin user

I accessed the database and it opened as expected - no password. I then assumed (stupid me) that if I did these steps in reverse order, I could go back to my original security settings.

I think I then removed the Admin user from the Admins group and closed the database before resetting the Admin password. Now I can't get in, the users can't get in, and I can't get any of the database backups to open - they all say I don't have the necessary permissions.

I know there are probably other threads out there that deal with this, but I am panicking and can't seem to find what I need. Please help!

 

[psemianonymous]

First, a question or three:

Did you create a custom MDW file? What version of Access are you using, because the security wizard doesn't do the same thing for each version. Did you create a superuser account? If so, did you add him to the Admins group? Do you users connect to the database by double-clicking the file, or do they use a special shortcut?

I don't know enough to know specifically what happened in your case. Here's something that might help you: open Access, create a new database (db1.mdb or whatever). Now go IMPORT all database objects from your 'secured' database. Did it manage to import everything?

If it did manage to import everything, you should now have a 'desecured' copy of your database. Now rename/backup your original database and replace it with the 'desecured' version. This will hopefully fix your immediate problem. PS--do backups before all this.

I've written a (poor) FAQ that I'm constantly trying to fix up. It may help you by laying some groundwork as to how the whole security system works.
Explaining MDW files faq181-3950

 

[swaggel1]

To answer your questions:

Yes, a custom MDW file was created, using Access 2000. I'm not sure what you mean by superuser - as the administrator, I set myself up as having full rights to everything in the database. Users connect to the database by using a special shortcut and logging in with an ID and password.

I have tried the Import method. When I try this, I get the dreaded error message stating that I don't have the necessary permissions and nothing imports.

Any suggestions?

 

[psemianonymous]

Yeah. Recreate or re-login as the 'special' user account that you created everything with. Once you have logged in as the superuser, you can do several things:

1. Go to the 'Permissions' tab, and give everyone permissions to everything. You said you did, but it is apparent that you did not. Make sure you give everyone permissions to everything, including the 'Database', 'Tables', 'Queries', 'Forms', 'Reports', 'Macros', and I can't remember what else. Also set the 'default' permissions for each object type to be full permissions. After all this is done, you should have 'de-secured' the database. Finish this off by doing the import trick I showed you above.

2. Log in as your superuser/special user/admin user/whatever you call it, and create a new database. Now go import everything into this new database (let's call it DB1.MDB). Close Access. Open Access without connecting to any specific workgroup, just click on the 'Access' shortcut. Now create a new database (DB2.MDB), and import everything from DB1.MDB. This really should work.


Let me say a few more things:
-You will never be able to completely lock yourself out of the Admins group--Access specifically won't allow you to remove the last member from the Admins group, so somewhere (I assume your superuser), some user is a member of Admins. Log on as them, and re-assign permissions from there.

-I have nothing further to add.


Pete

 

[swaggel1]

Thanks for your help.

I can't even get to the point of logging in - when I click on the shortcut, I immediately get the "necessary permissions" error message.

I was hoping to be able to correct this myself, but I have resorted to asking our technical people to pull yesterday's network backup of the database and workgroup file. I hope that copying these over the files that are currently on the network will fix the monster I created today. Our users will just have to go back and re-enter today's data. I guess it could be worse.....

Thanks again.

 

[psemianonymous]

Try ... try holding down SHIFT when you click on the shortcut. This will bypass your startup things.

If that doesn't work, then create a separate shortcut that uses the /wrkgrp parameter but doesn't try to open the database file. Then go ahead and open some nonsecured dummy database re-set the admin password, then go back to using the standard shortcut.

You can recover, but ... I suppose it's all about cost/benefit.

 

[swaggel1]

I have the Shift key blocked on the database for added security, but before I began messing with the settings, I turned the feature off, and tested it, and I was able to get around the security settings with the Shift key. I then altered the Security settings as mentioned above, then I couldn't get into the database, even by holding down the Shift key.

The network people have restored my workgroup .mdw file from Friday, but now I am getting an error message when I open the database stating "Cannot open the Microsoft Jet Engine workgroup information file", even though it is sitting in the correct directory with the correct name. Maybe I also need to restore Friday's database as well. I tried the shortcut suggestion you made, but I keep getting that error message about the workgroup information file, since it's been restored from the network backups. I guess I'll keep trying alternatives until something works.

Thanks.