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Access an ACT database over the web 1

MikeT

MikeT

IS-IT--Management
Feb 1, 2001
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I write pages for my intranet that interact with MS Access and SQL Server databases. It would be extremely convenient if I could access an ACT database as well. I've setup a DSN for the database, and I can successfully test the connection, but I still cannot access the database via a web page. I ran a Database Structure report from ACTDIAG, and it shows two tables - CONTACT and GROUP. However, if I pass along an SQL statement like this:

SELECT * FROM CONTACT

it says it cannot find the table. I'm using the driver for .dbf files, but do normal .dbf databases differ from ACT's .dbf format? Any insight or suggestions would be helpful.
 
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Mike,

I do know that the Act database structure is different from most .dbf databases. You might want to export a portion of that database to an excel file to see if there is something in that structure that may give you some insite. Unfortunatly I am a bit in the dark on this one.

Chuck
tek-tips@aspenpkg.com
 
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MikeT,

I am trying to pull contacts and call records into an Access database from a series of Act databases. This is a new project for me, do you have any book recommendations, tips, or anything that might bring me up to speed faster on this? (I have some Oracle experience, but mostly maintence, nothing that dealt with the connectors to other databases...)

Thanks,
Alex
Alexit@london.com
 
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Northwoods Software makes a program called Export Pro; which exports ACT databases to Access databases. This sounds like it could help you.

http://www.nwoods.com/ACT/exportpro.htm

Let us know how it turns out!
 
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Hello,

I have 4 locations out of which on 1 location I have installed ACT on. I want to install ACT on all the locations and the ACT database should be the same for all the ACT applications. Please let me know.

Thanks

Qusai
 
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The contact-table is ordinary DBF, but this does not mean you can use it at will: email adresses are e.g. stored separately, and it would be very unwise to write to the table, as the locking mechanism seems to be propietary too.
 
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MikeT!

I don't know what kind of a solution you are looking to build, but we have an ACT! web client which has 95% of the functionality of ACT! It isn't that expensive either...

Cheers!

Joseph Dindinger, Consultant
Gray Davis and Associates
310-662-4730

 
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MikeT

If you would be so kind as to tell me how you accessed the file, I would be overjoyed. I can see the filename as the table but when i try to write the SQL statement I get an error back about how the driver could not locate the file, yada yada yada. What i don't know is what driver to use I think. Since i am using the MS dBase (.dbf) driver for the system DSN. And I am using that DSN for the connection to the ACT DB. I am using Dreamweaver, and it can see the database, and a table inside called CornerAct (that is the database name of course as well). What I want to know is how you pulled information from that table.

Thanks

EddieVenus
 
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Eddie Venus:
Here is some of the code that I used. Keep in mind you cannot *write* to the database, only read from it.

set oConn = server.CreateObject("adodb.connection")
oConn.Open "Driver={Microsoft dBASE Driver(*.dbf)};DriverID=277;Dbq="c:\path\to\db;"
sql="SELECT Name,Addr1,City,State,Zip,Phone FROM myDB"
set rs = server.createobject("adodb.recordset")
rs.Open sql, oConn
response.write rs("Name")

I assume you are framiliar w/ asp and vbscript, right?
 
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Sorry I did not get back to this sooner, I had the email notification off. I do know asp and vbscript to some extent. I will give this db conn a try. Thank you.
 
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I am having difficulty connecting to an ACT database (well actually just the dbf file I guess) from an ASP page. I have followed some of the connection suggestions posted here but am curious - do you have to create a DSN on the server where the asp page is stored? Does the dbf file have to be stored on that server as well?
 
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You shouldn't need to create anything. The VB code posted above should be enough to connect. Copy/paste it into something like Excel and try out the code from there. It should work almost unchanged.

Ian
 
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Hello All,
With regards to linking to an ACT! database it is suggested that. . .

"You can READ ONLY the ACT! DBF file (contact field info only) via a FoxPro 2.5 ODBC driver. Do not attempt to write using ODBC as you will most likely corrupt your database." (quoted from an ACT! consultant post on a different discussion board)

Hope this helps,
Michael
 
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