"Vic" <tr*******@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:a6********************@adelphia.com...
Hi, I'd like to timelock a database, ie., let someone use it for a set
amount of time and then lock it down. How is this done?
There seems to be no feasible, or reasonable, way to timelock a database for
a particular time period after it is installed. You can do it in code, from
a fixed date, and spread the information to try to obscure it, pulling it
together in code from those various "pieces", compile the code. I've done
that, and it seemed to work, but the users who'd have wanted to break it
were not sophisticated. I suspect that an experienced hacker could break it.
The most-recommended way for a trial database (which I assume is your reason
for wanting a timelock) is to limit the number of records permitted in some
crucial tables by validation rules, and using a split database, with the
front-end only having read-with-owner-permissions queries access to the back
end. If you'll download the security FAQ from
http://support.microsoft.com,
splitting and RWOP queries are discussed.
But, access security itself is breakable. And, so is the security for many
high-dollar software packages available commercially. You take a chance with
any scheme, if you become a target of the breaker-community.
