Access / SQL security options

[Stinky Pete]

Hi all,

I've been given a problem to solve regarding both file sizes and
security as we need to consolidate a number of spreadsheets into one
central database. I know Access has a physical size limitation of 2
gig which will not be a problem as right now the disjointed
spreadsheets are less than 100 meg. However, is having a SQL backend
to the data going to offer any better using user level security than
just using access by itself? I don't know much about the SQL server
side of things so I am driving blind here. Being on a network, I can
easily get the IT admins to limit file access to full control, read
only etc.

Regards,
Stinky Pete.

[Larry Linson]

"Stinky Pete" <Pe**********@symbionhealth.comwrote

I've been given a problem to solve regarding both file sizes and
security as we need to consolidate a number of spreadsheets into one
central database. I know Access has a physical size limitation of 2
gig which will not be a problem as right now the disjointed
spreadsheets are less than 100 meg. However, is having a SQL backend
to the data going to offer any better using user level security than
just using access by itself? I don't know much about the SQL server
side of things so I am driving blind here. Being on a network, I can
easily get the IT admins to limit file access to full control, read
only etc.

It is possible to link Tables in multiple databases, if that becomes a
problem... we've seen a few reports of such that exceeded the 2GB limit by
parceling out the data into multiple back-ends.

Yes, SQL Server has its own security, and, yes, it seems much more effective
than Access' security. I've worked on database applications that could
easily have handled the workload for the small business, but used Access and
SQL Server Tables. "Robust" security, reliability, and recoverability turned
out to be even more important than performance.

Larry