Note If your application cannot work correctly with the default functionality of the Microsoft Jet database engine, you may have to change the settings in the Windows Registry to suit your needs. The Windows Registry can also be used to tune the operation of the installable ISAM and ODBC driver.
You can modify the settings in the Windows Registry in three different ways. First, you can simply use Regedit.exe to overwrite the default settings which are established when the Microsoft Jet database engine is registered. This method of modification is the least flexible, because all applications which use the Microsoft Jet database engine have these new default settings.
The second method of modifying the Windows Registry settings is to create a Microsoft Jet portion in your application's registry tree to manage the settings for the Microsoft Jet database engine. The easiest way to accomplish this is to export the existing Microsoft Jet key and then import it into your application's tree with the Regedit.exe Export and Import commands. You can then alter any values you want to specify in your new registry tree. If you have supplied any values in the Engines subfolder, Microsoft Jet loads those settings when the application starts. Any values not entered in your client application's registry tree are loaded from shadow settings.
In order for your application to load the appropriate portion of the Windows Registry key you must specify the location with the DAO INIPath property. Your application must set the INIPath property before executing any other DAO code. The scope of this setting is limited to your application and can't be changed without restarting your application.
Note Although creating a Microsoft Jet portion in your application's registry is more flexible than overwriting the Microsoft Jet default entries, it still requires that you maintain the registry tree. Every time changes are required in the default settings, you will have to edit the Registry. In previous versions of Microsoft Jet these were the only two strategies for modifying the Registry.
DAO 3.5 provides a new way to modify default settings. Registry settings can now be modified at run time with the SetOption method. This is the recommended way to fine tune registry settings for your application. This method is both the most flexible approach and provides the developer with the most control over how the registry is changed. The SetOption method allows the user to specify new settings for any of the following default settings:
By using the SetOption method, your application obtains the maximum flexibility and control. This approach allows you to create applications that are easier to maintain and tuned for maximum performance.
You can also edit the Windows Registry to specify the following: