How to Import Microsoft Access Data

The information in this article applies to:

• Microsoft Visual FoxPro for Windows, version 3.0

SUMMARY

While Visual FoxPro has the ability to import a number of different file formats, it is not possible to import a Microsoft Access database directly into Visual FoxPro. You must use ODBC.

MORE INFORMATION

The structure of a Microsoft Access database is substantially different from something like a text file or an Excel spreadsheet. The .MDB file of a Microsoft Access database is a container that holds the tables, forms, and reports for use by Microsoft Access. The manner in which the data is stored is somewhat the same as the way it is stored in an SQL Server database where you must first access the database itself to gain access to the tables.

Because Visual FoxPro does not understand the format and structure of the Microsoft Access database, you cannot import data directly from a Microsoft Access database by using the Import Wizard.

To import the data, you need to use ODBC to pull data from the Microsoft Access tables. To learn how to use ODBC with Microsoft Access tables, please see the "Access data, using in Visual FoxPro" topic in the Visual FoxPro Help file.