ACC2: Cannot Delete Attached Table with Relationship

ID: Q119481


The information in this article applies to:
  • Microsoft Access 2.0


SYMPTOMS

Advanced: Requires expert coding, interoperability, and multiuser skills.

If you try to delete an attached dBASE, FoxPro, Paradox, or Btrieve table, you may receive the following error message even if no relationship appears to exist between the attached table and any other tables in your database:

Can't delete table <tablename>. It is participating in one or more relationships.


CAUSE

At one time, a non-enforceable relationship was established between the attached table and another table in your database. This attachment is no longer valid (for example, the file containing the attached table has been moved or deleted).


RESOLUTION

If the file containing the attached table was moved, use the Attachment Manager to refresh the relationship. After you refresh the relationship, remove the relationship in the Relationships window, and then delete the attached table.

If the file containing the attached table was deleted, you cannot refresh and then remove the relationship. Instead, you can create an Access Basic procedure to remove any relationship in which the attached table is participating, and then delete the attachment. The advantage of this approach is that you can delete the relationship even though no relationship appears in the Relationships window.


MORE INFORMATION

This article assumes that you are familiar with Access Basic and with creating Microsoft Access applications using the programming tools provided with Microsoft Access. For more information on Access Basic, please refer to the "Building Applications" manual.

The following example demonstrates how to create and use an Access Basic procedure to delete an attached table.

NOTE: In the following sample code, an underscore (_) at the end of a line is used as a line-continuation character. Remove the underscore from the end of the line when re-creating this code in Access Basic.

  1. Create a new module and enter the following line in the Declarations section:
    
          Option Explicit 


  2. Create the following procedure in the module:
    
          Function DeleteAttachment()
    
          Dim MyDB As Database, TableName As String, I As Integer
          On Error GoTo DeleteErr
          Set MyDB = DBEngine.WorkSpaces(0).Databases(0)
    
          ' Prompt for the name of the attached table.
          TableName = InputBox$("Enter the name of the attached_
               table you want to delete.")
    
          ' First, determine if the table is an attached table. If so,
          ' examine all relationships in the database.
          If Not ((MyDB.TableDefs(TableName).Attributes And_
               DB_ATTACHEDTABLE) = 0) Then
    
                For I = 0 To MyDB.Relations.Count - 1
                    ' If the attached table is part of the current
                    ' relationship, delete the relationship.
                    If (MyDB.Relations(I).Table = TableName) Or_
                       (MyDB.Relations(I).ForeignTable = TableName) Then
                        MyDB.Relations.Delete MyDB.Relations(I).Name
                    End If
                Next I
    
              ' After all relationships involving this table have been
              ' deleted, delete the attached table.
              MyDB.TableDefs.Delete TableName
          End If
    
          DeleteExit:
              Exit Function
    
          DeleteErr:
               If Err = 3265 Then
                   MsgBox "There is no table named " & TableName
               Else
                   MsgBox "An unexpected error (" & Err & ") occurred: "_
                       & Error(Err)
               End If
               Resume DeleteExit
    
           End Function 


  3. From the View menu, choose Immediate Window.


  4. In the Immediate window, type the following line, and then press ENTER:

    ? DeleteAttachment()


NOTE: After you delete a table using this method, you may need to refresh the Database window. To do so, choose the Query button in the Database window, and then choose the Table button.

Keywords : kb3rdparty kberrmsg IsmXbase
Version : 2.0
Platform : WINDOWS
Issue type : kbprb


Last Reviewed: April 6, 1999
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