Setting up the Training Programme Software

Stage one is to check whether or not you have MS Access installed - the software will not run without it!

Installing on One Computer

The software is designed to run on the T:/ drive, as this is usually free on most computers. If you don't have the ability to map a new drive as T:/, then downloading Visual Subst will allow you to do this. Ensure that the training programme sits in a folder named Training Programme (with the data folder a sub-folder of Training Programme and if you're using Visual Subst, check the box to apply virtual drives on startup.

Once this has been done, the software should be ready to go! Open up the relevant file for your version of MS Access and it should automatically connect to the data source. You will most likely be prompted with some sort of security warning; you must allow the programme to run and allow all active content if applicable otherwise the software will not function properly.

If for some reason you are unable to use the T:/ drive, then you will have to link the two databases (training programme.mdb and training programme back end.mdb manually - if you are unsure of how to do this, let me know and I can help

Installing on a Network

Basically the process is similar as above, except that you will need to map the same drive (on the server or computer used as a server) as T:/ on all machines, and place the back end software on only that computer/server. As long as the same drive is mapped the same on all machines, then the file training programme.mdb can be placed anywhere on the other machines.

Installing via Cloud Storage

This section is written for Google Drive as that's what we're using - however the process should be broadly similar with MS OneDrive, DropBox, etc

The second stage is to install Google Drive on your computer - if you're viewing this online or as a download then download Google Drive and follow the instructions to install it.

The third stage is to map the Google Drive folder as the T:/ drive - if you don't have the software to do this, then downloading Visual Subst will allow you to do this. Ensure that you make the Google Drive root folder itself the mapped drive (not any of its subfolders) and check the box to apply virtual drives on startup.

Remember that cloud storage will not allow people to simultaneously access the file at the same time from different machines - so you will need to ensure that people are not trying to use the software on two machines at once. If using both cloud storage and a network, it's recommended that you map a single version of the cloud folder on one machine to use as a server for each network, as described above

Once it's Installed

Running Outside of MS Access

The training programme creator can be run in MS Runtime - this prevents users from accessing Design view or the database window, making it much less likely that a user will break the software!

To use MS Runtime, just use the shortcut Training Programme Runtime. Open the shortcut properties and ensure that the target is correct - it will be in the format "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\OFFICE11\MSACCESS.EXE" /runtime "T:\Training Programme\training programme.mdb". As long as the database has been installed as per the instructions above, the T:\Training Programme\training programme.mdb path will be correct, however you will need to ensure that the first part (C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\OFFICE11\MSACCESS.EXE) actually points to where your copy of MS Access is installed. Then simply have users open the software using the runtime shortcut - for extra security you can password protect the database files (this will prevent anyone without the password opening the mdb files, but won't affect runtime.)