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File Error Won't Go Away
Dan North 
      
8 months ago
I'm building a new V2 database to replace our office's current DB which was very poorly written (over 120 columns in main table, spaces in field names, non-descriptive, and zero error checking).  I've managed to correct most of the errors over the years, but it's time for a fresh start.  All and as a refresher, I have signed up for your beginner 1 and 2 courses.  I recently imported some tables from one of the old back end files (We have three Main, Zip Code, and Daily Action Reports (DAR). Now when I save a version of the new front end for backup and open the new version I get two "Can't open the file" errors.  One is looking for a jpg, the other is looking for a png.  I do not embed and have checked and purged the image gallery as suggested in your https://599cd.com/blog/display-article.asp?ID=2089 video.  I still get the error.  The images in question do not exist in my images folder either.  How can I clear this annoying error? I just ignore it, but my users panic and thing the DB is broken.
Sandra Truax  @Reply  
         
8 months ago
It sounds like a picture may have been set as the background for your form. Go to your form's properties, under format look for picture and see if anything is in there, if so, delete it.
Kevin Robertson  @Reply  
          
8 months ago
Are the image names hard coded in code? Open the VB Editor and do a global search for the images.
Richard Rost  @Reply  
          
8 months ago
This is a very common Access issue, especially after importing tables or reusing older objects, and it usually is not database corruption. Even if you do not intentionally use images, Access may still be trying to load one from somewhere. Start by opening every form and report involved and check the Format properties for Picture, including the header, detail, and footer sections, and also any navigation forms. A missing background image will cause this error every time the object opens. Next, look for hidden Image controls on forms. These can be tiny, behind other controls, or left over from older designs. Delete the control entirely, not just the picture reference.

Also check any imported tables for Evil things like OLE Object or Attachment fields. These are frequent offenders after imports because they can retain references to files that no longer exist, even if the records appear empty. Temporarily removing those fields from the form or report is a quick way to test. If the error appears on startup, check the startup form and any AutoExec macro, since the problem may be coming from an object that opens automatically. It is also worth doing a global search in the VBA editor for .jpg, .png, .bmp, LoadPicture, or Picture assignments, as old hard-coded paths often get forgotten.

A fast way to isolate the problem is to hold Shift while opening the database to bypass startup code, then open forms one at a time until the error appears. Once you find the first object that triggers it, you have your culprit. Finally, since the original database design was messy, run Compact and Repair, and if needed import all objects into a brand-new blank database. That alone fixes a surprising number of phantom image errors. The important thing to reassure users is that this error looks scary but is almost always just Access failing to find a missing external file, not actual data damage.
Dan North OP  @Reply  
      
8 months ago
Sandra Thank you, Checked and found nothing.  Still looking for the beasty
Dan North OP  @Reply  
      
8 months ago
Kevin Thank you.  Opened the VB on both front end and back end and did a global search for jpg and png.  Nothing in the new files.

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