About distributing a security-enhanced application (MDB)

Using the Workgroup Administrator, users can join the workgroup by specifying the network server path to the workgroup information file, and then run the application directly from the server location. You might want to prevent users from opening the application with exclusive access by removing Open Exclusive permissions for the database from the Users group.

Using the Workgroup Administrator, users can join the workgroup by specifying the path to the workgroup information file on their computer, and then running their copies of the application on their computers. However, if you have to update the application, its data, or the workgroup information file, you'll have to give each user copies of all updated files.

As an alternative, you might want to split the application into a data database placed on a network server and an application database containing all other database objects placed on each user's computer— a database configuration typically known as a front-end/back-end application. Typically, in this configuration, you want to keep the workgroup information file on the server as well. Then if you have to update the application, you only have to give users updated versions of the application database file.

You can create a group account in each workgroup with an identical name and personal ID (PID), and then add users in each workgroup to that group. For example, a user working on a network on a Microsoft Access workgroup in Honolulu can use an application created for a Microsoft Access workgroup in Melbourne if that user is a member of a group account that was created with an identical name and PID on both workgroups.