Access Hacks

Hack #68. Use Access as a Front End to MySQL

MySQL is a widely used open source database program that often runs on Linux web servers, and Access makes a great front end for data entry and reporting.

MySQL is a wildly successful open source SQL database that runs on most Linux-based web servers. It's the perfect database to store information for use in database-driven web sites because you can use the PHP programming language to read the data from MySQL and display it on web pages. In fact, the combination of Linux, Apache (an open source web server that runs on Linux), MySQL, and PHP is so popular that it's known by its initials: LAMP.

However, MySQL doesn't hold a candle to Access when it comes to forms and reports. MySQL has no built-in form editor or report writer. Instead, you type commands at a command line or write programs (usually as part of PHP-based web pages) to enter, edit, and display information.

But who wants to create programs that display data entry forms for each table? This is where Access comes in. Access can add a friendly face to your MySQL database. In the same way an Access database can link to tables in another Access database, you can link to tables in a MySQL database on your web server over a LAN or the Internet. Once the tables are linked, you (or your users) can use Access forms to enter or edit the MySQL data and Access reports to display it.

Installing the MySQL Tools

MySQL does have a Windows-based utility you can use for creating and editing the ...