Placing my customers individual front ends in Sharepoint Synced Folder

[medihub_guy]

It's not a matter of being an insult or not. And I don't think it was.
I meant how people believe an AI is better than a human mind. Your last comment shows that I was correct.
"And technically speaking, artificial intelligence is smarter than any human being on the face of this earth."


It's an open forum and I think everybody is free to express what he thinks. I didn't make anything awkward. I only said what I thought.

My point is that your "thoughts" do not contribute to the discussion whatsoever. So next time try not to be so impulsive and keep your thoughts to yourself. Unless that is you plan to give your input on the topic at hand. Do you have anything to contribute in this regard?

 

[The_Doc_Man]

@KitaYama - don't worry about @medihub_guy comments. No harm, no foul as we say in pick-up games. And besides, I'm thick-skinned to go with my thick skull.

And medihub_guy: First, I took the ChatGPT comment with humor. So no worries there.

Second, there is a misconception here. You said "And technically speaking, artificial intelligence is smarter than any human being on the face of this earth."

You must remember this admonition: Artificial intelligence cannot cope with natural stupidity. Humans, however, often can do so.

Among other things, when I was a contractor for the U.S. Navy I was a systems admin and a security manager for some systems, but I was also a Help Desk Tier III responder. Can't BEGIN to tell you how many dumb asses I ran into when wearing that particular hat. But I learned to sniff out user conceptual problems and mistaken beliefs over a few years. Let's just say that perhaps you need to rethink your faith in A.I. here.

And for the record, we have had ChatGPT 3.5 and 4.0 issues reported on the forum when someone asked the AI to write some code that when tested, would not run - both due to errors and due to incompletion. ChatGPT is known to have fabricated a few things in its answers. Having said that, I looked at its answer in your link and it came pretty close.

 

[Pat Hartman]

With this design, I can update the individual front ends through the sharepoint synced folder.

If the BE is shared using the LAN, I would NOT involve SharePoint in the process at all. You can easily distribute the FE's with either a batch file or a distribution application (several available for download here).

And technically speaking, artificial intelligence is smarter than any human being on the face of this earth.

Having all the written documentation "ever created" doesn't make AI smart. Computers are mind-blowingly fast. That is about all I can say about AI. That doesn't make them smart. It just makes them able to correlate sets of data very quickly and come to a "consensus" given the data available at the time of the search. Keep in mind that Google biases its search results. The earth is flat would have been the consensus a few centuries ago. Fifty years ago, the consensus was to give babies peanut butter as soon as they started eating solid food. That changed to holding off peanut butter until much later. The result is that now we have many people who have peanut allergies. Is there a correlation?

 

[Pat Hartman]

My point is that your "thoughts" do not contribute to the discussion whatsoever.

That is your opinion and you are entitled to it. Not all of us would agree.

You are very new to the forum so welcome. I will point out that being overly critical of people who contribute to your questions or other questions will not win you any friends here. You do not want to start out by alienating people.

 

[medihub_guy]

That is your opinion and you are entitled to it. Not all of us would agree.

You are very new to the forum so welcome. I will point out that being overly critical of people who contribute to your questions or other questions will not win you any friends here. You do not want to start out by alienating people.

I'm confused. The conversation was based on a method I proposed and was hoping everyone can criticize it. I was open to everyone's opinion and thanked everyone. If they asked for further explanation, i took the time to do that. The person you're defending misinterpreted my comment to another member of which was a joke of which was very left field and was stirring up confusion. Please take a moment to read the entire thread. You will realize I'm not here to bully anyone or belittle people. I'm here to learn and contribute. I'm so confused on your opinion on this matter. If you can tell me where I'm wrong here I will gladly apologize to anyone you think I should.

 

[Pat Hartman]

I don't think your intention is to bully people. All I am suggesting is that you might want keep in mind that for many of our members, English is not their primary language (I think @KitaYama 's is Japanese) and sometimes due to Google Translate jokes fall flat. If you make one and someone takes it the wrong way and comments on it, just explain the joke rather than criticizing their criticism @KitaYama was trying to protect @The_Doc_Man. We're all friends here and we're happy to have you.

 

[medihub_guy]

I don't think your intention is to bully people. All I am suggesting is that you might want keep in mind that for many of our members, English is not their primary language (I think @KitaYama 's is Japanese) and sometimes due to Google Translate jokes fall flat. If you make one and someone takes it the wrong way and comments on it, just explain the joke rather than criticizing their criticism @KitaYama was trying to protect @The_Doc_Man. We're all friends here and we're happy to have you.

I can dig it! Thanks for clearing that up. I want to be apart of a community because there is so much I don't know.

 

[The_Doc_Man]

And The_Doc_Man has a warped sense of humor anyway so it is usually OTHERS who don't get MY jokes.

 

[tmaccabe]

From what I understand about synced sharepoint folders, they allow users to continue working on files in its folder even if the internet is down. Therefore, internet connectivity shouldnt be an issue. Furthermore, only one user should be editing the unique front end accde file anyway. Therefore, there should not be any clashes with data. Also, when I said update over the internet, I meant periodic updates to the design of the front end for me to push to the users. With the synced sharepoint folder, all I have to do is schedule down time with the client then drag and drop the new front end file into their respective folder. This literally takes 5 seconds to do.

@The_Doc_Man I want to ensure I understand your concerns as I can tell you understand access/database design a whole lot better than I do.

This link kinda sums up what took place with my application: https://sharepointmaven.com/how-onedrive-sync-works/

A couple of months have passed. I'm wondering if you are still hosting front-end files via SharePoint and OneDrive that are opened via a short-cut? My understanding is that this can lead to front-end corruption (if there are multiple users sharing a file), because OneDrive and Jet are incompatible as they'll both attempt to manage shared changes. Is there a corruption issue in your single-user solution? Interesting concept, working offline with a front-end file (OneDrive's local copy of the front-end), that is itself (I assume) caching data for offline use? So, the user reconnects and the front-end syncs, then the cache refreshes? Is that the idea? I don't recall if there is caching involved when linking SQL Server. I guess you would just need to be sure they aren't working offline before you replace their front-end with a new version. Anyways, just wondering how this is working. Thanks.

 

[GPGeorge]

Yes they do! Financial info and other sensitive data to that customer is hidden through setting the specific customer number in the query criteria.
This design is was chosen as it provides the foundation for future interoperability between the pharmacies as that is what is being encouraged by healthcare authorities.

So, you comingle data from 10 customers in a single database? Have you discussed this with the insurer which provides your professional liability insurance?

 

[medihub_guy]

So, you comingle data from 10 customers in a single database? Have you discussed this with the insurer which provides your professional liability insurance?

your sarcasm is noted

 

[medihub_guy]

A couple of months have passed. I'm wondering if you are still hosting front-end files via SharePoint and OneDrive that are opened via a short-cut? My understanding is that this can lead to front-end corruption (if there are multiple users sharing a file), because OneDrive and Jet are incompatible as they'll both attempt to manage shared changes. Is there a corruption issue in your single-user solution? Interesting concept, working offline with a front-end file (OneDrive's local copy of the front-end), that is itself (I assume) caching data for offline use? So, the user reconnects and the front-end syncs, then the cache refreshes? Is that the idea? I don't recall if there is caching involved when linking SQL Server. I guess you would just need to be sure they aren't working offline before you replace their front-end with a new version. Anyways, just wondering how this is working. Thanks.

Im not hosting the front end via sharepoint synced folder any longer. As @The_Doc_Man correctly predicted, I have experienced performance issues when the sync folder connection lapsed. However, it was not terrible, just embarrasing when it happened. I would also ensure that you are always connected via ethernet cable and not using wifi to experience stronger connectivity. I didnt wait around to experience the difference so theres that.
I would say though its a good way to share the front end securely as opposed to going to each location physically, emailing the file to each end user or buying a third party plug in from an experienced access developer. With using sharepoint synced folders you will just have to let the end user know when the update is available and they can delete the old front end file and use the new version. On your back end, you can create a field named "file version" (if you havent done so already). When the splash screen opens, you can have vba check on the on load event to see if the file version in an unbound textbox (that you manually enter yourself on the newly updated file) on your opening form and the tables version. If it matches, the database can open as usual. If not, then a msgbox will show "outdated version" or whatever you desire. This way you can prevent users from using outdated versions forcing them to delete the unusable file.
At the end of the day, I have decided to create a web based application. Access requires way too many work arounds to get to the modernized front end newer developers are seeking. I absolutely love access and I appreciate that it got me to this point of having a "functional prototype". I know my concept works now and others find it useful. At this point I had 3 choices and staying with Access was not one:
1. Pay someone else to develop my application as I have customers already
2. Learn the programming language myself and build the application on my own
3. Do both
I chose the third option .
Sorry for going off on a tangent but I would be doing you a disservice not sharing my true feelings on this matter. Bite the bullet and learn a language with built in functionality that can help you achieve with you want without the compromise.
All the best!

 

[Edgar_]

At this point I had 3 choices and staying with Access was not one:
1. Pay someone else to develop my application as I have customers already
2. Learn the programming language myself and build the application on my own
3. Do both
I chose the third option .

Excellent choice. Don't do it without a framework, they help you tons. Have you chosen some technologies?

 

[medihub_guy]

Excellent choice. Don't do it without a framework, they help you tons. Have you chosen some technologies?

The developer is using React JS. I have researched it and I am happy with the choice. I look forward to my application in the new year when my "team" will have something to show my customers.

 

[Edgar_]

React JS is the most used technology for frontend right now, so that's even better. What are they using for backend?

 

[GPGeorge]

your sarcasm is noted

That was not meant to be sarcasm. I was expressing concern over the liability exposure you have incurred. I spent 20 years in the insurance industry. I know how they think.

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You have deliberately commingled customer data; moreover, that data, based on your description, has the potential to be sensitive personal health data.

Those are two red flags for any liability insurer.

 

[medihub_guy]

React JS is the most used technology for frontend right now, so that's even better. What are they using for backend?

I'm sticking with azure sql

 

[medihub_guy]

That was not meant to be sarcasm. I was expressing concern over the liability exposure you have incurred. I spent 20 years in the insurance industry. I know how they think.

======
You have deliberately commingled customer data; moreover, that data, based on your description, has the potential to be sensitive personal health data.

Those are two red flags for any liability

That was not meant to be sarcasm. I was expressing concern over the liability exposure you have incurred. I spent 20 years in the insurance industry. I know how they think.

======
You have deliberately commingled customer data; moreover, that data, based on your description, has the potential to be sensitive personal health data.

Those are two red flags for any liability insurer.

I appreciate the concern. Forgive my ignorance but I don't see how data can potentially be released without access to it.
Kindly educate me on the risk and what are my options on remedies?

 

[GPGeorge]

I appreciate the concern. Forgive my ignorance but I don't see how data can potentially be released without access to it.
Kindly educate me on the risk and what are my options on remedies?

If any one of your clients experiences a data breach, all of the rest of your clients' data is also at risk because their data resides in the same database. That's the principal risk. A lesser, but not insignificant risk, is cross-clent exposure. I understand that you've taken steps to prevent that. What I would want to know is whether that satisfies the underwriters for your Errors & Omissions liability coverage. The time to determine that is before a loss occurs, not after.

What can you do about it? I would start by segregating the data into separate databases. The SQL Server host I use, Winhost.com, offers different plans, for example, some of which provide for "unlimited" databases. Although it's a different level of effort, it's probably something you want to consider.

Again, I would discuss the situation with the insurer that provides your E & O liability coverage to see if they have specific requirements or suggestions.

 

[medihub_guy]

If any one of your clients experiences a data breach, all of the rest of your clients' data is also at risk because their data resides in the same database. That's the principal risk. A lesser, but not insignificant risk, is cross-client exposure. I understand that you've taken steps to prevent that. What I would want to know is whether that satisfies the underwriters for your Errors & Omissions liability coverage. The time to determine that is before a loss occurs, not after.

What can you do about it? I would start by segregating the data into separate databases. The SQL Server host I use, Winhost.com, offers different plans, for example, some of which provide for "unlimited" databases. Although it's a different level of effort, it's probably something you want to consider.

Again, I would discuss the situation with the insurer that provides your E & O liability coverage to see if they have specific requirements or suggestions.

How can I facilitate interoperability between these databases?

Globally, there is a huge push towards interoperability between pharmacy management applications within a given jurisdiction. To date, the United States has difficulty achieving this despite government incentivized initiatives and laws.

My market is The Bahamas. Interoperability is a lot more achievable/manageable here as there are <100 pharmacies that are potential clients for my application. Perhaps this can give you a better insight of why I've taken the route I've taken.

Data security is one of the reasons why Access is less ideal for my application and why I have decided to utilize a web-based application. All available advice pertaining to locking down a front end file comes with a clause that "any experienced access developer would be able to bypass your front end security". This is why, in my opinion, Access is not an option for a large scale enterprise. Boy do I wish it was though. I've spent a great deal of hours learning VBA when i could have been learning another programming language. BUT this was the advantage Access had over the others - it was easy and developing an application was relatively quick. So, Access has served its purpose i.e. being a functional prototype. I would recommend Access to any developer just getting started for that reason alone. Get in quick with your prototype and adjust your application to industry feedback. Once you have a design that works for most, make the switch!

So now, given that an Access front end file is no longer in the equation, do you still have concerns of a data breach?