Unable to set Display form

[PennyJ]

Hi everyone,
I don't know a great deal about Access and have made some assumptions so may have this all wrong. This is an issue I have at work.
I have made some form changes with a runtime version of access (tweaks on form and report) but something has gone wrong and I want to return to a backup.
When I restore the backup it doesn't run the first form and looking under options-Database it just says none with no option to change it to the first form I want. The backup was made by just copying the DB from a networked hard drive. How can I set the first form please?
I have tried using my bosses version of Access as I thought the fact that it was runtime was the issue but that still wouldn't allow anything to be changed and also shows tables only, no forms can be opened which I thought they could be in a developers version. How would I be able to tell if it's a runtime version or full developers version please?
Any help would be greatly appreciated as I'm struggling with this. It was all going well then I deleted a linking field (between 2 tables (1 to many) from a form and everything fell down with error messages asking for entry of text fields. Very difficult to identify fields except by looking at tab order and they weren't the ones I changed. So returning to a backup would be preferable.

Brit living in NZ

 

[GaP42]

Your runtime version - can you see it is an accde or mde file? If not what is the extension?
You mention there are other copies? / versions? such as your boss's copy? Does it have the same extension?
Is your database application split to a front end (forms/reports/queries?) and backend (tables/data?). Perhaps your bosses copy is just the BackEnd copy of the data?

A runtime, generally would not usually permit you to alter the forms/ reports / relationships, you would / should be using the accdb FrontEend file? Or it could be mdb?
Were you in design view of the form/ report or relationship window when you made the change?

Returning to a backup depends upon
1. having a backup available prior to the change (the boss's copy is not likely a backup)
2. verifying that it is valid - works / links to the data tables and allows the operations that were in effect prior to the issue
3. being able to apply the data changes since the last backup was made.

The first form to display is specified through:

Differences may occur depending on the version of MS Access - accessed from Options, then Current Database, Display Form is the first form shown

 

[PennyJ]

Your runtime version - can you see it is an accde or mde file? If not what is the extension?
You mention there are other copies? / versions? such as your boss's copy? Does it have the same extension?
Is your database application split to a front end (forms/reports/queries?) and backend (tables/data?). Perhaps your bosses copy is just the BackEnd copy of the data?

A runtime, generally would not usually permit you to alter the forms/ reports / relationships, you would / should be using the accdb FrontEend file? Or it could be mdb?
Were you in design view of the form/ report or relationship window when you made the change?

Returning to a backup depends upon
1. having a backup available prior to the change (the boss's copy is not likely a backup)
2. verifying that it is valid - works / links to the data tables and allows the operations that were in effect prior to the issue
3. being able to apply the data changes since the last backup was made.

The first form to display is specified through:
View attachment 115709

Differences may occur depending on the version of MS Access - accessed from Options, then Current Database, Display Form is the first form shown

Many Thanks for taking the time to reply. I will find out the ext tomorrow (at work) but the file I was backing up was called Back End. Someone had been tinkering with the front end independently of the backend a wee while ago and it was the back end that we have been running/using. I took copies of the back end as I was making form and report changes. My boss doesn't have any other versions we just tried it on his laptop as he seems to have MS Access installed. He knows even less than I do!
I've not been working on the front end that I knew of. I have past backup of front end if I need to go back. I understood from what I've read that the backend is split to make front end(GUI) and backend( GUI + DB) but that it doesn't have to be split if being used on one computer only. Have I got that wrong?
I was selecting design mode whilst I was running the DB in order to make changes, I wasn't able to open any forms or reports without running it.
It won't let me change that display form field, it doesn't seem to know about the forms.
I'm wondering if I've been backing up the wrong thing then.
Many thanks again, I will look further tomorrow with those things in mind.

 

[arnelgp]

the backend is where your data (tables) are.
the front end is where your form, query, reports are.
you can't make any changes on the front end if it is an .accde, or an .accdr (renamed .accde to .accdr).
if you can rename the front end to .acccdb and can make changes, then you are in luck.

 

[isladogs]

Whilst you can't make design changes in ACCDE files, you CAN change the startup form in an ACCDE

 

[GaP42]

Very worrisome @PennyJ :
Some clarity is needed, in a straightforward arrangement: assuming a split database
- the BackEnd holds the data
- the FrontEnd is for the forms, queries, reports
This allows the BackEnd to be shared by multiple users on the network - there is one PRODUCTION back end and a multiple copies of the same FrontEnd - one copy accessible for each user.

You appear to have altered the BackEnd - changing /deleting a relationship between two tables - which will cause problems on the front end which uses those rules to manage referential integrity. And some one else was tinkering with the front end.
That sounds like an uncontrolled environment - at a basic level - changes are made on a "development" copy (fron and back end) and then applied to a test copy (and testing the change) before making the change on the Production version. For the Front end that is simply distributing a copy of the FE. For the BE it requires consideration of data migration (and applying this prior to FE upgrade and re-linking new FE to BE). And prior to that ensuring you have a good back up of the Production db. I hope you are across that.

Because you are changing design elements - you have access to the full developer's version (FE and BE) - but so do the others using it.
Because you made a change in the BE, perhaps your FE (a copy for development purposes) needs to be relinked to the BE to "pick up" the changes made. Have you looked at this?