The components of an Access database

The following sections are short descriptions of the parts of a typical Access database.
Tables
Forms
Reports
Queries
Macros
Modules
Tables

 A database table is similar in appearance to a spreadsheet, in that data is stored in rows

and columns. As a result, it is usually quite easy to import a spreadsheet into a database table.
The main difference between storing your data in a spreadsheet and storing it in a database is
in how the data is organized.
To get the most flexibility out of a database, the data needs to be organized into tables so that
redundancies don't occur. For example, if you're storing information about employees, each
employee should only need to be entered once in a table that is set up just to hold employee
data. Data about products will be stored in its own table, and data about branch offices will be
stored in another table. This process is called normalization.
Each row in a table is referred to as a record. Records are where the individual pieces of
information are stored. Each record consists of one or more fields. Fields correspond to the
columns in the table. For example, you might have a table named "Employees" where each
record (row) contains information about a different employee, and each field (column)
contains a different type of information, such as first name, last name, address, and so on.
Fields must be designated as a certain data type, whether it's text, date or time, number, or
some other type.
Another way to describe records and fields is to visualize a library's old-style card catalog.
Each card in the cabinet corresponds to a record in the database. Each piece of information
on an individual card (author, title, and so on) corresponds to a field in the database.
For more information about tables, see the article Introduction to tables.
Forms

 Forms allow you to create a user interface in which you can enter and edit your data.
Forms often contain command buttons and other controls that perform various tasks. You can
create a database without using forms by simply editing your data in the table datasheets.
However, most database users prefer to use forms for viewing, entering, and editing data in
the tables.
You can program command buttons to determine which data appears on the form, open other
forms or reports, or perform a variety of other tasks. For example, you might have a form
named "Customer Form" in which you work with customer data. The customer form might
have a button which opens an order form where you can enter a new order for that customer.
Forms also allow you to control how other users interact with the data in the database. For
example, you can create a form that shows only certain fields and allows only certain
operations to be performed. This helps protect data and to ensure that the data is entered
properly.
For more information about forms, see the article Introduction to forms.
Reports

 Reports are what you use to format, summarize and present data. A report usually
answers a specific question, such as "How much money did we receive from each customer
this year?" or "What cities are our customers located in?" Each report can be formatted to
present the information in the most readable way possible.
A report can be run at any time, and will always reflect the current data in the database.
Reports are generally formatted to be printed out, but they can also be viewed on the screen,
exported to another program, or sent as an attachment to an e-mail message.
For more information about reports, see the article Introduction to reports.
Queries

 Queries can perform many different functions in a database. Their most common
function is to retrieve specific data from the tables. The data you want to see is usually spread
across several tables, and queries allow you to view it in a single datasheet. Also, since you
usually don't want to see all the records at once, queries let you add criteria to "filter" the data
down to just the records you want.
Certain queries are "updateable," meaning you can edit the data in the underlying tables via
the query datasheet. If you are working in an updateable query, remember that your changes
are actually being made in the tables, not just in the query datasheet.
Queries come in two basic varieties: select queries and action queries. A select query simply
retrieves the data and makes it available for use. You can view the results of the query on the
screen, print it out, or copy it to the clipboard. Or, you can use the output of the query as the
record source for a form or report.
An action query, as the name implies, performs a task with the data. Action queries can be
used to create new tables, add data to existing tables, update data, or delete data.
For more information about queries, see the article Introduction to queries.
Macros

 Macros in Access can be thought of as a simplified programming language which you

can use to add functionality to your database. For example, you can attach a macro to a
command button on a form so that the macro runs whenever the button is clicked. Macros
contain actions that perform tasks, such as opening a report, running a query, or closing the
database. Most database operations that you do manually can be automated by using macros,
so they can be great time-saving devices.
For more information about macros, see the article Introduction to Access programming.
Modules

 Modules, like macros, are objects you can use to add functionality to your database.
Whereas you create macros in Access by choosing from a list of macro actions, you write
modules in the Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) programming language. A module is a
collection of declarations, statements, and procedures that are stored together as a unit. A
module can be either a class module or a standard module. Class modules are attached to
forms or reports, and usually contain procedures that are specific to the form or report they're
attached to. Standard modules contain general procedures that aren't associated with any
other object. Standard modules are listed under Modules in the Navigation Pane, whereas
class modules are not.