The MS Access Client-Server Application (MDE)

The MS Access Client-Server configuration uses MS Access converted to an MDE format for deployment to End Users' desktops which are connected to any ODBC-compliant data store such as SQL Server or Oracle.  The MS Access Client-Server design gains all the benefits of SQL Server while maintaining the application front-end in MS Access, and represents the most common and MS Access migration approach.

Properly designed to use the Database Server performance and security, the MDE type MS Access Client-Server approach supports MS Access migration with rapid development, ease of maintenance, data transactions and fairly robust performance.  MS Access or its runtime engine is required for deployment, and the End User can easily get direct access to the data tables and queries.

Typically deployed to a network share, MDE MS Access Client-Server applications are recommended for non-regulated, shared data across a LAN, for example, inter-department management of statistics and production analysis.  MDE MS Access Client-Server applications are limited to LAN deployment.  Large front-end applications can be slow to load over a WAN.  The MS Access Client-Server approach does expose the data tables directly to the End User, which can present security or data integrity issues. 

See the 10 Most Common Application Migration Business Drivers