In this article we shed light on the importing and linking of Access tables with SalesForce, along with explaining the whole process of achieving the same.
When using Access databases, there are multiple ways using which you can enter data, one of them is by importing data from SalesForce. SalesForce is a cloud based solution for Customer Relationship Management (CRM), mainly used by businesses. Before you begin the process of importing, you need to understand that when you import data from SalesForce to MS Access, the data in both the applications does not synchronize. MS Access instead creates a single use copy of the same. Whereas, when the two applications are linked, the data in both gets synchronized, through a two way connection created by MS Access.
It should also be noted that this importing process will be possible in MS Office 365 Enterprise Edition only. If you have access to it, you should follow the given steps for the import or linking process.
The Beginning Stage
- Go to ‘External Data’, select ‘New Data Source’, click on ‘From Online Services’, and then select ‘From SalesForce’.
- After selecting SalesForce, perform either of the following actions:
For importing – click on ‘Import the source data into a new table in the current database’.
For Linking – click on ‘Link the data source by creating a linked table’.
- Click on ‘Ok’
Connecting to Salesforce
When the ‘Connect to SalesForce’ dialog box appears in MS Access, perform either of the given options.
- Add Username and Password in respective boxes.
- Fill the ‘Security Token’ Box.
- In ‘Additional Connection String Parameters’ you may add other optional connection parameters.
Selecting Tables for Importing or Linking
- From the appearing ‘Link Tables or Import Objects’ dialog box, select every single table that you wish to import or link, and then select ‘Ok’.
- Decide if you wish to ‘Save Password’ in the given link operation.
- If you select the ‘Security’ option, you will not be required to re-enter credentials every time you access the database. However, when using this feature, you also need to know that this will store an unencrypted password for your database. Thus, anyone with know that anyone with access to source contents will have access to user name as well as the password. It is advisable to have Access in a secured location if using this feature.
The Final Stage
- These import steps can be saved in the ‘SalesForce Database’ dialog. After saving these steps, you can create a task in Outlook which will regularly automate this operation.
- When the importing or linking operation is complete, you will see the tables in the Navigation Pane, with a name similar to that of the SalesForce Table. These can always be renamed.
- Access does not overwrite tables in an import process, and it also does not allow to directly append data from SalesForce in an already existing table. To append data, you will be required to create append query, once you are done importing data from same tables.
- In linking process, the columns in MS Access will continue to be read only, if they are the same in SalesForce table. Thus, to make changes in linked tables, you will have to do it in SalesForce itself. To see those changes in your Access tables, just update them.
During the data transfer process, there may be chances that you encounter a data corruption scenario. To avoid data loss during such challenging periods, invest in a powerful Access damage Repair tool.
Author Introduction:
Vivian Stevens is a data recovery expert in DataNumen, Inc., which is the world leader in data recovery technologies, including corrupt mdf and excel recovery software products. For more information visit www.datanumen.com
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