ACC2000: "Object Invalid or No Longer Set" Error with CurrentDb

When you refer to properties and methods belonging to objects created with the CurrentDb function, you may receive the following error message:

When you set an object variable, such as a TableDef object, which requires a reference to a database object, your code refers directly to the CurrentDb function instead of referring to a database object variable that you set with the CurrentDb function.

Microsoft provides programming examples for illustration only, without warranty either expressed or implied. This includes, but is not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. This article assumes that you are familiar with the programming language that is being demonstrated and with the tools that are used to create and to debug procedures. Microsoft support engineers can help explain the functionality of a particular procedure, but they will not modify these examples to provide added functionality or construct procedures to meet your specific requirements. NOTE: The sample code in this article uses Microsoft Data Access Objects. For this code to run properly, you must reference the Microsoft DAO 3.6 Object Library. To do so, click References on the Tools menu in the Visual Basic Editor, and make sure that the Microsoft DAO 3.6 Object Library check box is selected.

Create a database object variable in your code that refers to the CurrentDb function, rather than using the CurrentDb function directly in Set statements to create other objects, as in the following example:

1. Start Access and open the sample database Northwind.mdb.
2. Create a module and type the following procedure:

   Sub CurrentDbSuccess()
      Dim db As DAO.Database
      Dim td As DAO.TableDef
      Set db = CurrentDb()
      Set td = db.TableDefs("Customers")
      MsgBox td.Name
   End Sub
   
   					

3. To test this procedure, type the following line in the Debug window, and then press ENTER:

   CurrentDbSuccess
   					

Note that you receive the message "Customers" indicating the name of the Customers table.

Steps to Reproduce Behavior

The following example attempts to use the CurrentDb function to return a pointer to the database that is currently open in Microsoft Access. Because the code does not assign that database to an object variable, the pointer returned by the CurrentDb function is temporary and becomes invalid after the TableDef object is set. Consequently, any later references in your code to the TableDef object variable will result in an error.

1. Start Access and open the sample database Northwind.mdb.
2. Create a module and type the following procedure:

   Sub CurrentDbFail()
      Dim td As DAO.TableDef
      Set td = CurrentDb.TableDefs("Customers")
      MsgBox td.Name
   End Sub
   
   					

3. To test this procedure, type the following line in the Immediate window, and then press ENTER:

   CurrentDbFail
   					

Note you receive the error described in the Symptoms section of this article