The following was copied from the Microsoft Access help file. (You may look this topic up in that file to find definitions and links.) :

Back up an Access database

1. Close the Microsoft Access database. If you are using the Access database in a multiuser environment, confirm that all users have closed the database.
2. Using My Computer, the Microsoft Windows 2000 Backup and Recovery Tools, or other backup software, copy the Access database to a backup medium of your choice.

Restore an Access database from a backup copy

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1. Depending on what method was used originally to produce the backup copy, use My Computer, the Windows 2000 Backup and Recovery Tools, or other backup software to copy the backup Access database to your database folder. *

Caution   If the existing Access database in the database folder and the backup copy have the same name, restoring the backup copy may replace the existing file. If you want to save the existing file, rename it before you copy the backup database.

Notes  

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1. If you are using user-level security, you should also create a backup of the workgroup information file. If this file is lost or damaged, you won't be able to start Microsoft Access until you restore or rebuild it. * *
2. You can back up individual database objects by creating a blank database and then importing the objects you want from the original database. *

Suggestions (and observations) from ChurchMouse Development:

Observations:

A database is a wonderful thing. It will hold an awful lot of data, and convert it into information. It is also a lot of eggs in one basket.

You should not be using a database unless you have a proper medium on which to back it up, i.e., a Read/Write CD, Zip File, or a connection to another computer on which you can easily store your backup copies.

You should not use a database unless use the backup facilities. If you should call ChurchMouse Development for help after your system crashes or something wipes out your database by accident, there is nothing we can do to help you. We may be able to assist you in correcting mistakes you have made in using the system. We will not be able to help you restore it if you don't have a backup copy.

Suggestions on backup:

1. Daily: In the Setup package for CB/DB there is a DOS Batch program called "Cbw5bkup.bat". It has the commands to do manage 3 backup generations of your cbw5_be.mdb tables file. It creates three sub-directories, "backup1", "backup2", and "backup3". When you invoke it, it copies the contents of:
2. backup2 into backup3,
3. then from backup1 into backup2,
4. then from cbw5 into backup1.

I (the Chief ChurchMouse) use this routine several times a day as I complete a significant amount of work. For example, if I process the offering, I will do a backup. If I write checks, I will do a backup. If I were to put a lot of data into the Family or Member files, I would do it. This prevents accidental loss during the day.

1. Weekly: I maintain a subdirectory (folder) I name "Generations". Each week (and sometimes daily) I use Windows Explorer to copy my active database, (e.g. cbw5_be.mdb) into the Generations folder, and then rename it to include the date, e.g. cbw5 11-21-02_be.mdb. I then copy each generation to a cumulative CD that has all my generations on it. (I haven't filled one up yet, but when I do, I'll just continue onto a new one.) After you get some experience in doing this, it becomes very easy. Again, with experience, you may decide not to do this on a weekly basis, but at least monthly as long as you are maintaining your daily procedures (when you have activity).
   
   Needless to say, you would normally only be interested in the latest backup in case of tragedy, but you do have the ability in Access to go back and see what the status was of various tables at a past point in time (if you do it carefully in a different directory than c:\cbw5).
   
   At present CB/DB has no provision for deleting old records. That option will be added at a later date, but until it starts to slow the system down, you are better off having the old data for reference.

Recovery of Data:

The Database is recovered by copying a backup copy into the directory that the lost data was in, and if necessary, renaming the backup copy to the name of the "lost" file. If this is done on a new machine, you must first run setup to reinstall the latest version of the system in your possession, and then copy the database from backup. (If you are using a Local Area Network (LAN), you must repeat the LAN setup, and copy the backup "_be.mdb" file into the proper directory.)