Microsoft KB Archive/283048

= You cannot export part of a table to a text file in Access 2002 =

Article ID: 283048

Article Last Modified on 8/11/2004

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APPLIES TO


 * Microsoft Access 2002 Standard Edition

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This article was previously published under Q283048



For a Microsoft Access 2000 version of this article, see 208544.

Novice: Requires knowledge of the user interface on single-user computers.

This article applies to a Microsoft Access database (.mdb) and to a Microsoft Access project (.adp).



SYMPTOMS
When you try to omit fields from an export specification in the Export Text Wizard, you may receive the following error message:

The number of fields in your export specification does not match the number in the table you have chosen to export.

Or if you convert a database that was created in an earlier version of Microsoft Access that uses a TransferText action with a fixed-width export specification to output only part of a table, you may receive the following error message when you run the TransferText action:

INSERT INTO statement contains unknown field name ' '



CAUSE
Microsoft Access does not allow you to customize the export specification to omit specific fields from a table or a query.



RESOLUTION
Create a query that includes only the fields that you want to export to the fixed-width or delimited text file. You can then run the Export Text Wizard to export the query and create an Import/Export specification with only the query fields. You can also run a TransferText action to export the query using the Import/Export specification that was created with an earlier version of Microsoft Access.



STATUS
Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article.



MORE INFORMATION
In an Access project, the Save As button appears dimmed on the Export Specification dialog box. This is because import/export specifications are saved in the MSysIMEXSpecs and MSysIMEXColumns Microsoft Jet tables. Because Jet is not loaded in an Access project, these tables are not available for storage of the specifications.

However, in the following example, you receive the same error in an Access project if you click OK in the Orders Export Specification dialog box after you delete the field from the list.

Steps to Reproduce the Problem
 Open the sample database Northwind.mdb. Click the Orders table in the Database window, and then click Export on the File menu. In the Export Table 'Orders' To box, type Orders in the File name. Click Text files in the Save as type box, and then click Export. In the Export Text Wizard, click Fixed-Width, and then click Advanced. In the Orders Export Specification dialog box, click the EmployeeID row, and then press DELETE.</li> In the Orders Export Specification dialog box, click Save As. Note that you receive the following error message:

The number of fields in your export specification does not match the number in the table you have chosen to export.

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