How to Fix the ‘Access Database Form Opening Blank’ Issue?

Many users have reported encountering the “Access database form view is blank” issue when accessing the form in Access. This problem usually appears while opening a form in layout or form view. This error prevents you from viewing the fields in the form or editing/modifying the data in the forms. This error can occur if there is an issue with the form’s properties, such as record source, form additions, etc. Besides this, there could be several other causes behind this issue.

Reasons for Access Database Form Opening Blank Issue

There can be many reasons why your Access database form opens blank, such as:

• Issue with the controls or fields in the form
• Incorrect queries in the VBA code
• Access file is not compatible
• Database gets corrupted
• Damaged/inaccessible objects in the macros
• Incorrect Form Settings
• Incompatible third-party add-ins
• Incorrect Startup settings

How to Fix the “Access Database Form Opening Blank” Issue?

The error can occur if you do not have permissions to open the database. Make sure you have the permissions to access the form in the database. If not, then try changing the database permissions. If this is not the case, then follow these methods.

Method 1: Bypass Startup Settings

Incorrect startup settings can also cause “form opening blank” issue in the Access database. It usually occurs if you specify some settings to open a database upon startup or the form is either corrupted or missing. You can bypass all startup options to troubleshoot this issue. To do this, hold down the ‘Shift’ key while opening the database. It will bypass the options set under the Current Database of the Access Options. You can also check and change the Startup option settings by following these steps:

• Navigate to File and then click Options.
• In Access Options, select Current Database.
• Check the listing settings of the current database under Application options, such as Application Title, Display Form, Web Display, and Application icon.

• Change the settings if required and click OK.

Note: Bypassing the Startup options stops the AutoExec macro. If your database contains AutoExec macro (which runs whenever you open your database), then you can set AllowByPassKey =false.

Method 2: Convert the Old Database File Version into a Newer Version

The “Access database form opening blank” issue can occur if the database file is incompatible with the Access version. For example, you are using an older version file (.mdb) in a new version (MS Access 2010 or later). To fix the compatibility issue, you can convert the older version file format into a new version file format (.accdb). To do so, follow these steps:

• Go to File and then click Open.

• Select the database that you want to convert.
• Click File and then click Save As.
• Click on Save Database As option, select the Access file type, and click Save As.
• In the Save As dialog box, give a file name and then click Save.

Method 3: Check the Form Properties

You can get the “form is opening blank” issue in Access when opening the form in the Layout view. It can sometimes prevent you to modify the fields. It usually occurs due to incorrect form property settings, such as forms allow addition property, record source property, and edit property. You can check and modify the form properties using these steps:

• Locate the form (in which you are getting the error), right-click on it, and select Design View.

• When the form is opened in Design View, right-click anywhere on the form and click Form Properties.

• Click on the Data tab in the Form Properties window in the right pane.
• Check if the Record Source settings are set against the right table and the Allow settings (Additions, Deletions, Edits, Filters) are set to Yes.

• Now save the applied changes and check whether the error is fixed.

Method 4: Check the Database Form Event

Sometimes, the Access database form opening blank issue can occur due to the Open Event settings of the form. Form Open event specifies all actions executed when the form is opened before the record is displayed. You can check the form event settings using the below steps:

• Open the form in Design view.
• In Form Property Sheet, click Event and scroll down to the “On Open” event.

• Click on the three dots. It will redirect you to the VBA code.

• Review all the commands in the code and ensure there is no command that is hiding the data in the form.

Method 5: Check and Remove Add-ins

The “Access form blank on opening” issue can also occur due to incompatible add-ins. You can check and disable the Access add-ins using the below steps:

• First, open the Run window, type msaccess /safe, and click OK. The Access application will open in safe mode.
• Now try to open the affected form in the database file. If it opens without the error, it means add-ins are causing the issue.
• Navigate to the File option and then click Options.
• In the Access Options window, click Add-ins.
• Click on the dropdown arrow against Manage, select Access Add-ins, and click Go.

• The Add-in Manager is displayed with the latest add-ins. Click on the Uninstall option.

• Once the uninstall process completes, restart your Access application.

Method 6: Check the Form Query

You can get the Access database form opening blank issue when using a VBA code to open the form. It usually occurs if there is an issue with the query you are using. You might be using the incorrect query or it contains a typo or syntax error. You can open the database in code view to check the errors and fix them. To minimize the errors in the query, you can use the Expression Builder to write the queries. It contains smart tools that can help you build expressions more quickly and accurately.

Method 7: Repair your Database

Corruption in database can also result in various issues. If database is corrupt, you can use “Compact and Repair” – a built-in utility in Access – to repair corrupted or damaged Access databases. It can be accessed from the command line. Alternatively, you can follow the below steps to compact and repair the database.

• Make sure the affected database file is not opened.
• Next, open your Access application. On the Templates page, click Blank Database.
• Choose File and then click Close.
• Click Database Tools and then click Compact and Repair Database.

• The Database to Compact From dialog box is displayed.
• In the “Database to Compact from” dialog box, scroll down to select the desired database you need to repair.

• Click Compact.

The compacted and repaired database will be saved at the same location where the actual database file is stored.

If the Compact and Repair tool fails to repair the database, you can opt for a third-party Access database repair tool, such as Stellar Repair for Access. The tool is designed to repair corrupt or damaged .ACCDB and .MDB files. It recovers records, tables, indexes, modules, queries, macros, etc. from the database. The tool extracts the corrupted file’s data without compromising its quality. It can also repair password-protected forms and modules.

Wrapping it Up

Try the methods mentioned in this post to fix the Access database from opening blank issue. If the problem has occurred due to corruption in the database, then try Stellar Repair for Access. It can repair severely damaged Access database file in just a few simple steps. It recovers all the data from the corrupted database, including forms, macros, and more.