How To Install Access Menu Add-Ins in Windows Vista

Thanks to Jeanette Noble and Tim Getsch at Microsoft for this update.

Under Vista you have to run an application as administrator to have the rights to set an HKLM registry key.

Workarounds to Install Menu Add-Ins on Vista:

• Run msaccess.exe as administrator and then use the Add-In manager. This workaround should work for previous versions of Access as well.


• Manually set the registry keys for the add-in. Access 2007 now supports Menu Add-In registrations under HKLM or HKCU.


• For Access 2007 only the best solution is to change the capitalization of “Menu Add-Ins” in the USysRegInfo table of the MDA or ACCDA. This is just like previous versions only you have to have Menu Add-Ins capitalized exactly as shown or the Add-In Manager will try to set the registry keys under HLKM and fail on Vista.