The ability to quickly and easily import data into IBM i2 iBase is why it remains popular today. Our clients like that you can import from databases, flat files or Microsoft Excel.

A few of our clients have reported that they were no longer able to import from Microsoft Excel. This usually coincided with the installation of 64bit Office.

When trying to import from an Excel Spreadsheet the user is presented with the following error:

The answer for a lot of our clients has been to save the excel file as a csv. This can create problems with automation and adds time to a process that used to be straightforward.

iBase Release Notes

The release notes state:

“Microsoft Office 64-bit compatibility issues

If you are using Microsoft Office, Microsoft recommends that you use 32-bit Office on 64-bit machines for compatibility with other products. If you install 64-bit Microsoft Office, the following actions are prohibited:

• Import from Microsoft Excel workbooks or Microsoft Access databases
• Report to Microsoft Access databases

However, the following actions are possible:

• Export to Microsoft Excel workbooks
• Report to Microsoft Word documents

On a 64-bit machine without Microsoft Office installed, you can install the 32-bit Microsoft Access Database engine. Installing the 32-bit Microsoft Access Database engine can help you import from Microsoft Excel workbooks and import/report with Microsoft Access databases. You might find the functionality useful for importing on servers.

Note: You cannot install the 32-bit engine if 64-bit Microsoft Office is installed.”

Microsoft Access Database Engine 2010 Redistributable

Some of the drivers iBase uses when importing, including Microsoft Jet and even OLEDDB, are a little old now. Microsoft’s appetite to support these hasn’t been huge. However, the following driver is available for the following operating systems: Windows 10, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows Server 2003 R2 (32-Bit x86), Windows Server 2003 R2 x64 editions, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2008 Service Pack 2, Windows Server 2012 R2, Windows Vista Service Pack 1, Windows XP Service Pack 3.

https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/download/details.aspx?id=13255

Installation details are on the link and are pretty easy. Once installed we were able to import from Excel Spreadsheets again as normal.

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We’ve been part of the i2 journey since 2006, either as trainers, technical consultants or marketers. Through these roles, we’ve worked with several police forces both in the UK and abroad, charities, insurance firms, law firms, government agencies, and commercial clients.

If you’re an i2 user and require technical expertise, please feel free to contact us