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Editorial Team
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Asked: 2026-05-30T04:32:00+00:00

I’m currently writing a program which will need to incorporate writing its output to

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I’m currently writing a program which will need to incorporate writing its output to a database rather than flat text files.

I know that if you use a Database system like SQL Compact, when you build and publish the program (or just build and distribute), your client will have to download and install SQL Compact Server.

My question is:

  • When using the built in Microsoft Office exports (like writing a Word File, or Writing an excel file), does the client need to have Microsoft Office installed on their machine to make use of these?

  • When writing to an Access Database, does the client user need to have Microsoft Access installed on their computer?

I’d appreciate any response.

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  1. Editorial Team

    Yes to Excel. You could create the Access database via ADO or ODBC, and that comes with Windows itself. You could store data from your app there, and the clients would use it through your app (or any other that can connect via ADO/ODBC).

    Using the MS Office COM automation requires that the MS Office product be installed on the machine running the automation.

    There are third-party code libraries that replace that functionality with their own code, meaning your app could create it’s own Excel-compatible files. However, your users would still need Excel to use them.

    You can also use other databases (eg., MySQL, Firebird, SQLite, and others) that are available that wouldn’t necessarily cost your client anything if they installed it (or, for some, if you included it in your installation for them).

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