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Query Designer Doesn't Allow Drag-and-Drop Tables or Joins (Fixed)

Writer: George HepworthGeorge Hepworth
Feb 142 min read

Updated: Feb 28



Description

There have been reports in online forums that dragging and dropping tables into the query designer is disabled, apparently following a Windows or Office update in February, 2025.


See User reports here:


The forbidden icon 🚫 appears when a table is dragged from the Add Table Pane or the Navigation Pane into the query designer. This prevents the table from being added via this method. Normally, the forbidden icon appears only when the cursor is on the field list in a table, or when it is over an area of the query designer where dropping is not appropriate, e.g. the designer grid.


It has also been reported that the same bug prevents dragging join lines between fields in tables in the designer.


The problem has been confirmed on

  • an external monitor attached to a laptop

  • a second monitor in a dual monitor environment.


Status

Microsoft released a fix for this bug in KB5052093 (OS Build 26100.3323) Preview, February 25, 2025.


Workarounds

  1. One of the posters who reported the problem provided a video showing that randomly dragging the cursor around in the query designer eventually finds a droppable area. Releasing the mouse button over that droppable area adds the table or completes the join.

  2. You could also try using a primary or laptop monitor if the problem appears on a secondary or external monitor.

  3. Use the SQL View to add tables or build joins.

  4. You could also try double-clicking on the tables in the Add Tables Pane.

  5. Use the Query Wizard to add tables to a new query.

  6. Change the external monitor from "Extended" to "Duplicate"



 
 
 

7 commenti

Jonathan Blau
Jonathan Blau
16 feb

I am on the next version of Access after the one referenced in the first link above, Version 2501 Build 18429.20158. I am running Windows 11 24H2, OS build 26100.3194. I cannot replicate this bug: building queries in the query editor works as it always has. I can drag tables into the query and join fields by dragging from field-to-field. I have the Monaco SQL Editor not enabled (box is unchecked in Options).


Maybe it's fixed in my version of Access. But this may be important: I am running Windows as a virtual machine under Parallels on a MacBook Pro with Apple Silicon (M3 Max chip), so my Windows is built for Arm64, not Intel x64. I have the latest…

Modificato
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Karl Donaubauer
Karl Donaubauer
18 feb
Risposta a

No wonder, Jonathan: Most of the people who have reported the problem confirmed to have it only on a secondary/external monitor. So far, George and people at Microsoft can't reproduce it on their external monitors. They seem to miss another requirement that we haven't figured out so far. So, it's not a general problem but has quite specific conditions.

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David Marten
14 feb

It's almost time to rename this website to Access WTF 😖🙄

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Karl Donaubauer
Karl Donaubauer
18 feb
Risposta a
 it renders Access almost useless, no?

Actually no. It seems to only occur on secondary/external monitors. Therefore the easy to do workaround is No 2 above and a No 6 that George probably will add soon.


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