Microsoft® Access® 2010 Inside Out

Defining a Primary Key

Every table in a relational database should have a primary key. Telling Access 2010 how to define the primary key is quite simple. Open the table in Design view and click the row selector to the left of the field you want to use as the primary key. If you need to select multiple fields for your primary key, hold down the Ctrl key and click the row selector of each additional field that you need.

Note

For details about designing primary keys for your tables, see Article 1, “Designing Your Database Application,” on the companion CD.

After you select all the fields you want for the primary key, click the Primary Key button in the Tools group of the Design contextual tab on the ribbon. Access 2010 displays a key symbol to the left ...