Microsoft Access The Basics – The Primary Key

The Primary Key 

The primary key is a way of uniquely identifying a record.  When that record is going to be referred to in another table then there must be a way of making sure that it can only be one particular one. 

To make sure that the data in that field is not duplicated in other records then the field can be made into a primary key.  A table can only have one primary key; the key can be made up of several fields.  Where multiple fields are used, the individual fields can be duplicated but the combination must be unique. 

To set the primary key:

1. Select field(s) to be primary key.

2. Click on the Primary Key button on the Ribbon or right click on the field name and select Primary Key from the shortcut menu.