TextBox.ControlSource Property (Access)
You can use the ControlSource property to specify what data appears in a control. You can display and edit data bound to a field in a table, query, or SQL statement. You can also display the result of an expression. Read/write String.
Syntax
expression .ControlSource
expression A variable that represents a TextBox object.
Remarks
The ControlSource property uses the following settings.
Setting |
Description |
|---|---|
A field name |
The control is bound to a field in a table, query, or SQL statement. Data from the field is displayed in the control. Changes to the data inside the control change the corresponding data in the field. (To make the control read-only, set the Locked property to Yes.) If you click a control bound to a field that has a Hyperlink data type, you jump to the destination specified in the hyperlink address. |
An expression |
The control displays data generated by an expression. This data can be changed by the user but isn't saved in the database. |
You can also set the ControlSource property for a text box by typing a field name or expression directly in the text box in form Design view or report Design view.
For reports, the ControlSource property applies only to report group levels.
Forms and reports act as "windows" into your database. You specify the primary source of data for a form or report by setting its RecordSource property to a table, query, or SQL statement. You can then set the ControlSource property to a field in the source of data or to an expression. If the ControlSource property setting is an expression, the value displayed is read-only and not saved in the database. For example, you can use the following settings.
Sample setting |
Description |
|---|---|
LastName |
For a control, data from the LastName field is displayed in the control. For a report group level, Microsoft Access groups the data on last name. |
=Date( ) + 7 |
For a control, this expression displays a date seven days from today in the control. |
=DatePart("q",ShippedDate) |
For a control, this expression displays the quarter of the shipped date. For a report group level, Microsoft Access groups the data on the quarter of the shipped date. |
Example
The following example sets the ControlSource property for a text box named AddressPart to a field named City:
Forms!Customers!AddressPart.ControlSource = "City"
The next example sets the ControlSource property for a text box named Expected to the expression =Date() + 7
Me!Expected.ControlSource = "=Date() + 7"