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# Top 10 Reasons to Use Version Control With Access
- URL: https://nolongerset.com/top-10-reasons-to-use-version-control-with-access/
- Published: 2020-09-08T13:37:50.000Z
- Updated: 2026-05-08T13:08:51.000Z
- Description: Using version control is the most impactful change you can make to improve the quality of your Microsoft Access applications. Here is a quick list of just some of the benefits you gain using version control.
- Author: Mike Wolfe
- Tags: Version Control, #Import 2026-05-20 02:59

Using version control is the most impactful change you can make to improve the quality of your Microsoft Access applications. 

Here is a quick list of just some of the benefits you gain using version control:

1. A detailed history of what changes were made to your application.
2. A detailed history of when those changes were made.
3. A detailed history of **why** those changes were made.
4. A detailed history of who made those changes.
5. An easy way to search through your entire code base (including form/report/control properties).
6. An easy way to search through the code bases of multiple Access applications at one time (e.g., using the "Find in files" feature of Notepad++).
7. A way to merge changes when multiple developers make changes to the same application.
8. A quick way to see the contents of a code base at a particular point in time.
9. An authoritative answer for clients when they ask, "What did you change? This doesn't work now." (Hint: the answer is often, "Nothing.")
10. It acts as a backup of your work, especially if you automatically push changes to your repository to an offsite location.

I'll leave you with one final note. It's critical that you use text-based versions of your form and report objects when saving them for version control (using the `SaveAsText` method). This gives you access to the values saved in the form, report, section, and control properties.

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