The story begins with a phoned-in user service request: "Please transfer a database file from an old machine to a new workstation." No problem. "We will connect remotely to your old machine. Click OK when you see our permission access window." The user did not see the prompt. "Try again." The user still did not see the prompt.

That's when we realized the user was really remote. We have a contract with a local prison to supply clinical care including routine computer support. The prison had its own very private network. No outside access. Our sophisticated remote administration tools suddenly became ineffective.

A site visit followed. Then paperwork. Travel vouchers. We did not know what to expect, so we contacted the prison's lone tech-support person. And I got a shock.

The user machine was a very old Dell box running Windows 98. The hardware was encrusted with a decade of dust and grime. The operating system was the original version and had never been updated with service packs or security patches. The data file was created using Microsoft Access 97, long since outmoded. (Seasoned database administrators know that Access 97 databases must be converted before they are fully functional in a contemporary Access environment. The conversion is irrevocable.)

And then came another challenge: Neither the computer nor the database had ever been backed up, and the production database had never been documented. The developer took the specs with him when he left. To make matters worse, he had "protected" the user by judiciously applying the Hide feature so the inner workings were not visible.