Features, Bugs, Changes – Sep 2025
- Karl Donaubauer
- Sep 30
- 3 min read
In this monthly overview article, we inform you about (mostly minor) bugs, changes and new features for Access in recent weeks.
1. Feature: RegExp in VBA
When the new RegEx functions in Excel were released a few months ago, I feared that this would be the whole replacement for the removal of RegExp via VBScript. I was wrong, as the integration of the RegExp classes into VBA in early September showed. It is a rare major update and success for VBA. Philipp Stiefel explains this in more detail in his AFo article.
2. Celebrations: 100 articles and 1 Year without heavy bugs
Philipp's article was the 100th on AccessForever.org. It's great that the anniversary article is about a new feature. There is so little coverage and yet proportionally so much complaining and whining about Access that we like to highlight such positive news.
The same goes for the fact that we haven't had any really heavy bugs in Access for over a year. By this we mean bugs that have a major impact and/or are very widespread. Instead, since last August, Access has only had a bunch of "normal" bugs, like any other Office application has plenty of. We are gradually coming to see this not just as luck/coincidence, but as a positive development in quality management for Access.
BTW Here's a reminder that Microsoft publishes a list of bug fixes for Access on its blog every few months, and we have an up-to-date annual summary article on AFo.
3. Features: Roadmap delays
Enough of the positive news. In the M365 Roadmap for Access, the new Zoom feature has been postponed again from September to October. However, there will at least be this one major new feature for Access this year.
The second new feature mentioned in the roadmap, large monitor support, is still listed with a release date of September. This does not seem to be realistic. We expect a longer delay and another update to the roadmap.
4. Bugs: A few monthly glitches
In September, as in August, problems with the Windows update KB5064081 were reported. There was also a second RegEx bug due to the switch to VBA. At AFo, we mainly report on heavy bugs (see above), but Colin took the trouble to list some of the smaller bug reports on his page.
5. Change: Support end for Access 2016+2019 in October
In early September, the Microsoft Access team warned in its blog about the upcoming end of support for Office 2016 and 2019 on Oct 14, 2025. According to my usage statistics, this affects a large proportion of Access developers. You can find more information about the support cycles for Access versions in our article:
6. Events: Two Access conferences in October
The last two Access conferences of this year will take place in October, and registration for these in-person events is currently still open:
The German Access Developer Conference AEK27 on October 18+19 already has 100 registrations and is expected to sell out soon. Karl, Peter and Philipp from the AFo team will be there to organize and present.
For the UKAUG's 30th Anniversary Conference (Part 2) – Fall 2025 on Oct 22, there are currently 17 spots still available. So hurry up if you need an excellent reason to visit London again. Colin Riddington from the AFo team will be there to teach "A Masterclass in Access Security".
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