MS Access VBA SQL query debugging select case

Question

In MS Access 2013 VBA I get a syntax error in this SQL-string:

strSQL = "INSERT INTO [man_year] ( man_year_val, year_int, main_research_area, organisation, man_year_source ) SELECT KU.[2007], '2007' AS Expr1, " _
& "select case right(left(KU.man_year_source;6);2) like 'Hu' 3 case right(left(KU.man_year_source;6);2) like 'Sa' 1 case right(left(KU.man_year_source;6);2) like 'Te' 2 case right(left(KU.man_year_source;6);2) like 'Su' 4 case right(left(KU.man_year_source;6);2) like 'Ud' 5 AS Expr2, " _
& "4 AS Expr3, " _
& "select switch" _
& "(left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '1. '; 1;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '1.1'; 4;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '1.2'; 5;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '1.3'; 6;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '1.4'; 7;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '1.5'; 8;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '1.6'; 9;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '2. '; 2;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '2.1'; 47;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '2.2'; 48;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '2.3'; 49;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '2.4'; 50;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '2.5'; 51;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '2.6'; 52;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '3. '; 3;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '3.1'; 53;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '3.2'; 54;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '3.3'; 55;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '3.4'; 56;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '3.5'; 57;" _
& "left(KU.man_year_source;3) like '3.6'; 58) from KU;"

I get the error in the CASE-part, but that might be because it hasn't reached the SWITCH-part yet. :-) Can anyone please help, I cannot find the error.

Best pmelch

Answer 1

I see at least two issues with your SQL statement:

First, Access SQL does not support the CASE keyword. If you were thinking of the CASE ... WHEN construct in T-SQL (Microsoft SQL Server) then the equivalent in Access SQL is the Switch() function (ref: here ). You can think of the Switch() function as doing

Switch(when1, then1, when2, then2, ...)

Second, as far as I know Access SQL only supports period ( . ) as the decimal symbol and comma ( , ) as the list separator, even if the Regional Settings on your machine specify other values (eg, comma ( , ) as the decimal symbol and semi-colon ( ; ) as the list separator). In other words, I'm fairly certain that

left(KU.man_year_source;3)

will never work; you'll need to use

left(KU.man_year_source,3)

instead.