How can referential integrity be enforced in Access?

Referential integrity is a fundamental concept in relational database management that ensures that relationships between tables remain consistent. In Microsoft Access, this is primarily enforced by establishing relationships between tables. When you set relationships, you define how the tables are linked through common fields, typically primary and foreign keys.

By setting these relationships, Access can control the data input and ensure that any foreign key in a child table matches a primary key in the parent table, thereby preventing orphaned records or invalid references. This means that if you try to delete a record that is referenced in another table, Access will prevent you from doing so unless you first address the dependencies. This helps maintain the integrity of the data, ensuring that all references are valid.

Generating reports, using complex passwords, and exporting data do not contribute to maintaining referential integrity. Reports organize and present data but do not enforce rules about the validity of the data relationships. Passwords can secure the database but do not relate to how data integrity is enforced. Exporting data involves transferring data to different formats and also does not play a role in ensuring that relationships between data are maintained within the database. Thus, setting relationships is the appropriate method for enforcing referential integrity in Access.