Convert MS Access to SQL Server

Convert MS Access to SQL Server

Practical Computer Applications (PCA)  has expert programmers to convert MS Access to SQL Server to create reliable business applications that preserve the business and operational intent of your Access database and expand it’s capabilities to meet your new demands.

It is quite common for companies to out grow MS Access and need to convert Access to SQL Server due to slow performance, error messages, instability, security issues, and data corruption.  These are all common symptoms that a database application is near or has exceeded the built-in limitations of MS Access.  This is when converting your MS Access to SQL Server makes sense.

The reason to convert to SQL Server is that MS Access has several important technical limitations that cannot be overcome with workarounds or special programming techniques. Use the following chart to determine when you can expect to run into the symptoms mentioned above:

Usually, it is not necessary to completely re-write the entire system (back-end database and front-end MS Access application) to migrate from Access to SQL Server. This is an unnecessary and more costly change that inexperienced developers often pursue.

Upsizing Wizard

The Upsizing Wizard used by less experienced developers will move data from MS Access to SQL Server.  However, in most cases, the resulting SQL Server database design needs a lot of work.  While it may be counter-intuitive, PCA often finds that designing a SQL Server database from scratch is the more efficient and costs the client less.  PCA can advise about which method will yield the best results and lowest costs.

Even when designing the SQL Server database from scratch, PCA can help you avoid complete rewrites by carefully analyzing and planning throughout the application development process itself.  This is a process with which PCA has lots of experience and does not take lightly. We feel that the process of understanding your business needs is an integral component of going with the right solution.

For some systems, the MS Access user interface is simply pointed to a new SQL Server database, which is dedicated to safe-guarding and distributing the business and database information as needed. In other cases, we may recommend a Smart Client interface.

Contact us today at (617) 527-4722 to determine the best solution for your business!