In days long gone, Sage 300 (or Accpac as it was) was built to support four database variants – Microsoft SQL, Pervasive SQL, Oracle, and IBM DB. Microsoft SQL is now the single database supported.
A large factor for any Sage 300 upgrade is the underlying infrastructure. Often, Sage upgrades require updated software platforms and Microsoft SQL Server is a key component. Related licencing costs are a major component of the upgrade.
Microsoft does offer a free version of SQL – Microsoft SQL Server Express aimed at test environments and developers, along with small production environments. It is a fully working SQL platform, however like most free software, lacks a few advanced features.
Sage 300 will run on a Microsoft SQL Express platform, however its important to understand both the benefits and the associated limitations of doing so.
Limitations include:
- A maximum database size of 10GB
- 1 GB of RAM per instance
- No SQL Server Agent services
- No Analysis, Integration or Notification services
While the features available at no cost are enough to install and run Sage 300, our team has found that the following limitations are often reason enough to justify purchase of the Standard edition license:
- The Management and Reporting Tools are limited
- Depending on size of data, 1 Processor and 1 GB memory may not be enough
- Databases are frequently much larger than the 10 GB permitted by SQL Express
- Does not support use of backup scripts, however there are solutions our team can implement
Contact us to discuss your requirements further. We are always happy to discuss your unique requirements and offer practical experience-based advice to help you with your decision.
