Need The Microsoft Access Database Experts?

Losing Access to Your MS Access Database Developer? How our access database experts can help your mission-critical database

Is your database developer retiring? Or have they already left, leaving you in a quandary with your database? Need database experts to help?

For us, new clients don’t always mean new databases.

As Microsoft Access and SQL database experts, much of the time our new clients often ask us to step in and troubleshoot an existing database which no-one in their business knows what to do with. The original developer may have left either years ago or yesterday, but no-one now has the skills to deal with the issue. Our expertise means we can tackle all sorts of data problems, from lost login details and unknown errors to scaling up from Excel to SQL and everything in between.

Here are a few of the things we get asked.

1) I’ve lost my original Microsoft Access developer. They’ve moved on/retired/gone AWOL. Can you help?

This is a common problem. In the nearly 30 years Microsoft Access has been around developers have inevitably come and gone. Perhaps your original Access database developer has moved on and even been replaced a few times. Inevitably systems become a bit of an assortment to which each new developer has added to but now no-one knows exactly what is there. We can initially stabilise these systems before developing and providing ongoing support with a robust and user-friendly system in place.

If your current experienced Microsoft Access developer is looking to retire, why not be proactive? Working with us means we can either manage the transition with a gradual handover or step in seamlessly.

2) Our Excel system has become unmanageable. We want to combine several Excel sheets into a single, user-friendly format and for multiple users to be able to access the reports, data, invoices etc that they need. Can you help us build a database and migrate the information?

This is one of the most common issues people come to us for. So many businesses start off by using Excel for simplicity. But as business and demands grow Excel simply can’t keep up. It becomes difficult to extract the data you need and nor can Excel support multiple users. A common upgrade project for us is to take data from Excel and upgrade it to a more robust platform such as Microsoft Access or SQL. Microsoft Access can run up to around 25 concurrent users, while SQL supports thousands of users. This is what databases were designed for: to manage relationships between different types of data – customers, orders, invoices, quotes, purchases etc – which can then be easily accessed, modified, updated, controlled and organised.

3) We don’t have the login details and can’t get into the backend of our database. Can you help?

In most cases, yes. This is a more common problem than you’d think. When a database developer leaves a company, they often lock the system down. They usually leave access details but these could have been lost or perhaps the passwords have deliberately not been left if the developer’s departure was less than harmonious. We have various tools we can use to recover missing passwords and gain access.

Failing that, all is not lost. Even if the designs and coding of a database are irretrievable, then we can rebuild the database specifically for your business demands. If your current database is usable, we can use the data!

4) We have an error on our Access database that we don’t understand. Can you troubleshoot?

Yes. We can troubleshoot online, sometimes identifying the issue(s) immediately. Alternatively, if the database is a large and complex one that we haven’t developed ourselves, we can take a copy of it and work on resolving the issues remotely.

5) We already have a database but are interested in forming an ongoing partnership with a firm that has Microsoft Access/SQL database expertise. Is this you?

Yes, we have that expertise and here at The Access Man we like to build long-term relationships with our clients. We find that working collaboratively means we understand our clients’ businesses better – creating a better, more agile product that fulfils business needs more optimally as a result. It also means our work can become proactive rather than reactive, anticipating what your business will need in the future as it grows and developing the database according to those requirements as we go along.

6) We have an existing database but would like a mobile application for home/remote workers to be able to access our database. Can you help?

Yes. We have experience in developing mobile and tablet applications. There are a number of different options available including bespoke options and hybrid apps, which allow mobile access without the need to redevelop an existing database. We explore different options depending on requirements and, as always, prefer to work collaboratively with our clients to find the very best solution for them.

Do you have any of the data issues above or need expert help to improve your existing data or database? As our expertise lies not just in developing new databases but in all aspects of data and Microsoft Access and SQL we’re confident we can help you with any of your data issues.

If you want to speak to one of our experts directly for some friendly, no-obligation advice, why not book in for a free consultation?