Move Off Microsoft Access Without Losing the System Your Business Runs On
Many UK businesses still rely on an Access database that someone built years ago. We turn it into a secure, multi-user web system on SQL Server or Azure, keeping the data, rules and reports that matter.
When a Clever Database Becomes a Business Risk
Access is good for getting a process off the ground. The trouble starts when the whole business depends on a single file that only one person really understands.
The forms, queries and VBA hold years of business rules, but nobody is confident changing them. Small requests wait, or get worked around in spreadsheets.
Shared over a network drive or VPN, the file slows down, locks records or corrupts. Remote and hybrid teams feel it most.
Office versions, 32-bit and 64-bit differences, missing references and runtime installs make every upgrade a worry, and it cannot be used from a browser or phone.
Permissions are limited, audit history is thin and the data sits in a file that can be copied, emailed or lost. The 2GB file limit is also getting closer.
What We Build
We move your tables to SQL Server or Azure SQL, with the relationships, validation and history that a single Access file cannot reliably enforce. Records are backed up, permissions are set by role and changes can be audited.
The same structure can then support reporting, integrations and new features without another rebuild.
The logic hidden in forms, macros and VBA modules becomes documented, tested business rules. Screens are designed around the jobs people do each day and work in any modern browser, in the office or remotely.
Where a rule only existed to work around Access, we agree with you whether to keep it, simplify it or retire it.
Access reports and exported queries become live dashboards and scheduled reports built on the same data the team works from. Leaders stop waiting for someone to run the right query on the right PC.
Keep the Business Running While the New System Takes Over
You do not need a big-bang switch. We can stabilise the current database first, then replace it area by area while people carry on working.
We inventory tables, relationships, queries, forms, reports, macros and VBA, and talk to the people who use them. This separates real business rules from historic workarounds.
If needed, we first move the data to SQL Server so Access keeps working with fewer corruption and locking problems. The new web system is then built and released in useful stages.
We clean and map the data, rehearse the migration and reconcile counts and totals against the original. Access can stay read-only for an agreed period after go-live.
Straight Answers Before You Move Off Access
Replacing Access is usually less disruptive than people expect, as long as the existing rules are understood first.
Access is still included in many Microsoft 365 business plans, so it is not going away overnight. The risk is less about Microsoft and more about your database depending on one file, one developer and particular PC setups. Check Microsoft's current roadmap before planning around a date.
Yes. We migrate every table you need, agree how duplicates and inconsistent values are handled, and reconcile record counts and key totals so you have evidence the data arrived intact.
Usually. A common first step is moving the data into SQL Server and linking Access to it, which reduces corruption and locking. The new system then replaces Access screens in stages.
We read through them and document what each one does. Useful logic is rebuilt as tested code in the new system; workarounds that only existed because of Access limitations can be dropped.
Sometimes that is the right answer, particularly if your process is standard. If the database encodes pricing, scheduling, compliance or operational rules that products do not handle well, a custom replacement is often cheaper to live with. We compare both during discovery.
It depends on the number of tables, forms and integrations, and on data quality. After a short discovery we give a phased plan with clear stages rather than one large estimate.
From Access Discovery to Long-Term Support
Our analysts, developers and testers work from offices in Hull, Sheffield and London. We document, rebuild, migrate and then stay on to support and improve the system.
Access database replacement means moving a business process that runs on a Microsoft Access file to a modern system: usually a web application backed by SQL Server or Azure SQL. The work covers documenting the existing tables, queries, forms, reports and VBA, deciding which rules to keep, rebuilding them in maintainable code, migrating the data and supporting the team through the switch.
The goal is not to copy every Access screen. It is to keep the knowledge built into the database while removing the limits of a single desktop file.
Access databases often start as a quick, sensible fix and grow into the system the business runs on. Common reasons to move are:
Moving the tables to SQL Server and linking Access to them can be a useful first step. It improves reliability and backups and buys time. It does not solve the dependency on Access forms, VBA and particular PCs, so it works best as a stage in a planned replacement rather than the end point.
A full rebuild as a web application removes those dependencies and opens up integrations, portals and reporting. We will tell you which route makes sense for your database, and in what order.
Access data often contains duplicate records, free-text values that should be lists and fields whose meaning depends on one person's knowledge. We profile these before migrating, agree what should be cleaned or archived, and run test migrations on real data.
Before go-live we reconcile record counts, important totals and relationships against the original, so you have evidence that nothing has been lost.
Vivato has built and supported custom business systems on Microsoft technologies since 2014, including CRM replacement and migration, spreadsheet replacement and integrations. Our in-house team works from offices in Hull, Sheffield and London.
If your business depends on an Access database that is starting to feel fragile, talk to us about a practical way forward.
Give us a call, email or complete the form. We'll get in touch for an initial chat to discuss your project in more depth.