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Troubleshooting Problems Connecting to or Using SQL Server Databases - OST QB DPC

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Notes

On Center Software, Inc. provides this information as a resource for our customers but the processes detailed in this article require some advanced computer/networking skills for which On Center Software, Inc. does not provide technical assistance including SQL Server setup, administration, maintenance, configuration, or troubleshooting.

When implementing Microsoft SQL Server for use with On-Screen Takeoff^® and Quick Bid^®, On Center Software recommends consulting with a qualified IT professional to assist with determining requirements for installing and configuring SQL Server and optimizing the installation for your particular environment/needs. Share this article with whoever will be setting up and maintaining your SQL Server/Databases.

If your company uses Digital Production Control, we recommend that the Project Manager copy the OST and Quick Bid projects to a set of local Access databases, reconnect the Bids locally, then flip to DPC-Mode. We recommend against using DPC within a SQL database. See DPC - 03.01 The Basics of Using DPC (User Scenarios, User Roles (DPC Foreman versus Project Manager) for more information.

For specific information regarding System Requirements, installation guidelines, technical support, and any other concerns about SQL Server, please contact Microsoft directly. Remember that minimum System Requirements are just that - the bare necessities and will likely not provide acceptable performance. On Center Software products perform many read-writes per second and one of the best ways to ensure acceptable performance is to significantly exceed System Requirements for the server on which you will be installing SQL Server.

Troubleshooting

Enabling Connections

The number one reason end users cannot connect to a network installation of SQL Server is that the Network Protocols for "TCP/IP" and "Named Pipes" have not been enabled after installing SQL Server.

On the server where SQL Server is installed, launch the SQL Server Configuration Manager

Under "SQL Server Network Configuration", open "Protocols for <the appropriate server>"

Right-click on "Named Pipes" and select "Enable"
Right-click on "TCP/IP" and select "Enable"

Users must also be "mapped" to databases to which they are to have access, see the above section on Users/Logins for more information.

Start the SQL Browser Service

If you are using SQL Express, you will have to start the "SQL Browser" Service. This can be done from the Windows Services applet...

Windows Services

Firewall Settings

Before your users will be able to communicate with the SQL, you will likely have to configure the firewall on your SQL server to allow incoming connection. There are too many firewall providers for On Center to provide technical support for them, but there are two things you can check:

Make sure the SQL Server software (sqlserver.exe and sqlbrowser.exe) processes are excepted in your firewall (for incoming and outgoing connections).
Make sure you allow incoming and outgoing communication over any ports that those two processes use (excepting them should do this for you...).
Newer versions of Microsoft Server (operating system) come configured to block/drop incoming "ICMP" requests that are necessary for our software to connect to a SQL Server. See the following Microsoft technical article for details: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/security/threat-protection/windows-firewall/create-an-inbound-icmp-rule.

Contact your firewall provider for information on performing these steps. For details about any other firewall configuration required to deploy SQL Server, contact Microsoft.