In this guide
- Ask your dealer to install SQL Server and fill SQL Server Name in Speed Plus
- On Select your company, press Backup My Data
- Click Restore Data and pick that backup file
- Choose Migrate This data to SQL Server Database and press Restore
- Open the new company and check a few bills and balances
Every Speed Plus company keeps its data in a database file. A small shop uses an MS Access file on its own PC. A bigger business, with many counters or several places, puts the data on Microsoft SQL Server. This chapter explains the difference without jargon, shows how to move a company from Access to SQL Server, and shows the ways to reach your books when you are not at the shop.
20.1Access or SQL Server, in plain words
A database is the file where your bills, parties, items and stock are stored. Speed Plus can keep it in two ways. MS Access is a single file in the company's folder (spd.bmw). Nothing extra needs to be installed, which is why it is marked Recommended on the Create Company screen. SQL Server is a database program from Microsoft that runs on a PC or server and serves many users at the same time. Speed Plus works the same on both; only the storage behind the screens changes.
| Question | MS Access | SQL Server |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | One shop, one or two PCs | Many counters billing at the same time, large data, branches on a server |
| Extra software | None | SQL Server installed and set up by your dealer |
| Size limit | An Access file cannot grow past 2 GB (Microsoft's limit); big files also get slow | Grows with your business |
| Automatic daily copy and Email Backup (Chapter 23) | Yes | Take Backup My Data yourself or ask your dealer for a server backup plan |
| Badge on Select your company | none | SQL Server (or Remote for a linked server) |
20.2Setting up SQL Server on a PC
Speed Plus does not install SQL Server for you. Your dealer installs Microsoft SQL Server (the free Express edition is common) on the main PC or server. Then Speed Plus is told where it is.
- On Select your company click Create a New Company.
- In the card Where to keep data, keep Main PC and click the Settings link next to SQL Server database.
- Tick Enable SQL Server. Fill SQL Server Name, choose Authentication (Windows Authentication or SQL Server Authentication), and for SQL Server Authentication fill UserName and Password.
- Press Save. You can now create a new company as SQL Server database, or move an old one (20.3).
20.3Moving your data to SQL Server
You move a company through backup and restore. The restore makes a new company on SQL Server and leaves the old Access company untouched, so you can check the new one before you switch.
- Make sure nobody is billing in the company.
- On Select your company, click the company and press Backup My Data. Choose a folder. The software says "Backup Done Successfully" with the file name (it ends in .sbk).
- Click Restore Data and pick that file. The Restore From Backup window says "Backup File Belongs to MS Access Database".
- Choose Migrate This data to SQL Server Database and press Restore. A progress bar runs while the SQL database is made.
- The software says "Your Company has been successfully Migrated to SQL Server". The company now appears in the list with the SQL Server badge.
- Open it, look at a few bills, the Trial Balance and some stock figures, and compare them with the old company.
- When you are happy, work only in the new company. Keep the old one untouched for a few weeks as a fallback.
20.4Checking and repairing a company file New in 2026
Two key presses on the company screens are meant for the dealer. Take a backup before you use either of them.
| Where and key | What it does | Fixed in 261030 |
|---|---|---|
| Select your company, company list, F5 | Asks "Are you sure to Open this company file with complete scanning". Yes checks and updates every table before the company opens. Use it after an old backup is restored or when a report looks wrong. It can take a long time on a big file. | A big Access company stopped with "System resource exceeded". The scan now finishes. |
| Import From Previous Version screen, company list, F5 (Access companies only) | Asks "Are you sure to trim this Database file for unused columns". Yes removes old, unused columns so the file is lighter. | A large file stopped with "File sharing lock count exceeded" and nothing was trimmed. It now completes, with no registry change. |
20.5Running on a cloud server (VPS)
A VPS (virtual private server) is a computer you rent in a data centre. It stays on all day and is reached over the internet. Speed Plus can be set up on a VPS so that the data lives there and several places connect to the same books in real time. Head office and shops then see the same live stock and accounts.
There are two ways a shop PC can use a company on a server:
- Work on the server itself. Speed Plus and the data are on the VPS. Each user logs in to the server from their own PC or browser (20.6). Your PC only shows the screen.
- Link Remote. Speed Plus runs on your PC and reads a company kept on a SQL Server elsewhere. In Create a New Company, card Where to keep data, choose Link Remote and fill Remote IP, Database, User Name and Password from your dealer. The company shows the Remote badge on Select your company.
20.6Working from anywhere in a web browser
When Speed Plus is hosted on a cloud server, your dealer gives you an address and a login. You can then work from home, from another city or from a laptop on the move.
- Open a browser such as Chrome, Edge or Firefox on a PC, laptop or tablet.
- Type the address your dealer gave for your cloud setup.
- Log in with your user name and password.
- Open your company and work as you do on the shop PC.
Web POS lets a branch bill in a browser without a server of your own, for shops that only need branch billing. The bills reach your main Speed Plus books (Chapter 27).
Farata Super sends the owner a notification for every bill made, edited or deleted, and opens the shop PC's reports on the phone (Chapter 31).
Questions and answers
Access or SQL Server: which should I use?
One shop with one or two PCs: MS Access. Many people billing at the same time, a large file or a server: SQL Server.
How do I know which one my company uses?
On Select your company, a SQL Server company shows the SQL Server badge and a linked one shows Remote. No badge means MS Access.
Will I lose data when I move to SQL Server?
No. The migration copies everything into a new company and leaves the Access company as it was. Check the new one before you switch.
How do I move to SQL Server?
Backup My Data, then Restore Data, choose Migrate This data to SQL Server Database and press Restore (20.3).
Restore says "SQL Server Must be enabled...". What now?
SQL Server is not set up in Speed Plus on this PC. Open Create a New Company → Settings next to SQL Server database, tick Enable SQL Server and fill the server details.
Do I have to install SQL Server myself?
No. Your dealer installs it and fills the settings once. After that you use Speed Plus as before.
After I restored an Access backup, my open SQL Server company showed "Incorrect syntax near '#'" boxes. Is that fixed?
Yes. Fixed in version 261030: restoring no longer breaks the company that is open, and the restored company is listed under its own name. Update with Help → Check for Updates.
A restored company appeared with another company's name. Why?
Older versions could register it under the name of the company that was open during the restore. Version 261030 reads the name from the backup itself. Rows already made with the wrong name stay; ask your dealer to tidy them.
F5 on Select your company says "System resource exceeded". What do I do?
This happened with very large Access companies. Fixed in version 261030; update with Help → Check for Updates and try again. The scan can still take a long time on a big file.
F5 trim showed "File sharing lock count exceeded. Increase MaxLocksPerFile registry entry". Should I change the registry?
No. Fixed in version 261030; the trim now completes without any registry change.
What does F11 do on the company list?
It opens the company's data folder in Windows, so you can see its files. Look, but do not move or rename anything there.
Can I go back from SQL Server to Access?
Keep the old Access company until you are sure. Moving a SQL Server company back to Access depends on the backup files; ask your dealer.
Can I work from home or another city?
Yes, when Speed Plus is hosted on a cloud server. Open the address your dealer gave in a browser and log in.
Do all users see the same data on the server?
Yes. Everyone works on one live copy, so a bill saved at one counter shows at the others at once.
What is Link Remote?
A way for Speed Plus on your PC to use a company kept on a SQL Server elsewhere. Your dealer gives the Remote IP, Database, User Name and Password.
Is my data safe on a cloud server?
A server keeps the books available, not safe from every mistake. Keep backups in other places too (Chapter 23).
My branch only needs billing. Do I need a server?
Not always. Web POS lets the branch bill in a browser and sends the bills to your books (Chapter 27).
Are the screens different on SQL Server?
No. Menus, bills and reports are the same. Only the storage behind them changes.