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Product Comparisons: EQL OnWeb vs Sharepoint

This article examines using EQL OnWeb and Sharepoint to host Microsoft Access databases on the web.

Microsoft Access is a database intended for small projects with few users.
When the database grows large and more users need to work with it, it becomes difficult to manage and you see yourself needing to migrate to another software (i.e. Sharepoint).

This is no longer the case as EQL OnWeb will extend your Access Database capabilities to meet the needs of a larger business without migration. Awesome right? Let's show you how it works.

Example Use Case

Currently I'm leading the IT department at company A and to keep track of all the data and information within our department, (i.e. IT Requests) we maintain an Access database.

Recently my team has expanded significantly and as more people start using this database it's becoming a challenge for us to manage it. Since Access currently has no effective method of synchronizing multiple copies of a database we need to manually merge all data from the different copies. This is significant overhead to our team and it's becoming a major problem.

How do we solve this problem? Let's look at the two options below: EQL OnWeb and Sharepoint.

EQL OnWeb: Extend your database without migration

Extending your Access database to the internet is quite simple with the EQL plugin. By the end of these three steps you will be able to synchronize multiple copies of a database over the internet.

In order for this to work you need to install the EQL plugin.

Step 1: Activate the EQL plugin

Once you've installed the EQL plugin you need to open the database you'd like synchronized. With the database open go to Tools | Add-Ins in the menu bar and click on EQL Data - Activate to activate the plugin. This will close the database in order to activate the plugin.

Step 2: Synchronize Database with OnWeb Server

Now we're ready to put the database on the internet! Open up the database again (after it was closed in the previous step). Notice there is an additional toolbar (EQL Toolbar) with two new buttons. Click on EQL Synchronize to synchronize the database with the OnWeb Server. You'll notice a small loading bar at the bottom left of the window.

Step 3: View your database on the Internet

That's it! Your database is on the internet and ready to be synchronized with multiple copies. To view the data via web browser click on the on the Webview button in the EQL Toolbar.

Now I'm able to easily stay in sync with all the various copies of Microsoft Access throughout the IT Department while still using Microsoft Access on my local machine. This also allows multiple users to edit the database at the same time, removing the need to manage the several copies manually!

Also, with OnWeb I'm able to serve my Access forms within a web browser. So when someone needs to make an IT Request they simply find my form online and fill it out. Which synchronizes with my local database allowing me to see all of the up to date IT Requests. For information on how to do this see the survey tutorial.

For more information on download EQL OnWeb see our product page.

Sharepoint: Migrate your database.

Please note that these steps do not include the setup of a Sharepoint server. Those details are beyond the scope of this article. Be sure to carefully follow the steps described on Sharepoint's software page to install it.

Step 1: Ensure you're using Microsoft Access 2007 Database

In order to migrate your database to Sharepoint you must be using an Access 2007 database. If you're using a previous version of Access you'll need to first migrate your database to 2007 format. This process is beyond of the scope of this tutorial. Of course, EQL OnWeb supports all versions of Access and you will not need to do this.

Step 2: Use Move to Sharepoint Wizard

There is an extensive wizard that you must carefully follow to migrate your Access database. With your database open in Microsoft Access 2007 go to the External Tab and in the Sharepoint Lists group click Move to Sharepoint.

This will open a wizard that will guide you in migrating your Access database. At anytime during this wizard you may click Stop to cancel the process.

Step 3: Review Migration Details

On the last page of the wizard, select Show Details to see details about the migration. Here you can find information about the lists that have been created in Sharepoint. It also provides information about any issues encountered during migration.

Click Finish to complete the migration and you're done.

Side-by-Side Comparison

Workflow Features

	MS Access	Sharepoint	MS Access with EQL OnWeb
Database Tables
Database Forms
Online Synchronization
Display Access Forms Online
Setup Time	N/A	60 - 90 minutes. (not including server setup)	5 minutes. (including install time)

Find more information about EQL OnWeb here.