Sage 300 2017 (Accpac) Compatibility Guide

The following points apply to all configurations when upgrading to Sage 300 2017:

• Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials (Small Business Server) is supported but is not tested.
• Sage is committed to supporting future Microsoft operating systems as they are released to market for all Sage 300 applications. However, this does not include release candidates, beta, or pre-beta operating systems. As new operating systems are scheduled for final general release, Sage will evaluate their compatibility and update this document based on those evaluations.
• Sage 300 2017 does not support DCOM for Web Deployment.
• The Analysis module for Sage 300 Intelligence Reporting is not compatible with Microsoft Excel 2003.
• Sage 300 Web Deployment does not require Sage 300 Web Reporting by SAP Crystal Reports® (Crystal Report Application Server).

Citrix servers should be dedicated for applications, and database engines should be separate from the Citrix server. You need to optimize Citrix sessions for performance, and to ensure that printers are compatible with Citrix.

Sage 300 2017 is supported in VMware ESX and Microsoft Hyper-V virtual environments. However, please note that our support teams will address only application-related issues that can be replicated in a physical environment, and will not address performance issues in a VMware or Hyper-V virtual environment.

Also note the following points and recommendations related to virtual environments:

• Consult with an expert. Because implementing a virtual server environment is very complex, we recommend that you consult with a vendor-certified virtual server consultant.
  Important! Ask your consultant to commit to matching or mirroring the performance requirements listed in the “Hardware requirements” section below. A certified virtual server consultant should be able to provide you with a performance baseline report that includes expected maximum processing throughput per active instance, and expected performance trends as additional virtual instances come online. This document should also include the expected margin of error during peak business operating hours.
• Ensure sufficient resources and RAM. Each virtual environment should have sufficient resources for the operating system and installed applications. There is never enough memory to share among virtual devices running on a virtual server. We recommend that server RAM be configured to the maximum that the server hardware can support. Most server hardware that is certified by the virtual server vendor can support at least 32 GB of RAM.
• Deploy at least two virtual servers. If not properly implemented, a virtual environment can be a single point of failure. A single point of failure should be avoided at all costs. The virtual server community always recommends deploying at least two virtual servers, along with a failover strategy.
• Avoid overcommitting application pools. When running in a VMware environment, avoid overcommitting VM application pools. Allocating more resources than the hardware can support can cause performance problems.
• Check hardware compatibility. Virtual server vendors always support a list of compatible server hardware devices. Therefore, ensure that the virtual server your firm is considering is on the hardware compatibility list.
• Understand memory allocation. Each virtual server vendor implements vastly different memory allocation strategies, so you need to be familiar with their specific strategy. For example, VMware dynamically allocates memory to an active virtual image, allowing the administrator to set a maximum memory limit, but allocating that maximum memory only as needed.
• Plan for network bandwidth. Network bandwidth may become a bottleneck in virtual network environments. Be prepared to add more than four network interface cards to your virtual server. Ask your virtual server platform expert to investigate the ability of these network interface devices to “team up.” When network bandwidth becomes a bottleneck, network interface teaming may be the easiest solution, without resorting to the more complicated strategy of breaking up your network into smaller segments.
• Avoid running servers as a virtual instance. At the time of writing, VMware vSphere endorses running database servers as a virtual instance. Sage 300 has not been benchmarked to run the database server on a virtual instance in VMware, despite the vendor allowing this configuration.

Microsoft SQL Server 2012, 2014 or 2016 on Windows Server 2012 R2 are supported for use as the database server for Sage 300 2017. Note the following points:

• Microsoft SQL Server Enterprise, Standard, and Express* Editions are supported.
• For Microsoft SQL databases, we recommend using a binary collation method, such as SQL_Latin1_General_CP1_CI_AS.
• Sage 300 2016 and Sage 300 2017 support only Microsoft SQL Server for all databases.

* Microsoft SQL Server Express only addresses up to 1GB of RAM and a 10 GB DB size

Windows Server 2008 R2 or 2012 R2 is supported as the application server for Sage 300 2017 Classic.
Note the following points:

• Sage supports only the 64-bit version of any application server operating system.
• Printing in Web Deployment does not require Sage 300 Web Reporting by SAP Crystal Reports®.
• Terminal Server and Citrix XenApp are supported only for Sage 300 Classic (Visual Basic) programs, not for web screens (Sage 300c).

The 64-bit versions of Windows 7 (SP1), Windows 8.1, and Windows 10 are supported as the workstation operating system for Sage 300 2017.
Supported editions are as follows:

• Windows 10: Pro and Enterprise editions
• Windows 8.1: Pro and Enterprise editions
• Windows 7: Professional, Enterprise, and Ultimate editions

Additional notes:

• Microsoft Excel 2010, 2013, or 2016 (32-bit) is required on each workstation running Financial Reporter.
• Microsoft Outlook 2010, 2013, or 2016 (32-bit) is required on each workstation to use the email function.
• Microsoft Application Virtualization (App-V), which is another method to deploy Microsoft Office, is not supported.
• Sage 300 workstations require Internet Explorer 8.x, 9.x or 10.x to run Web Deployment. If you use Internet Explorer 11, you must use Emulation Mode to select a supported Internet Explorer version.

Server requirements

To support web screens, the Sage 300c server requires Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2 with IIS installed, including static content and ASP.Net.

Web screens require a Portal database, which can be the same database you use for the Sage 300 Portal. The Portal database must use a supported version of Microsoft SQL Server.

Web browser requirements

To view web screens, use Internet Explorer 11 or the latest versions of Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, Apple Safari, or Mozilla Firefox.

The Portal supports Internet Explorer 11 and the latest editions of Chrome, Safari and Firefox. Microsoft Edge is not supported.
Additional notes:

• Internet Information Services (IIS) is required for the Sage 300 Portal, web screens, and web deployment. Supported versions of IIS are applicable to supported versions of Windows operating systems.
• Opening Sage 300 Classic (Visual Basic) screens from the Portal is supported only on 32-bit versions of Internet Explorer.
• Sage CRM 7.3B and integration with Sage 300 2017 are supported on Internet Explorer for both single- and two-server configurations, and on the latest versions of Google Chrome, Apple Safari, and Mozilla Firefox for single-server configurations only.
• Opening Sage 300 screens in a separate window using Sage 300 web deployment is supported only using Internet Explorer.

Windows Server 2012 R2 is supported as the application server for Sage 300 2017.
Note the following points:

• Sage supports only the 64-bit version of any application server operating system.

* Financials Modules include System Manager, General Ledger, Accounts Receivable, and Accounts Payable. Operations Modules include Inventory Control, Order Entry, and Purchase Orders.
** For SQL Express, check CPU, RAM, and overall DB size limitations.

Below are minimum recommended workstation specs. The ideal workstation specs would be i5 or better CPU, 8 GB or more RAM, and 1 GB for workstation files.

• Additional applications require more resources. Recommendations are based on a standalone server with little to no additional network traffic. Running additional applications on the same server will require additional resources
• Add RAID to protect data. Adding RAID to your storage configurations is one of the most cost-effective ways to maintain both data protection and access.
  For the database and file servers, we recommend using RAID 10. For the application and web servers, we recommend using RAID 1.
• Plan for different user types. It is important to keep in mind what type of user will be working with the system. For example, 100 users working in Operations modules will use the system more intensively than 100 users working in Financial modules. The guidelines in this document are intended for users of Operations modules on a non-customized system, with little to no additional processing or network traffic
• Plan for backup and recovery. Each site must have adequate backup and recovery capabilities. We strongly recommend that you set up a “hot standby” system with a backup database. This standby system should have a similar configuration to the primary production system. The standby system can also be used for development and testing
• Plan for disk space requirements. The amount of required disk space varies widely, depending on the number of customer records, archiving plans, and backup policies. Required disk space can also vary depending on the amount of information held for each customer. Therefore, it is important to estimate disk space requirements prior to installation, and to purchase sufficient disk storage to allow for significant growth in the volume of data
• Protect against power outages and surges. We recommend that you use an uninterruptible power supply
• Understand the effect of product customizations. Note that product customizations can significantly affect the performance of Sage 300, and should be evaluated carefully when specifying hardware

The software versions listed here have been tested and are compatible with Sage 300 2017.