Clarity Connect is a middleware platform that facilitates the integration of SQL Server to Sage 50 , including the automation of business processes and the sharing of data. Why would you do this? Every company, as well as every need to integrate is different. The most common is to marry the front-office web property with a back-office application, such as an online storefront connected to and ERP to pass orders automatically when the order is placed online.
There are many considerations when designing the connection between SQL Server and Sage 50 . There can be security and performance criteria, as well as the physical access available to the applications. The two common connection types of applications that are typically connected are SaaS and On Premises.
Read More
Connecting with Clarity Connect:
SQL Server
-
Sage 50
Clarity Connect is a middleware platform that facilitates the integration of SQL Server to Sage 50 , including the automation of business processes and the sharing of data. Why would you do this? Every company, as well as every need to integrate is different. The most common is to marry the front-office web property with a back-office application, such as an online storefront connected to and ERP to pass orders automatically when the order is placed online.
There are many considerations when designing the connection between SQL Server and Sage 50 . There can be security and performance criteria, as well as the physical access available to the applications. The two common connection types of applications that are typically connected are SaaS and On Premises.
Be Nimble, Be Quick
SaaS or In-the-Cloud Applications
SaaS-based integrations are very common. These are exclusively online and used to integrate applications like Salesforce, Office365, USPS, UPS, 3PL, Avalara (Clarity is a certified Sage, Microsoft and Avalara partner) and any other application that is served up in the cloud.
In any of these scenarios, the eCommerce storefront is hosted on a cloud-based server (usually at a provider like Amazon, Azure, Rack Space, Liquid Web, Managed.com, etc.), and Clarity Connect is installed on the same server, with the connector or adapter communicating to the other online application across a secured Internet connection.
Working from Within
On-Premises Applications
Another common implementation is when a client has their ERP or CRM installed on premises, behind their corporate firewall. In this scenario, Clarity Connect is then installed on a server on premises, along with the connector at the client’s facility and configured to communicate securely within their network to the back-office application(s).
Then an IP exception, with specific port and public / private key combo is used so that Connect can securely communicate with the other application’s connector / adapter in the cloud, improving security and ensuring that the client’s ERP / CRM are not exposed outside of their network.
Innovative & Robust
How Middleware Integration Works for B2B Platforms
Integrated SQL Server & Sage 50 applications can foster greater customer loyalty with business process automation that delivers consistently outstanding customer service. Order processing speeds up, customers can access a range of information about their accounts such as order history and shipping options, so that it’s easy to place complex orders. Examples of how integrating ERP software works in practical terms include the following automated processes:
- Customers and prospects visit an eCommerce website.
- A record of the visit is generated and converted into a format that works in SQL Server & Sage 50 software (Contact record -> Activity log).
- If a sale is made, a Customer Record and Sales Order are automatically generated.
- Visitor behavior is tracked and recorded to build user profiles for custom displays, marketing messages, recommendations and content curation.
- Sales Orders and Quotes are sent to the appropriate staff for review, fulfillment and shipping.
- Shipping details are converted into readable formats and forwarded to the eCommerce store.
- Inventory figures update in real-time.
A Better Experience
Customer Service Takes its Place at the Top of the Queue with ERP Integration
The usefulness of both CRM and ERP software depends on how efficiently business process automation works, and that depends on how fully the software is integrated into operations. If customers must contact sales or customer service staff frequently to troubleshoot problems with orders, get answers to simple questions or manage other issues with their accounts, the hidden and labor costs can be tremendous.
Companies routinely lose orders, fail to upsell accounts and frustrate customers when self-service eCommerce applications don’t work seamlessly with back-office data, pricing and automation. The costs of staff intervention also raise human capital costs and prevent staff from pursuing revenue-generating tasks.
- Generating customized email, marketing promotions and newsletter marketing.
- Generating customized reports and 360-degree views of each customer’s profile and real-time actions.
- Automating line of business applications to foster seamless connections with multiple databases and internal management systems.
- Delivering customer-centric tools for order fulfillment, support requests and ticketing applications.
- Triggering custom quotes, accelerated workflows and faster management decisions.
- Triggering custom quotes, accelerated workflows and faster management decisions.
It's All About Endpoints
Business Logic & Endpoint Types
Business logic are workflows that are the real meat and potatoes of the integration. It's where all the business processing happens and is made up of events, triggers, rules, and more. It's what allows all of the real-time or batched communication and automation of the front-end website with data and logic from the back-office applications. This is what extracts and exposes all of the value of your website / marketplace project.
The workflows can be very simple, such as checking a product's in-stock inventory count, to something much more complex. The basic endpoint categories are:
Contacts
Individual users, typically customers or individuals of partners
Accounts
Customer accounts, partners, resellers, etc.
Products
Products or services that your company provides or sells
Inventory
Stock quantities of products or services
Pricing Tables
Pricing set on your products or services
Sales Orders
Orders placed on the web that are pushed to the back office for processing
There can be literally hundreds of endpoints an API can expose to a connector (Clarity's eCommerce API exposes over 10,000) and the list can be very different from the two sides you're integrating. This is important because you may want to push or pull information from an application that can't be easily accessed or loaded to an application that doesn't support that type of data (Accounts and Contacts may both be in your CRM and ERP, but products and inventory may only exist within the ERP).
Possible Complex Workflow Samples
Login Authentication Workflow
When a user logs into your store, Connect can go to the integrated CRM, look up the user, see what account they belong to. Is the account status on hold? Does the user have permissions to purchase on account? What pricing table does the account get assigned? Which products should be made visible to the user, etc.?
Viewing a Product Workflow
When a user clicks on a product category, go to ERP in real-time and check to validate their (the account's) pricing, inventory story quantity and whether the product can be back ordered.
Displaying Multiple Stock Quantities
If you stock products in multiple warehouses, how do you let users know how many are at each location? Connect can pull that information from your ERP(s), and display that on the website, allowing users to order from the closest location that has the number they need in stock.
Workflows and Benefits Supported by SQL Server
SQL Server uses REST for its Connector-Adapter (API). This allows for the integration of data in the Product and Orders categories. Here's a brief list of some possible workflows:
Login & Tiered Pricing
Automated login can validate users & account-based tiered pricing with Sage 50
Lead Capture & Generation
Capture leads to support your marketing activities
Automate Sales Orders
Automate push Sales Orders for processing into Sage 50
Workflows and Benefits Supported by Sage 50
Sage 50 uses EDI File Exchange for its Connector-Adapter (API). This allows for the integration of data in the Pricing and Fulfillment categories. Here's a brief list of some possible workflows:
Products & Services
Automatically pull products and services from Sage 50 into the SQL Server storefront
Inventory & Stock Quantites
Display accurate stock and inventory counts on your SQL Server store by pulling real stock quantities
Invoicing & Payments
Pulling invoices from Sage 50 into SQL Server allows customers to save, print and pay their invoices online
Integration Cost & Timing
Since the endpoints expose what is accessible to each connector, those applications with robust, well-defined APIs allow you to integrate more quickly and at a much lower cost. Simple integrations (i.e. forwarding orders to the back-office, pulling stock and quantities to the front-office) can start around $15k (including the platform's one-time license fee), especially for those that we've already developed robust connectors for. The complex integrations or those with many workflows and dozens of endpoint calls, may run as much as $30k all the way up to $100k for multiple applications.
It all depends on the number of applications being integrated, the ability to easily integrate with the applications, and the numbers and complexity of the business workflows being built. Using Clarity Connect, typical integrations can take from a few weeks to a few months. Over more than a decade, Clarity has done over 3,000 integrations and although 40% of the integrations that come our way are new, we haven't met an integration that we haven't been able to develop. Give us a call today to discuss your integration project.
FAQs
Can you use SQL with Sage? ›
Using an SQL database for Sage can help your business get more out of your accounts data, especially if you have large amounts of records and transactions. Users can find useful bits of information and present this in a more compelling and meaningful way.
What database does Sage 50 Accounts use? ›Your Sage 50 Accounting data is stored in a MySQL database. Each database consists of an SAI file that contains profile information about your company data, and a folder with an SAJ extension that contains your actual company data as well as user security information.
Is Sage 50 being phased out? ›Sage have announced that they will be making some essential security updates to Sage 50cloud Accounts on 30 September 2022 which means anyone running version 26.2 or below will not be able to use their software beyond this date.
Does Sage 50 need SQL? ›Because Sage 50 does not use SQL, over time the speed and performance of the database might decline as the number of transactions in the database increases. This can also create challenges for your business if you want to run advanced queries, consolidate information or run detailed reports on your accounts data.
What database is used by Sage? ›Sage includes the ZOPE object oriented database ZODB, which “is a Python object persistence system. It provides transparent object-oriented persistency.” Sage also includes the powerful relational database SQLite, along with a Python interface to SQLite.
Where is Sage 50 database stored? ›Open Sage 50 Accounts and the relevant company. On the menu bar, click Help then click About. In the Program Details area, the location of where the data is held is shown under Data Directory.
Is Sage 50 only cloud based? ›Sage 50cloud Is Not An Online Application
The most important thing to know when choosing is that Sage 50cloud (also known as Sage 50c) is primarily a desktop application NOT a cloud-based program. It is the same desktop program as the traditional Sage 50.
To import data into Sage 50, you need to do the following: From the File menu, choose Select Import/Export. Sage 50 displays the Select Import/Export window. Select the program area and then the template to use.
What is Sage Line 50 called now? ›Sage 50 is now called Sage 50cloud Accounts and is the UK's bestselling accounts software for small to medium sized businesses. Sage 50 is a far superior accounting solution to Sage One and is highly configurable, scalable and flexible.
What did Sage 50 used to be called? ›The US version of the product was previously called Peachtree Accounting. A conversion to the Peachtree/Sage 50 data format was made available when Simply Accounting was taken off the market.
What is the difference between Sage 50 and Sage 50c? ›
The Key Differences Between Sage 50 and Sage 50c
As mentioned, Sage 50 is a stand-alone desktop solution. While data can be shared with other users in the office, the Sage 50 database cannot be accessed remotely. However, Sage 50c incorporates hybrid cloud technology to drive anytime / anywhere remote access.
ODBC (Open Database Connectivity) and OLEDB (Object Linking and Embedding, Database) offer you a way to connect to your Sage 50 company data without using Sage 50 directly.
Can Sage 50 be accessed remotely? ›Sage 50 Hosting
It offers flexibility and mobility benefits to its users. Some of the prominent features of Sage 50 hosting include: Remote access at any time from any internet-connected device, such as a laptop, desktop, tablet, or smartphone.
- On the client computer, open the software.
- In the Add a Company window click Connect - Open a company from a network location.
- Under Company data location click Change or Browse and find the path of your data, for example \\servername\shared folder name\Company.
Sage 50 is a set of accountancy and payroll products aimed at small and medium-sized businesses. Via Codat's Sage 50 API integration you can pull and push an array of useful business data including Invoices, Payments, and Accounts.
Do I need a server for Sage? ›Sage 50 Cloud is a feature of Sage 50 Cloud Accounts designed to allow people to share Sage data without a server. It works by synchronising data to the cloud from each PC and back down to any other PCs.
Do you need Windows Server to run SQL Server? ›Windows Server is a Windows Server operating system. SQL Server runs on top of your Windows Server. SQL Server is an RDBMS software (application) that requires a Windows OS to operate.
What is Sage SQL? ›Sage SQL Replicator is a tool that copies your Sage 300 Construction and Real Estate data from the Pervasive data management system into a SQL Server database. The replicated data includes your Purchasing, Inventory, and Service Management data if you use those products.
Can you use Sage as a CRM? ›Sage CRM is a sophisticated CRM solution that includes three key modules, Sage CRM for: Sales, Marketing and Customer Service. The Sage CRM software solution is highly configurable, flexible and scalable.
Is Sage 50 a CRM? ›Sage 50 CRM is a communications system that allows you to track customer and client information beyond their accounting data.
How many computers can I install Sage 50 on? ›
Sage 50 Pro Accounting should only be installed on a single computer. If you are installing on a network, you must first install Sage 50 Accounting on the computer that will store your Sage 50 Accounting company data files.
How do I retrieve data from Sage? ›- From the File menu, choose Select Import/Export. ...
- Select the program area and then the template to use.
- Click Export . ...
- Select the order in which you want fields to be exported from the Report Order drop-down list.
Over 10,000 organizations across the globe use Sage CRM every day to manage and maximize the performance of their business. With customers in over 70 countries worldwide, Sage CRM is an award-winning web-based CRM solution.
Can you use Sage 50 without subscription? ›Subscription and Non-Subscription Service Plan
Sage 50 licenses can either be subscription or perpetual. With a non-subscription service plan (like a payroll-only plan, where you get access to the module), you normally pay one time to get entitled for a period of time.
Sage 50cloud Accounting is scalable, with three plans available. The Pro Accounting plan is designed for a single user and is currently priced at $340/year. Sage 50cloud Premium Accounting, which is designed for one to five users, is priced at $554/year for a single user, and supports up to 10 companies.
What Cannot be imported into Sage accounting? ›You can only import customer, supplier, item and asset data, excluding transactions.
Can you import a CSV file into Sage? ›Import your products and services:
Choose whether you want to import Stock, Non-stock or Service items. Select the Upload your CSV file link. Browse to your file and choose Open.
Do I have to upgrade? You must be on a current release of Sage 50 to access customer support for phone, chat, and other assistance. Once your Sage Business Care plan expires, you will need to renew in order to access payroll and other add-on services.
Can I teach myself Sage? ›Sage E-learning courses are flexible online courses that you can access online whenever and wherever you like. They're completely flexible, and allow you the freedom to learn in your own time, at your own pace.
Is Sage 50 easy? ›Sage 50 is an easy to use online accounting software solution for small and medium sized businesses. Sage 50 offers features such as accounts payable, accounts receivable and cash flow management.
Does Sage 50 have payroll? ›
Sage payroll plans include timely and comprehensive in-house payroll processing within your Sage 50 solution to help you save time and reduce the risk of payroll tax penalties at year-end.
Is Sage 50 the same as Simply accounting? ›...
Sage Simply Accounting to become Sage 50 in 2012.
| Current Name | New Name |
|---|---|
| Sage Simply Accounting Pro | Sage 50 Pro Accounting |
...
Sage Intacct.
| Formerly | Intacct Corporation |
|---|---|
| Founder | Odysseas Tsatalos David Chandler Thomas |
| Headquarters | San Jose, California |
| Products | Accounting software |
| Number of employees | 500 |
In Sage 50cloud Accounts 25.1 and above, from 30 days before the the token expires, a warning message appears letting you know that your token will expire with the option to enter it immediately, or to be reminded later.
Is Sage 50 a good accounting software? ›Sage accounting software is a great choice for businesses, which need basic accounting features, such as invoicing and bill tracking at an affordable price. Also, if your customers are from various countries, you'll love its multicurrency support.
Can I transfer Sage 50 to a new computer? ›Yes, You can install Sage 50 on another PC without any issues using the same activation information. Sage allows the transfer of the existing Sage 50 license to migrate to another computer under the following conditions: The license is then uninstalled from the older computer.
Does Sage have an open API? ›Unlike many other ERP and accounting tools on the market, Sage Intacct offers an open API, meaning it encourages and facilitates integrating other products with itself.
Can Excel pull data from Sage? ›Sage 50cloud Accounts integrates with Microsoft Excel, making it quick and easy to send accounts data from most windows straight to Excel. You can then manipulate the data to suit your business needs. Let's get started.
Is Teradata and SQL same? ›...
Difference between Teradata and MS SQL Server :
| Teradata | MS SQL Server |
|---|---|
| The primary database model for Teradata is Relational DBMS | The primary database model for MS SQL Server is Relational DBMS. |
- Open Sage 50 Accounts and log in to your chosen company data using the Manager login.
- Select Settings > User Management > Users.
- Click Manager > Edit.
- Check the Allow Remote Data Access check-box > Continue.
Has Sage been hacked? ›
Sage has claimed it has well over 6 million SMEs using it worldwide across 23 countries, however it seems that this data breach has only affected those within the UK. Since the breach, Sage immediately contacted the ICO and the City of London police to further use their powers to investigate this matter.
What are the two types of users in Sage 50? ›Sage 50 CA offers two types of users: an Accounting User and a Time Slip Entry User. An Accounting User's access can be limited by checking / unchecking their access to specific software modules.
Can you install Sage 50 on a server? ›If your company data is, or will be, stored on a Windows file server, perform a server-only installation of Sage 50 Accounting on your server. This option installs the MySQL Connector and the Sage 50 Accounting Connection Manager service that manages all connections to your company data.
What is the Sage 50 Connection Manager? ›The Sage 50 Accounting Connection Manager controls requests from Sage 50 Accounting and third-party software to connect to your company's data. The Connection Manager must be installed on the computer or server where your company data is stored.
Does Sage 100 use SQL? ›Beginning with Sage 100 Contractor version 20, Microsoft SQL Server is now used for the underlying database that stores your Sage 100 Contractor data. Liberty Reports automatically adds databases to the list of known databases with Sage 100 Contractor version 19 and prior.
Is Sage 100 a SQL database? ›Sage 100cloud Premium is a version of Sage 100cloud which runs on a SQL database. The primary benefits to this are (a) more secure data files and (b) faster reporting through external tools connected via native SQL drivers.
Is there a notebook for SQL? ›In addition to supporting modular SQL, SQL Notebooks supports UI-based visualization. Similar to Vega, it is very convenient for most common visualization needs. It also supports markdown cells for inline documentation. SQL Notebooks also supports sandboxed Python code.
How do I extract data from Sage 50? ›Export products and services
Choose File or Export and then browse where you want to save the file. On the Save as type list, choose CSV File . csv* and then Save. Repeat these steps for each report as required.
Sage 50 Accounts must be installed on a Windows operating system, if you use an Apple Mac, don't worry, you can use Bootcamp to install Windows, and then Sage Accounts.
What is the difference between Sage 50 and Sage 100? ›Sage 50 is best suited for smaller, entry-level businesses. Sage 100 is a more robust system that Sage 50 and is best suited for those with manufacturing and advanced inventory needs.
Which software is best for SQL? ›
- Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio.
- RazorSQL.
- SQuirrel SQL.
- Datapine SQL Editor.
- MySQL Workbench.
- Oracle SQL Developer.
- Valentina Studio.
- dbForge Studio.
SQL Server 2022 Express is a free edition of SQL Server, ideal for development and production for desktop, web, and small server applications.