Cannot connect to Server

Symptoms

When attempting to login to Universal Scheduling or Administration Setup, you receive one of the following two error messages:

1. Connection Status: connection to server is closed
2. Run-time error ‘-2147467259 (800040005)’ [DBNETLIB][ConnectionOpen (Connect()).]SQL Server does not exist or access denied.

Cause

This problem may occur because SQL Server, the database where Universal Office stores your data, is unreachable.

The problem may appear after;

• your Server computer is turned off, went offline or was disconnected from your office network,
• your Server computer was improperly shut down,
• an antivirus system was installed on your Server or Client machine, or
• a recent system upgrade to Windows 10.

Note: Frequently, this problem is a recurring issue after upgrading to Windows 10 (either from Windows 7 or Windows 8). For more information and a permanent resolution to the Windows services failure to start issues, please see our Upgrading to Windows 10: Get It Right The First Time article posted in December 2015.

Resolution

I. Turn the SQL Server on

First of all, make sure the server computer is turned on and connected to your office network. If the server machine appears to be on and working, then check that the service called SQL Server is started. If the server is stopped, follow the steps bellow to start or restart it.

1. Open windows services.
   • Press Win + R keys (or right-click on Start and select Run)
   • Type services.msc and press Enter
2. Locate SQL Server in the list, then right-click on it and select Start (or Restart).

Tip: Alternatively, simply reboot the server computer, which helps in most cases.

II. Allow communication ports through firewall

If you have installed a new Antivirus system on Server or Client computer(s), you must allow TCP/IP ports through the firewall as specified below.

Ports to allow on Server computer:

• SQL Server communication – 1433
• Uploading documents – 735
• HCAI interaction – 443
• MOH (OHIP) interaction – 8000

Ports to allow on Client computer: 5566 and 5567

Note: Universal Office communicates via IPv4 only.

III. Allow SQL Server and SQL Browser through Windows firewall

On your server computer, follow steps described below.

1. Go to Start > Control Panel.
2. In Systems and Security, open Windows Firewall.
3. Click on “Allow a program or feature through Windows Firewall”.
4. In the “Allowed Programs” window, click Change settings, then click Allow another program….
5. In the “Add a Program” window, click Browse.
6. Navigate to C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL.1\MSSQL\Binn\
7. Then, double-click on sqlservr.exe and click Add.
8. Again, click Allow another program….
9. Navigate to,
   • for SQL 2005, C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\90\Shared, and
   • for SQL 2008, C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\100\SharedNote.
     Note: On 64bit machines use \Program Files (x86) location.
10. Then, double-click on sqlbrowser.exe and click Add.
11. Finally, click OK to close “Allowed Programs” window.