Error: 'Unable to connect to Sage Data Service on machine' or 'Data service unavailable on this machine'

When opening Sage 50 Accounts, one of the following messages may appear:

• 'Unable to connect to Sage Data Service on machine [computer name]'
• 'Data service unavailable on this machine'

This occurs if the Sage Accounts Data Service is the wrong version or stops running on the computer that stores your Sage 50 Accounts data. If Sage 50 Accounts was working previously, you can normally resolve this in a few easy steps by restarting the Sage Accounts Data Service. Let's take a look.

NOTE: Recently upgraded? - If you get this message after upgrading your software to the latest version of Sage 50 Accounts, make sure you install the latest update on the computer where your data is held.

1. Restart the computer that holds your Sage 50 Accounts data. If the issue persists, continue to step 2.
2. On the computer holding your Sage 50 Accounts data, press the Windows key + R on your keyboard.
3. Enter services.msc, click OK then in the list of services look for the following services:

   Sage 50 Accounts v30	Sage 50 Accounts Service v30 Sage 50 Accounts Control v30
   Sage 50 Accounts v29	Sage 50 Accounts Service v29 Sage 50 Accounts Control v29
   Sage 50 Accounts v28	Sage 50 Accounts Service v28 Sage 50 Accounts Control v28
   Sage 50 Accounts v27	Sage 50 Accounts Service v27 Sage 50 Accounts Control v27
   Sage 50 Accounts v26	Sage 50 Accounts Service v26 Sage 50 Accounts Control v26
   Sage 50 Accounts v25	Sage 50 Accounts Service v25 Sage 50 Accounts Control v25
   Sage 50 Accounts v24	Sage 50 Accounts Service v24 Sage 50 Accounts Control v24

   If the services don't appear or show a status of Starting, follow the steps in this guide.

4. If either service shows Disabled in the Startup Type column, right-click the service, click Properties, in the Startup type drop-down click Automatic, then click OK.
5. For each service, right-click the service, click Stop, right-click the service again, then click Start.

Still got an issue? If the data service message still appears, follow the steps in this guide.