Microsoft Access for Mac

Hello all, I posted this in the Club Twit discord but wanted feedback from everyone. I recently started a new job that requires I have access to Microsoft Access. I prefer Mac OS as my Windows PC is 6 years old and very slow. What would the fine people of this community recommend I do to gain access to Microsoft Access.

Thanks for your help in advance.

I don’t believe MS even wants to support Access as a product any more… it’s certainly been very much put on the back burner. I think it’s hard enough to come by on Windows, so I doubt there is an official copy on MacOS. There is a free (as in libre) Access look-a-like in Libre Office, but I have never used it. No doubt your new employer is well invested in Access, but you should probably at least mention that it may not have a long future ahead of it. In the mean time, you’re probably going to need to run Parallels and a copy of Windows in it to access Access. (But that will not be free, as you need a Windows license in the VM to do it that way. With the virtual overhead, you might not find it any slower than running on your existing older Windows machine.)

If you must use it on the Mac, you must use either Bootcamp or a VM running Windows.

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I was thinking of using in a VM looking into Parallels. But I’ve had trouble finding a way of downloading Access as well.

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You will need to buy a license of the exact version you are targeting… If they are using Microsoft 365, that is the easiest, you just log onto your account in the browser and hit the download button.

Otherwise you will need to buy the correct license.

Unlike word or excel, you need the right version of Access. There were big differences between 2003, 2007,2010 and 2013. But I think 2016 & 2019 are compatible with each other.

Also, if you open an older DB in a newer version, it will automatically be converted and can’t be used with the older version again. It is very finicky.

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When speaking of Access, this is the understatement of the year :wink: This is the reason, I think, why Microsoft would very much like to de-emphasize it as a product. (They even open sourced a portion of the JET database from which I believe Access is derived. Please no letters, I know that JET and Access are not the same thing, but they ARE related.)

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I was able to get Office 365 running on Parallels VM. :slight_smile:

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Can’t say anything as I never heard of Microsoft Access. Just an unhappy focused by family to buy an Windows 10 system buy selling my MAC without me knowing it.

I would be upset to. Macs are expensive and Windows 10 just seems to broken right now. Personal opinion though.

PhilAdcock

That’s one of rezones i gone MAC but I was willing to let slide do the Bios to UEFI thing. That was of the only times I found Microsoft not quilty.
I do believe in time as X86 dies for real an ARM becomes the norm thing’s will be ok agrin.