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Microsoft Access 2013. Known for being a database management program, Microsoft Access is designed to make it easier to use database-related web apps. Users can access them through SharePoint and select the type of template that they want. Once a template is chosen, Microsoft Access automatically creates a database structure, command interface. If you have the related license, since you mentioned that you have installed Microsoft Office, you can also go to Windows search to search Access. If not, you can uninstall Office then refer to this article to download and install Office, for your reference: Download and install or reinstall Microsoft 365 or Office 2019 on a PC or Mac. Install and access Microsoft Office apps with this simple-to-follow tutorial. To start, go to Office.com and select “install Office” followed by “Office 365.

In many cases, you can install Office, Project, and Visio on the same computer. But, there are some combinations of Office, Project, and Visio that can't be installed together on the same computer.The two main things that determine whether Office, Project, and Visio can be installed together on the same computer are the version of the product and the installation technology used to install the product. What governs whether an installation scenario is supported are these two rules:

• You can't install two products together that have the same version but use different installation technologies.
• You can't install two products of different versions together if both products use Click-to-Run as the installation technology and those products have overlapping Office applications.

See the example installation scenarios section for several examples of installation scenarios that are supported and not supported, along with an explanation of why they are or aren't supported, based on the rules listed above.

Office releases and their version number

The following table shows Office releases that are currently supported by Microsoft, their associated version, and all the possible installation technology. The information listed in the table also applies to releases of Project and Visio. For example, the subscription version of the Project desktop app or Visio Professional 2016.

You can find this version information by going to Control Panel > Programs > Programs and Features. You can also find this version in the About dialog for the Office app. For example, open Word, and go to File > Account > About Word. On the top line of the About Microsoft Word dialog box, you will see the version number. For example, Microsoft Word 2019 MSO (16.0.10336.20044) 32-bit. For steps to find this version in different Office releases, see Find details for other versions of Office.

Note

• Office 365, Microsoft 365, Office 2019, and Office 2016 all have the same version: 16.0
• Office 2010, which is no longer supported, had a version of 14.0 and used Windows Installer (MSI) as the installation technology.

Installation technologies used by Office

There are different ways to purchase Office, Project, and Visio. For example, you can purchase them as part of an Office 365 (or Microsoft 365) plan, as a one-time purchase from a retail store, or through a volume licensing agreement. How you purchase them, along with which Office release you purchased – for example, Office 365 or Office 2016 – determines what installation technology is used to install Office.

The three installation technologies are:

• Click-to-Run
• Windows Installer (MSI)
• Microsoft Store

In newer releases of Office, you can go to File > Account in any Office app, such as Word, and the type of installation technology is listed under the Product Information section.

Another way to tell which installation technology was used to install Office is to File > Account in any Office app. Under the Product Information section, if you see an Update Options choice, Office was installed by using Click-to-Run. If you don't see an Update Options choice, and you don't see any mention of Microsoft Store, then Office was installed by using Windows Installer (MSI).

The Microsoft Store installation technology is only used when you purchase and install Office from the online Microsoft Store.

You can't rely on just the product name and release to determine the installation technology used by Office. For example, if you purchase Visio Standard 2016 from a retail store, it uses Click-to-Run. But, if you purchase Visio Standard 2016 through a volume licensing agreement, it uses Windows Installer (MSI).

Example installation scenarios

Here are some example installation scenarios, whether they're supported, and an explanation of why they are or aren't supported.

¹ You must be using at least Version 1808 of Microsoft 365 Apps, because that's the earliest version that recognizes Office 2019 products, including Project and Visio. Version 1808 or later is available in Current Channel, Monthly Enterprise Channel, Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel (Preview), and Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel. For Microsoft 365 Apps release information, see Update history for Microsoft 365 Apps.

Additional information

• All installed products must be either the 32-bit version or the 64-bit version. For example, you can't install a 32-bit version of Visio on the same computer with a 64-bit version of Office.
• Even though a particular installation scenario is supported, it might not be recommended. For example, we don't recommend having two different versions of Office installed on the same computer, such as Office 2013 (MSI) and Office 2019 (Click-to-Run).
• Volume licensed versions of Office 2013 and Office 2016 use Windows Installer (MSI). Volume licensed versions of Office 2019 use Click-to-Run. The same is true for volume licensed versions of Project and Visio.
• For Office 365, Microsoft 365, and Office 2019 products, all products installed on the computer must be using the same update channel. For example, the volume licensed version of Office Professional Plus 2019 can only use the PerpetualVL2019 update channel. Therefore, it can't be installed on the same computer that has the subscription version of the Project desktop app using Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel or on the same computer that has the subscription version of the Visio desktop app using Current Channel.

Related articles

Recently, we had one of our clients ask us how they could access a MS Access database outside their office. To do this, they wanted to make use of their Android tablet. Their initial idea was to use a remote desktop software to access their database. While this is a viable option, it’s not the most optimal solution.

Can MS Access run on Android/​iOS/​Mac/​Linux?

The short answer: no.

The long answer: MS Access is a Windows software. The database server which Access relies on is a Windows technology. So neither component of Access can run in any other operating system. This includes Mac, Linux, iOS, and Android. (Parfait, Stackoverflow)

So what are some ways to use your MS Access database on Android?

Connect using remote desktop app

Microsoft Remote Desktop App lets you to connect to your computer outside the office. The app allows you to interact with your database as if you were sitting right in front of your computer.

But! There are two issues with this approach:

• Because of the way MS Access works and the file sizes, every time you open the database, it will take awhile to load and would use lots of cellular data. This makes this option very frustrating and almost unusable.
• The other issue is that MS Access is not mobile friendly. So you will have a hard time entering information and viewing records.

This method is a good temporary solution if you’re looking for a quick fix and can’t spend much time or money on it. It is not ideal for the long run though. Instead, read some of the alternatives below.

Use a database app for android

How can you access the database in an android application?

One way is to use a database utility app that let’s you view and edit your data tables.

The problem?

None of the forms or business logic from Access are accessible, so you’ll be viewing and editing raw data. If your database is quite simple it might do the trick but in most cases, it’s not good enough. Some examples include ​“Access Mobile Database Client” for iOS and ​“View MS Access DB” for Android.

I’ve never used these apps, so not sure how it saves the data or whether it changes the database format.

Run MS Access as web database using Sharepoint

One of the more attractive alternatives is using Office 365​’s recent feature. You can now deploy MS Access databases through Sharepoint. You can access these as Sharepoint apps.

You can manage and track Access apps through a SharePoint site in a browser. This means your MS Access databases can hosted on the cloud and accessed through the web browser. Alternative, you can use the Sharepoint app. An added benefit, this method allows you to manage who has access to the app.

Some resources on how to get started with Office 365MS Access apps

If you have a team or have programming experience, then you might prefer to do all the ​‘coding’ yourself. If that’s the case, the following are your options. The alternatives below are much more involved than the initial ones so keep that in mind when choosing a solution.

Convert Access database to an Android app

MS Access databases are not native to Android so we need to convert them before we can run our Access database content on Android. One option consists of syncing (or migrating) the data to a mobile friendly database such as SQLite. Once the data is in this format, Android apps can interact with it.

To access the information, you would need to develop an app that would communicate with the database and allow you to make edits. To sync back with your MS Access database, you would need a script to sync the data between this new database and your MS Access database.

Pros: Easy to use, Very responsive, Can Access Offline

Cons: Data is not in real time

Create a responsive web app

Install MS Access When The Office 365 Suite Is Already ...

If you are starting from scratch and looking to access a database remotely then I would opt towards a web based solution rather than MS Access. Especially if you want to do it through a mobile device.

As long as the web app is mobile friendly your users will have a good experience. A web app also has the advantage of being accessible through different devices and platforms. All without having to rewrite the app for each platform.

But what if you already have a MS Access database?

To create a web app you need to split the MS Access database and move the data to a web database (e.g. MySQL, SQL Server). Otherwise, you could look at the sharepoint option above.

Once you have your web database set up, a web application will be able to connect to it. Users will be able to use their browsers to use the new web app.

The MS Access database ​‘front-end’ which does not contain the data would connect to the same web server. You may need to make some changes to your forms to handle the new database format.

Pros: Real Time Data

Cons: Need internet access

Build a native android app connected to web server

The last approach is creating a native mobile app. Unlike the syncing method, this method connects to a centralized web database. This is how most of apps work for example Facebook and Instagram.

Not only you have to move the database to a web database, but also need to create a way (Web Service) for the android app to communicate with the data. Once that is set up, you need to build the rest of the app. In particular, the screens the users will use to view and edit the data.

Pros: Highly responsive, Easy to Use, Real Time Data

Cons: Need Internet Access

Other MS Access alternatives

What if you are not comfortable with programming? What are some alternatives to MS Access that run on mobile?

The last few years we’ve seen many options released.

App alternatives

One way to go is to download a database app. These apps are very customizable databases. You can use them to manage most types of data. They even have data synchronization across devices! Some examples include

Web based alternatives

Web based SaaS platforms have seen a huge spike the last 5 years. These ​‘low-code’ solutions give you the same functionality MS Access does but on the web. Some examples include

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What solution you pick it’s up to you. But, I understand it might be hard making sense of all these options. If you are struggling with which solution to select then you should ask yourself the following questions.

• Figure out your constraints. What kind of resources (expertise, time and money) are available to me?
• Do I have to conform to certain IT restrictions?
• What does my IT infrastructure look like right now? Is it flexible?
• How will my users access the data? What devices? How often?
• Do many users need to access the data at the same time? Is it critical for the data to always be up to date?
• How comfortable are your target users with technology? Are they slow learners? Do they tend to resist new initiatives?

If you are still struggling to figure out the best approach then leave a comment below. I’ll try to reply with some feedback and suggestions.