Hardware Platforms
Ignore Your Current Hardware Platform - Too often many companies seek to find an accounting software solution that will run on their current computer equipment, such as an IBM AS/400. The problem with this approach is that it is backwards – it puts the cart in front of the horse. The best way to proceed is to find the accounting software product that best meets your needs, and only then find the best hardware to run it. If your current hardware can be utilized, that’s great. If your current hardware is inadequate, then you should purchase new hardware – the hardware is by far the least expensive component when it comes to implementing a new accounting system. Chances are very good that if you need to replace your accounting system, then it is also time to replace your hardware anyway.
Important caveat - If your company has already embraced a database technology such as Oracle, or SQL Server, and you have people certified in these database and other systems built upon these database platforms, then it probably is best to select an accounting system that operates on that platform. These prior investments and strategies are too big too ignore. However, hardware represents a relatively minor portion of your accounting system or ERP solution; therefore you should not base your decisions upon any particular computer hardware you may already own - replacing hardware is simply to cheap and easy.