Intermittent loading error "Named Pipes Provider, error: 40"

[David_Hundt]

I have a series of apps that have worked great for several years.  I'm connecting to a SQL database using SQLServer.  There have been no changes to the DB structure or administration, and no changes in Appsheet, but in the last few weeks, I intermittently get "Named Pipes Provider, error: 40" error messages on loading the apps.  This happens very frequently, maybe 30% of the time, but isn't reliably replicable.  Often, a refresh or hitting cancel on the loading screen when it hangs will load the app.

Here is the error message:
Unable to fetch app definition. Error: Data table 'dbo.Launcher' is not accessible due to: A network-related or instance-specific error occurred while establishing a connection to SQL Server. The server was not found or was not accessible. Verify that the instance name is correct and that SQL Server is configured to allow remote connections. (provider: Named Pipes Provider, error: 40 - Could not open a connection to SQL Server).

Note: the Data Table named just changes depending on which app I'm trying to open.  It isn't specific to one app or one table.

[WillowMobileSys · Accepted solution]

The problem is on your database side.  Note that database servers do go through software updates just like any other server.  So recent updates may be contributing to the issues you are seeing.

I did a quick Google search and found the StackOverflow article below...from 11 years ago!!!   The flagged solution was to restart the MSSQLSERVER service on the host machine.  But you may want to research other options that don't require a restart.  The concern would be if the service doesn't restart.

If you own the service, then that should be easy enough to do.

If the database is hosted in the cloud, you will need to login to their service and see of there is an option to restart your instance of the database.  If you can't find one,  you will need to contact that hosting provider for help.

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/9945409/how-do-i-fix-the-error-named-pipes-provider-error-40-cou...

I hope this helps!

[David_Hundt]

Thank you so much for finding that! I will share that with our tech guys Monday morning and will report back if it works. Either way, I really appreciate the help!

[David_Hundt]

@WillowMobileSys We followed the steps on the article you provided and we're back in business!  Thank you once again for getting us pointed in the right direction.