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A free and open-source implementation compatible with Advantage Database Server (ADS), discontinued by SAP.

https://github.com/FiveTechSoft/OpenADS

The goal is to provide a drop-in replacement for the Advantage Client Engine (ace32.dll / ace64.dll / libace.so) so existing applications — particularly Harbour/Clipper apps using contrib/rddads — keep working without recompilation.

One API, many backends — DBF today, any database tomorrow
OpenADS presents as ADS — your application talks to the same ACE entry points it always did — but that ADS surface is just the front door. Behind it, the very same API can be served by different storage engines:

Because the application only ever sees the ADS API, you run on DBF today and switch to PostgreSQL, MSSQL, or SQLite tomorrow if you outgrow flat files — without rewriting your business logic. The same Harbour/Clipper/FiveWin code, the same USE / dbSeek / tDatabase calls, now backed by a real database when you need concurrency, scale, or central administration. OpenADS is a scalable suite

This is a very exciting project and it will serve our clients well. IN THE FUTURE, hopefully we can focus on supporting our legacy apps while later evolving to new technologies.

It is still very much a work in progress ... but hopefully it will ultimately work.

Tim