I have an Access front end which appends records to SQL via ADO and an sp. I need to check that SQL server is running before trying to call the append procedure which runs the sp. Waiting 30 seconds for the connection timeout to cause a trappable error is not fast enough, as I'm capturing barcode scans in quick succession. How do I pick up if the server is Paused or Not running? (from Access) Any suggested solutions would be appreciated.