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Embedding SQL Server 2008 Express in an Application | Microsoft Learn

Free graphical management tool for configuring, managing, and administering SQL Server 2008 Express applications

Also use for managing multiple instances of the SQL Server Database Engine created by any edition of SQL Server 2008,
including Workgroup, Web, Standard, and Enterprise editions

Note: This separate download is for customers who have previously installed SQL Server 2008 Express (Runtime Only). For new
installations of SQL Server 2008 Express and SQL Server Management Studio Express, download the SQL Server 2008 Express with
Tools from the SQL Server Installation Wizard.

For more information about SQL Server 2008 Express, go to the SQL Server 2008 Express Web site
(https://www.microsoft.com/sqlserver/2008/en/us/express.aspx ).

To download SQL Server 2008 Express, go to the SQL Server 2008 Express download page
(https://www.microsoft.com/express/sql/download/ ).

<span id="_Toc237912062">
Before installing SQL Server 2008 Express on a computer, you need to determine whether prior versions of SQL Server or instances of
SQL Server already exist. If prior versions exist, you need to decide whether to upgrade the existing instance or install a new instance.

The recommended and officially supported way to detect other versions of SQL Server, or SQL server instances on a computer, is by
using the SQL Server Windows® Management Instrumentation (WMI) provider. Although other detection methods exist, this white
paper uses the SQL Server WMI provider for SQL Server 2008 and SQL Server 2005. Other methods, such as using the registry for
detecting instances, are not recommended.

Note: The SQL Server WMI provider can only detect instances of SQL Server 2005 and later.

The following code sample uses the WMI provider for SQL Server 2008 to detect all SQL Server 2008 and SQL Server 2005 instances.
For every instance detected, the code will list the edition and version of each instance in the results. The sample illustrates how to
bt i th li t f i t
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obtain the list of instance names.

C# Example

C#

using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using System.Text;
using System.Management;
namespace ExpressDetection
{
    class Program
    {

        static void Main(string[] args)

        {
            if (!EnumerateSQLInstances())
            {
                Console.WriteLine("There are no instances of SQL Server 2005 or SQL Server 2008 installed");
            }
        }
        /// <summary>
        /// Enumerates all SQL Server instances on the machine.
        /// </summary>
        /// <returns></returns>
        public static bool EnumerateSQLInstances()
        {
            string correctNamespace = GetCorrectWmiNameSpace();
            if (string.Equals(correctNamespace, string.Empty))
            {
                return false;
            }
            string query = string.Format("select * from SqlServiceAdvancedProperty where SQLServiceType = 1 and
PropertyName = 'instanceID'");
            ManagementObjectSearcher getSqlEngine = new ManagementObjectSearcher(correctNamespace, query);
if (getSqlEngine Get() Count == 0)
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            if (getSqlEngine.Get().Count == 0)
            {
                return false;
            }
            Console.WriteLine("SQL Server database instances discovered :");
            string instanceName = string.Empty;
            string serviceName = string.Empty;
            string version = string.Empty;
            string edition = string.Empty;
            Console.WriteLine("Instance Name \t ServiceName \t Edition \t Version \t");
            foreach (ManagementObject sqlEngine in getSqlEngine.Get())
            {
                serviceName = sqlEngine["ServiceName"].ToString();
                instanceName = GetInstanceNameFromServiceName(serviceName);
                version = GetWmiPropertyValueForEngineService(serviceName, correctNamespace, "Version");
                edition = GetWmiPropertyValueForEngineService(serviceName, correctNamespace, "SKUNAME");

                Console.Write("{0} \t", instanceName);

                Console.Write("{0} \t", serviceName);
                Console.Write("{0} \t", edition);
                Console.WriteLine("{0} \t", version);
            }
            return true;
        }
        /// <summary>
        /// Method returns the correct SQL namespace to use to detect SQL Server instances.
        /// </summary>
        /// <returns>namespace to use to detect SQL Server instances</returns>
        public static string GetCorrectWmiNameSpace()
        {
            String wmiNamespaceToUse = "root\\Microsoft\\sqlserver";
            List<string> namespaces = new List<string>();
            try
            {
                // Enumerate all WMI instances of
                // __namespace WMI class.
                ManagementClass nsClass =
                    new ManagementClass(
new ManagementScope(wmiNamespaceToUse)
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                    new ManagementScope(wmiNamespaceToUse),
                    new ManagementPath("__namespace"),
                    null);
                foreach (ManagementObject ns in
                    nsClass.GetInstances())
                {
                    namespaces.Add(ns["Name"].ToString());
                }
            }
            catch (ManagementException e)
            {
                Console.WriteLine("Exception = " + e.Message);
            }
            if (namespaces.Count > 0)
            {
                if (namespaces.Contains("ComputerManagement10"))

                {
                    //use katmai+ namespace
                    wmiNamespaceToUse = wmiNamespaceToUse + "\\ComputerManagement10";
                }
                else if (namespaces.Contains("ComputerManagement"))
                {
                    //use yukon namespace
                    wmiNamespaceToUse = wmiNamespaceToUse + "\\ComputerManagement";
                }
                else
                {
                    wmiNamespaceToUse = string.Empty;
                }
            }
            else
            {
                wmiNamespaceToUse = string.Empty;
            }
            return wmiNamespaceToUse;
        }
        /// <summary>
/// method extracts the instance name from the service name
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        /// method extracts the instance name from the service name
        /// </summary>
        /// <param name="serviceName"></param>
        /// <returns></returns>
        public static string GetInstanceNameFromServiceName(string serviceName)
        {
            if (!string.IsNullOrEmpty(serviceName))
            {
                if (string.Equals(serviceName, "MSSQLSERVER", StringComparison.OrdinalIgnoreCase))
                {
                    return serviceName;
                }
                else
                {
                    return serviceName.Substring(serviceName.IndexOf('$') + 1, serviceName.Length -
serviceName.IndexOf('$')-1);

                }
            }
            else
            {
                return string.Empty;
            }
        }
        /// <summary>
        /// Returns the WMI property value for a given property name for a particular SQL Server service Name
        /// </summary>
        /// <param name="serviceName">The service name for the SQL Server engine serivce to query for</param>
        /// <param name="wmiNamespace">The wmi namespace to connect to </param>
        /// <param name="propertyName">The property name whose value is required</param>
        /// <returns></returns>
        public static string GetWmiPropertyValueForEngineService(string serviceName, string wmiNamespace, string prop‐
ertyName)
        {
            string propertyValue = string.Empty;
            string query = String.Format("select * from SqlServiceAdvancedProperty where SQLServiceType = 1 and
PropertyName = '{0}' and ServiceName = '{1}'", propertyName, serviceName);
            ManagementObjectSearcher propertySearcher = new ManagementObjectSearcher(wmiNamespace, query);
foreach (ManagementObject sqlEdition in propertySearcher Get())
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            foreach (ManagementObject sqlEdition in propertySearcher.Get())
            {
                propertyValue = sqlEdition["PropertyStrValue"].ToString();
            }
            return propertyValue;
        }
    }
}

The screen shot in Figure 1 reflects the output from the sample code above. The results list all of the instances detected in addition to
the instance edition and instance version.

Figure 1: Results of detected instances

To detect SQL Server 2005 instances, use the following namespace: root\Microsoft\SqlServer\ComputerManagement

For more information about troubleshooting problems with WMI, see Windows Management Instrumentation
(https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa394582(VS.85).aspx ).

<span id="_Toc237912063">
The two SQL Server 2008 Express installation modes are:

New SQL Server 2008 Express installations

Upgrade installations

Each installation mode has its own set of parameters that provide information and instructions on how to perform the new installation
or upgrade. Parameters are either required or optional.

To accommodate installing or upgrading large numbers of systems, the SQL Server 2008 Express setup process is fully scriptable. You
can run Express with associated parameters from:

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The command prompt

Part of a command shell script
Another program

Regardless of where you execute a new installation or upgrade, you can run the statement from one of two places:

At the command prompt

In a configuration file (ConfigurationFile.ini)

Packaging SQL Server 2008 Express with Your Application

It is recommended that you ship the Express package extracted on your media and then launch Setup.exe directly. To extract the
Express package, run the following command.

{Express package} /X:{Directory to extract to}

Command Prompt Vs. Configuration File

Even though both the SQL Server 2008 Express command prompt and the configuration file installation methods provide similar
functionality (that is, they have the same parameters), their implementation differs. The ConfigurationFile.ini stores the user input
settings for the specific installation (public settings applicable to the current installation).

You can use the configuration file to restart the installation using the user settings from an earlier setup. The only settings not saved in
the configuration file are the passwords for the accounts and the product ID (PID). When necessary, you can add these parameters
through the configuration file, at a command prompt, or through a user interface prompt.
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Installing SQL Server Express from the Command Prompt

When installing new instances or upgrading existing instances of SQL Server at the command prompt, you can specify the features to
install and configure. You can also specify silent, basic, or full interaction with the setup user interface. Your installation requirements
will determine setup interaction type.

For more information, see How to: Install SQL Server 2008 from the Command Prompt (https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-
us/library/ms144259.aspx ).

Performing a New Installation of SQL Server 2008 Express

An example of performing a new installation from the command prompt:

Setup.exe /q /Action=Install /Hideconsole /Features=SQL,Tools

/InstanceName=SQLExpress /SQLSYSADMINACCOUNTS="Builtin\Administrators"
/SQLSVCACCOUNT="<DomainName\UserName>" /SQLSVCPASSWORD="<StrongPassword>

In the preceding example:

/q – specifies that Setup run in a quiet mode without any user interface.
/Action – specifies which action to perform. In this example, the action is Install.
/Hideconsole – specifies that the console window is hidden or closed during the install.
/Features – specifies which parent features and features to install. In this example, the parent feature SQL is installed, which
includes SQLEngine, Replication, and Fulltext components. The Tools feature installs all of the tools components.
/InstanceName – specifies a SQL Server instance name.
/SQLSYSADMINACCOUNTS –provisions logins to be members of the system administrators role.
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/SQLSVCACCOUNT – specifies the startup account for the SQL Server service.
/SQLSVCPASSWORD – specifies the password for SQLSVCACCOUNT.

The following table contains the list of parameters that are available to SQL Server 2008 Express, which is a partial list of all of the
parameters in SQL Server 2008. The parameters marked with an X are typical for SQL Server 2008 Express embedded installations. The
parameters with no X are not typically used for common SQL Server Express installations.

Parameter Description Typical

Parameter

/AddCurrentUserAsSQLAdmin This will provision the database engine with the user running setup. Use this parameter if you want X
to provision the user running setup. If you want to provision other users, use the
Required /SQLSYSADMINACCOUNTS.

Parameter Description Typical

Parameter

This parameter is not required if /SQLSYSADMINACCOUNTS is specified.

/ACTION Required to indicate the installation workflow. X

Required Supported values:

Install

/CONFIGURATIONFILE Specifies the configuration file to use.

Optional

/ERRORREPORTING Specifies the error reporting for SQL Server.

Optional For more information, see Privacy Statement for the Microsoft Error Reporting Service
(http://oca microsoft com/en/dcp20 asp)
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(http://oca.microsoft.com/en/dcp20.asp).

Supported values:

1=enabled

0=disabled (Default)

/FEATURES Specifies components to install: X

Required SQL installs SQLEngine , Replication, and FullText components

RS installs Reporting Services
Tools installs all tool components

/INSTALLSHAREDDIR Specifies a nondefault installation directory for 64-bit shared components.

Parameter Description Typical

Parameter

Optional

/INSTALLSHAREDWOWDIR Specifies a nondefault installation directory for 32-bit shared components. Supported only on a 64-
bit system.
Optional

/INSTANCEDIR Specifies a nondefault installation directory for instance-specific components.

Optional

/INSTANCENAME Specifies a SQL Server instance name. X

Required For more information, see Instance Configuration(https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-

us/library/ms143531.aspx).

/Q Specifies that Setup run in a quiet mode without displaying user interface messages or requiring X
user input. Used for unattended installations.
Optional
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/QS Specifies that Setup runs and shows progress through the UI, but does not accept any user input or
display any error messages.
Optional

/SQMREPORTING Specifies feature usage reporting for SQL Server. For more information, see Privacy Statement for
the Microsoft Error Reporting Service .
Optional
Supported values:

1=enabled
0=disabled (default)

/HIDECONSOLE Specifies that the console window is hidden or closed. If not specified, the console stays open while X
Setup runs, which is usually not preferred.

Parameter Description Typical

Parameter

Optional

/ENABLERANU Enables run-as credentials for SQL Server Express installations. This option is disabled by default. X

Optional

/INSTALLSQLDATADIR Specifies the data directory for SQL Server data files. Default values are:

Optional For WOW mode on 64-bit: %Program Files(x86)%\Microsoft SQL Server\

For all other installations: %Program Files%\Microsoft SQL Server\

/SAPWD Specifies the password for the SQL Server system administrator account. X

Required when
/SECURITYMODE=SQL

/SECURITYMODE Specifies the security mode for SQL Server. X

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Optional If this parameter is not supplied, the default of Windows-only authentication mode is applied. The
supported value is SQL

/SQLBACKUPDIR Specifies the directory for backup files.

Optional The default value is

<InstallSQLDataDir>\ <SQLInstanceID>\MSSQL\Backup

/SQLCOLLATION Specifies the collation settings for SQL Server.

Optional The default value is

SQL_Latin1_General_CP1_CS_AS

Parameter Description Typical

Parameter

/SQLSVCACCOUNT Specifies the startup account for the SQL Server service. X

Required

/SQLSVCPASSWORD Specifies the password for SQLSVCACCOUNT. (This is required only if a local account or domain X
account is used.)
Required

/SQLSVCSTARTUPTYPE Specifies the startup mode for the SQL Server service. Supported values are: X

Optional Automatic
Disabled
Manual (default)

/RSSVCACCOUNT Specifies the startup account for the Reporting Server service. This is available only in the Express
Advanced Package.
Required
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q

/RSSVCPASSWORD Specifies the password for Reporting Server Service. This is available only in the Express Advanced
Package. (It is required only if a local account or domain account is used.)
Required

/RSSVCSTARTUPTYPE Specifies the startup mode for the Reporting Server Service. Supported values are:

Optional Automatic
Disabled
Manual (default)

This is available only in the Express Advanced Package.

/SQLSYSADMINACCOUNTS Provisions logins to be members of the sysadmin role.

Parameter Description Typical

Parameter

Required This parameter is not required if /AddCurrentUserAsSQLAdmin is specified.

/SQLTEMPDBDIR Specifies the directory for the data files for tempdb. The default value is <InstallSQLDataDir>\
<SQLInstanceID>\MSSQL\Data
Optional

/SQLTEMPDBLOGDIR Specifies the directory for the log files for tempdb. The default value is

Optional <InstallSQLDataDir>\ <SQLInstanceID>\MSSQL\Data

/SQLUSERDBDIR Specifies the directory for the data files for user databases. The default value is
<InstallSQLDataDir>\ <SQLInstanceID>\MSSQL\Data
Optional

/SQLUSERDBLOGDIR Specifies the directory for the log files for user databases. The default value is <InstallSQLDataDir>\
<SQLInstanceID>\MSSQL\Data
Optional

/USESYSDB Specifies the location of the SQL Ser er s stem databases to se for this installation
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/USESYSDB Specifies the location of the SQL Server system databases to use for this installation.

Optional Do not include the \Data suffix in the specified path.

/FILESTREAMLEVEL Specifies the access level for the FILESTREAM feature.

Optional Supported values are:

0 =Disable FILESTREAM support for this instance. (This is the default value.)
1=Enable FILESTREAM for Transact-SQL access.
2=Enable FILESTREAM for Transact-SQL and file I/O streaming access. (This is not valid for
cluster scenarios.)
3=Allow remote clients to have streaming access to FILESTREAM data.

/FILESTREAMSHARENAME Specifies the name of the Windows share on which the FILESTREAM data will be stored.

Parameter Description Typical

Parameter

Optional

Required when
FILESTREAMLEVEL is greater
than 1.

/FTSVCACCOUNT Specifies the account for Full-Text filter launcher service. The default value is Local Service Account.

Optional This parameter is ignored in Windows Server® 2008 and Windows Vista® operating systems.
ServiceSID is used to help secure the communication between SQL Server and the full-text filter
daemon. If the values are not provided, the FDHOST Launcher service, which is used to the filter
daemon host process, is disabled. Use SQL Server Control Manager to change the service account
and enable full-text functionality.

/FTSVCPASSWORD Specifies the password for the Full-Text filter launcher service.

Optional This parameter is ignored in the Windows Server 2008 and Windows Vista operating systems.

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/NPENABLED Specifies the state of the Named Pipes protocol for the SQL Server service. Supported values are:

Optional 0=disable the Named Pipes protocol.

1=enable the Named Pipes protocol.

Note: To enable remote connections, you need to enable the NPENABLED or TCPENABLED
parameters.

/TCPENABLED Specifies the state of the TCP protocol for the SQL Server service. Supported values are:

Optional 0=disable the TCP protocol.

1=enable the TCP protocol.

Note: To enable remote connections, you need to enable the NPENABLED or TCPENABLED
parameters.

Table 2: Parameters for performing a new installation of SQL Server 2008 Express

Performing a Basic Upgrade to SQL Server 2008 Express

Although an upgrade from SQL Server 2005 Express is straightforward, there are important differences between MSDE and SQL Server
Express that you must understand before creating an upgrade plan. For more information about upgrading to SQL Server 2008
Express, see the Ultimate guide for upgrading to SQL Server 2008
(https://blogs.technet.com/dataplatforminsider/archive/2008/12/04/ultimate-guide-for-upgrading-to-sql-server-2008.aspx ) and
refer to Chapter 10, “Upgrading to SQL Server 2008 Express”.

Here’s an example of performing a basic upgrade:

Setup.exe /q /Hideconsole /ACTION=upgrade /INSTANCENAME=SQLExpress

The following table contains a list of the input parameters used for upgrading to SQL Server 2008 Express
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The following table contains a list of the input parameters used for upgrading to SQL Server 2008 Express.

Parameter Description Typical

Parameter

/ACTION Required to indicate the installation workflow. X

Required The supported value is Upgrade.

/CONFIGURATIONFILE Specifies the configuration file to use.

Optional

/ERRORREPORTING Specifies the error reporting for SQL Server. For more information, see Privacy Statement for the X
Microsoft Error Reporting Service .
Optional

Parameter Description Typical

Parameter

 Supported values are:

1=enabled
0=disabled (default)

/ INSTANCEDIR Specifies a nondefault installation directory for shared components

Optional

/INSTANCENAME Specifies a SQL Server instance name. For more information, see Instance Configuration. X

Required

/Q Specifies that Setup run in a quiet mode without any user interface. Use this parameter for X
unattended installations.
Optional

/SQMREPORTING Specifies feature usage reporting for SQL Server For more information see Privacy Statement for the
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/SQMREPORTING Specifies feature usage reporting for SQL Server. For more information, see Privacy Statement for the
Microsoft Error Reporting Service . Supported values are:
Optional
1=enabled
0=disabled (default)

/HIDECONSOLE Specifies the console window is hidden or closed. If a value is not specified, the console stays open X
while the setup process is running, which usually is not the preferred option.
Optional

/BROWSERSVCSTARTUPTYPE Specifies the startup mode for the SQL Server Browser service. Supported values are:

Optional Automatic
Disabled
Manual

Parameter Description Typical

Parameter

/FTUPGRADEOPTION Specifies the full-text catalog upgrade option. Supported values are:

Optional REBUILD
RESET
IMPORT

Table 3: All parameters for performing an upgrade

Installing SQL Server Express with a Configuration File

(ConfigurationFile.ini)
When installing new instances or upgrading existing instances of SQL Server at the command prompt, you can specify the features to
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install and configure. You can also specify silent, basic, or full interaction with the setup user interface. Your installation requirements
will determine setup interaction type.

Using a configuration file allows you to store all of the installation or upgrade parameters in a single, more organized location. This
option also provides a level of encapsulation allowing the standardized use of a single configuration file or multiple configuration files
for more diverse deployment requirements.

The following configuration file example performs the same functionality as the preceding command-line installation example in order
to better illustrate the differences between the methods.

Configuration file example:

;SQLSERVER2008 Configuration File [SQLSERVER2008]

; Setup will not display any user interface.
QUIET="True"

; Specifies a Setup work flow, like INSTALL, UNINSTALL, or UPGRADE. This is a required parameter.
ACTION="Install"

; Specifies that the console window is hidden or closed.

HIDECONSOLE="True"

; Specifies features to install, uninstall, or upgrade. The list of top-level

features include SQL, AS, RS, IS, and Tools. The SQL feature will install the
Database Engine, replication, and full-text. The Tools feature will install
Management Tools, SQL Server Books Online, Business Intelligence Development Studio, and other
shared components.
FEATURES=SQL, TOOLS

; Specify a default or named instance. MSSQLSERVER is the default instance for non-
Express editions, and SQLExpress is the default instance for Express editions. This parameter is required when
installing the SQL Server Database Engine (SQL), Analysis Services (AS), or Reporting
Services (RS)
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Services (RS).
INSTANCENAME="SQLEXPRESS"

; Windows account(s) to provision as SQL Server system administrators.

SQLSYSADMINACCOUNTS="Builtin\Administrators"

; Account for SQL Server service: Domain\User or system account.

/SQLSVCACCOUNT="<DomainName\UserName>"

; Specifies the password for SQLSVCACCOUNT

/SQLSVCPASSWORD="<StrongPassword>

Another example of a configuration file can be found on any computer with SQL Server 2008 Express installed at the default location
of C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\100\Setup Bootstrap\Log\<timestamp folder>\ConfigurationFile.ini.

For more information about using the configuration file, see How to: Install SQL Server 2008 Using a Configuration File
(https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd239405.aspx ).

<span id="_Toc237912070">
To ensure a successful and user-friendly installation, your installation application must trap and process SQL Server 2008 Express exit
codes. These codes allow you to take corrective action for managing a new installation or upgrade of SQL Server 2008 Express.

Except for the "Success but Reboot Required" error, if setup returns a nonzero error code:

A rule failed during setup.

Setup was unable to handle an installation failure.

If a rule failed, address the cause for rule failure and restart the setup program. If there is an unhandled failure, view the log files to
understand the cause. For more information about the log files, see “Understanding the SQL Server Log Files” later in this paper.

Refer to the following table for a list of exit codes for common installation failure points. Consider the list as a core set of codes for the
minimum basic checks for an installation. For a larger list of exit codes in the form of rules, see “Rule Failures.”
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g ,

Exit Code Meaning

0 Successful installation.

0xBC2 Successful installation; however, a system reboot is required.

It means if hex exit code ends with BC2: A system reboot required before the installation can continue.

0x8XXX0BC2

0x84c408 .NET is required.

84c40010 Microsoft Windows Installer 4.5 is required.

Table 4: Exit Codes Returned by Setup

Rule Failures
Rules provide a greater degree of functionality and control, which allows for a more managed and polished installation. In addition,
rule failures populate the error logs, which provide detailed information for investigating any installation issues.

Three categories of rules exist. Each category represents a processing or execution phase for a typical setup request:

1. Global rules check

2. Component update
3. User-requested action

Each of these phases generates both a detail and a summary log, which may generate additional log files when required. User-
requested Setup actions call the Setup application at least three times during a product installation. For more information, see
“Understanding the SQL Server Log Files” later in this paper.

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The following table lists the rule failures you can check during an installation.

Rule Description Failure

code

OsVersionCheck Checks if the computer meets minimum operating system version requirements. 0x84BE0001

ThreadHasAdminPrivilegeCheck Checks if the account running SQL Server Setup has administrator rights on the 0x84BE0007
computer.

RebootRequiredCheck Checks if a pending computer restart is required; a pending restart can cause setup to fail. 0x84BE0BC2

WmiServiceStateCheck Checks if the WMI service has started and is running on the computer. 0x84BE0003

Rule Description Failure

code

AclPermissionsFacet Checks if the SQL Server registry keys are consistent. 0x84BE01FF

MediaPathLength Checks if the SQL Server installation media is not too long. 0x84BE0009

FusionRebootCheck Checks if a computer restart is required because of broken fusion ATL; a pending restart 0x84BE0BC2
can cause setup to fail.

SqlUnsupportedProductBlocker Checks if SQL Server 7.0 or SQL Server 7.0 OLAP Services is installed; SQL Server 2008 is 0x84BE020D
not supported with SQL Server 7.0.

PerfMonCounterNotCorruptedCheck Checks if the existing performance counter registry hive is consistent. 0x84BE0004

Bids2005InstalledCheck Checks for previous releases of SQL Server 2008 Business Intelligence Development 0x84BE0005
Studio.

BlockInstallSxS Checks if there is an existing SQL Server 2008 Community Technology Preview (CTP) 0x84BE01FA
installation.
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FacetDomainControllerCheck Checks if the computer is a domain controller; installing SQL Server 2008 on a domain 0x84BE0201
controller is not recommended.

SSMS_IsInternetConnected Verifies that the computer is connected to the Internet. If a Microsoft .NET application 0x84BE0BD1
such as Microsoft Management Studio starts, a delay may occur while the .NET security
check validates a certificate.

FacetWOW64PlatformCheck Determines whether SQL Server Setup is supported on this operating system platform. 0x84BE0213

FacetPowerShellCheck Checks if Windows PowerShell® is installed; Windows PowerShell is a prerequisite of 0x84BE0214

Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Express with Advanced Services.

IsFirewallEnabled Checks if the Windows Firewall is enabled. 0x84BE0BD2

Rule Description Failure

code

BlockMixedArchitectureInstall Checks if the installing features are the same CPU architecture as the specified instance. 0x84BE0202

BlockCrossLanguageInstall Checks if the setup language is the same as the language of existing SQL Server features. 0x84BE0205

StandaloneInstall_HasClusteredOr Checks if the selected instance name is already used by an existing cluster-prepared or 0x84BE0207
PreparedInstanceCheck clustered instance on any cluster node.

RS_DoesCatalogExist Checks if the Reporting Services catalog database file exists. 0x84BE03F4

RS_DoesCatalogTempDBExist Checks if the Reporting Services catalog temporary database file exists. 0x84BE03F5

Sql2005SsmsExpressFacet Checks if SQL Server 2005 Express tools are installed. 0x84BE0218

EditionRequirementCheck Checks if the SQL Server edition is supported on the existing operating system 0x84BE0219

FAT32FileSystemCheck Checks if the specified drive is a FAT32 file system volume; installing on a FAT32 file 0x84BE0249
system is supported but not recommended because it is less secure than the NTFS file
system
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system

LibertyASInstallRule Checks if SQL Server 2000 Analysis Services is installed; SQL Server 2000 Analysis Services 0x84BE024A
cannot be installed if the default instance name for SQL Server 2008 is used.

InstanceClashRule Checks if the specified instance name is already used by an existing SQL Server instance. 0x84BE024B

VSShellInstalledRule Checks for previous releases of Visual Studio 2008. 0x84BE024C

BlockMixedArchitectureUpgrade Checks if the CPU architecture of feature upgrades is different from the CPU architecture 0x84BE0203
of installed program.

ShilohUpgradeRule Checks if the selected instance of SQL Server 2000 meets minimum upgrade 0x84BE01F4
requirements.

Rule Description Failure

code

LibertyASUpgradeRule Checks if you must upgrade SQL Server 2000 Analysis Services before you upgrade SQL 0x84BE0258
Server Database Services. SQL Server 2000 Analysis Services must be upgraded before
any Database Services named instance.

YukonUpgradeSidRule Checks if the SIDs that are associated with selected features for an upgrade are valid. 0x84BE0217

BlockCrossLanguageUpgrade Checks if the setup language is the same as the language of the SQL Server feature 0x84BE0200
upgrades.

KatmaiBuildToBuildUpgradeRule Checks if the selected instance of SQL Server 2008 meets the minimum requirement for a 0x84BE01F8
build-to-build upgrade.

RS_ValidDSN Checks if the Report Server has a valid DSN. 0x84BE03E9

RS_ValidDatabaseVersion Checks if the Report Server database version can be used by the SQL Server 2008 Report 0x84BE03EA
Server.

d i i h k if h
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RS_NoCustomRenderingExtensions Checks if Report Server has any custom rendering extensions configured. 0x84BE03EB

RS_NoCustomSecurityExtensions Checks if Report Server has any custom security extensions configured. 0x84BE03EC

RS_NoCustomAuthExtensions Checks if Report Server has any custom authentication extensions configured. 0x84BE03ED

RS_ReportServerUnsupportedSecurityMode Checks if Report Server is using any unsupported Microsoft Internet Information Services 0x84BE03EE
(IIS) security modes.

RS_ReportManagerUnsupported Checks if Report Manager is using any unsupported IIS security modes. 0x84BE03EF
SecurityMode

RS_ReportServerClientCertificate Checks if Report Server is required to use client certificates. 0x84BE03F0

Required

Rule Description Failure

code

RS_ReportManagerClientCertificate Checks if Report Server is required to use client certificates. 0x84BE03F1

Required

RS_RS2000SP2Required Checks if SQL Server 2000 Reporting Services Service Pack 2 (SP2) is installed. 0x84BE03F2

RS_RSServiceRunning Checks if the Reporting Services service is running when the clustered instance is being 0x84BE03F3
upgraded.

Engine_SqlServerServiceDisabled_Id Checks if the SQL Server service is not set as Disabled. 0x84BE07D1

Engine_SqlEngineHealthCheck Checks if the SQL Server service can be restarted; or for a clustered instance, whether the 0x84BE07D5
SQL Server resource is online.

Engine_AllSystemDatabases Checks if all system databases are accessible. 0x84BE07D4

AccessibleCheck

Engine_UserHasNotDefinedSchema Checks if the user has defined a schema named 'sys'. 0x84BE07D6
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SysCheck

Engine_FilestreamAndRcsiDatabasesCheck Checks for databases with FILESTREAM file groups and READ_COMMITTED_SNAP 0x84BE07DC
SHOT or ALLOW_SNAPSHOT_
ISOLATION enabled.

Engine_ResourceDLLUpdateRestart Checks for shared resource DLL updates, which cause restarts for clustered SQL Server 0x84BE07E1
Check instances active on this node.

ShilohServiceAccountUpgradeRule Checks if SQL Server 2000 service accounts meet upgrade requirements. 0x84BE0204

Engine_ServiceAccountOnDomain Checks if the SQL Server service account when running on a domain controller is suitable 0x84BE07D3
Check for upgrade.

Rule Description Failure

code

Cluster_MultipleGroupsUpgradeRule Checks if the selected clustered instance of SQL Server 2005 is installed into multiple 0x84BE0BC9
groups.

Cluster_BlockLibertyUpgrade Checks if the instance selected for upgrade is a clustered SQL Server 2000 64-bit instance. 0x84BE0BCB

FeatureUpgradeMatrixCheck Checks if the specified feature meets SQL Server 2008 upgrade requirements. 0x84BE0212

IncompleteUpgradeCheck Checks if the upgrade operation completed successfully. 0x84BE020E

FailedUpgradeCheck Checks if a previous upgrade failed. 0x84BE020F

LocalOnly_SqlFeatureStateCheck Checks if the SQL Server Database Services feature upgrade was successfully configured. 0x84BE0215

LocalOnly_AsFeatureStateCheck Checks if the SQL Server Analysis Services feature upgrade was successfully configured. 0x84BE0216

RsFeatureStateCheck Checks if the SQL Server Reporting Services feature upgrade was successfully configured. 0x84BE0217

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Table 5: Rule failures

<span id="_Toc237912072">
Many of the same security considerations for SQL Server 2005 also apply to SQL Server 2008 Express. For more information about
these considerations, see Security Considerations for a SQL Server Installation (https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-
us/library/ms144228.aspx ).

Consider the following security guidelines when embedding and deploying SQL Server 2008 Express:

Service account – It is recommended that you configure the service account under a domain account or a local account. If
Windows Vista is used, the recommended setup is to run SQL Server services under the Network Service account. For more

information, see (https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms143504.aspx ). If installing SQL Server Express on a domain

controller, you cannot use the default Network Service account.

SQL Server Authentication Mode – During installation, the recommended configuration is to set up SQL Server to enable
Windows Authentication mode, which is the default. If the application requirements do not allow this, you need to enable mixed
mode authentication.

If you select mixed mode authentication during setup, you must provide and then confirm a strong password for the built-in SQL
Server system administrator account named “sa.” Renaming the sa account is also recommended.

For more information, see (https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms144284.aspx ).

Firewall – Consider the following:

Firewall systems help prevent unauthorized access to computer resources. If a firewall is turned on but not correctly
configured, attempts to connect to SQL Server may be blocked.
To access an instance of SQL Server through a firewall, you must configure the firewall on the computer running SQL Server to
allow access. You can use the firewall that is included with Windows, or you can install a different firewall.

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For more information, see Configuring the Windows Firewall to Allow SQL Server Access (https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-
us/library/cc646023.aspx ).

<span id="_Toc237912073">
Understanding the SQL Server log files is important when troubleshooting installation issues. If an error occurs during installation, the
first step is to review the error log. While error logs of older versions of SQL Server may appear similar, the error logs for SQL Server
Setup have changed for this release.

For more information, see How to Troubleshoot SQL Server 2008 Setup Issues (https://support.microsoft.com/kb/955396 ).

To review the SQL Server error logs, follow these steps:

1. If an installation error occurs, first find and review the main log located in %programfiles%\Microsoft SQL Server\100\Setup
Bootstrap\LOG\Summary.txt
2. If the main log in step 1 does not exist, find and review: SqlSetup.log in %temp%
3. If no errors exist in the Summary.txt log or SqlSetup.log, find and review the Detail.log file located in %programfiles%\Microsoft
SQL Server\100\Setup Bootstrap\LOG\<session folder> and  search for "error:" You should see the error near this tag.

Log File Details

A SQL Server 2008 Express installation generates many log files in both a new installation and an upgrade. Each set of log files
provides varying levels of detail and scope of content.

The log files for an installation are created in %programfiles%\Microsoft SQL Server\100\Setup Bootstrap\Log\<YYYYMMDD_HHMM>.
Every time setup runs, it creates a new timestamp directory.

The log file for the unmanaged Setup.exe is located in%temp%\sqlsetup*.log. This log contains the information regarding the
execution and steps taken by Setup.exe. The Setup100.exe log is located in the SetupBootstrap\log folder.
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All files in the logs folder, with the exception of the unmanaged log, are archived into the Log*.cab file in their respective log folder (a
cab generated for each session folder). The following section describes the four categories of log files.

Summary.txt Log File

Location: %programfiles%\Microsoft SQL Server\100\Setup Bootstrap\Log\

Purpose: This log is the “clean” and “user-friendly” log file that directs the user to the problem. This file lists all detected SQL Server
components, the operating system environment, the specified command-line parameters and values, and the overall status of the
Windows Installer (.msi file) and the Windows Installer update package (.msp file) that runs. The Summary.txt log file in this location is
the latest one. The following table describes the sections of the log file.

Section Description

Overall Summary: Brief summary of the execution

Machine properties: Machine configuration

Discovered product features: Product features already installed on the machine

Package properties: Brief description of the product version installed, such as SQL Server 2008

User Input Settings: Overview of the input settings provided for the scenario

Configuration file: Configuration file location

Detailed results: Execution results

Rules with failures: Failed rules

Global rules: Global rules

Scenario specific rules: Scenario specific rules

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p p

Rules report file: Location of rules report file

Table 6: Log file sections

If there are errors, the errors are listed in the overall summary section in the beginning of the file. The feature specific failures are listed
in the detailed results.

Summary_{MachineName}_<timestamp>.txt log file

Location: %programfiles%\Microsoft SQL Server\100\Setup Bootstrap\Log\<YYYYMMDD_HHMM>\Summary_
{MachineName}_<_20080503_040551.txt

Purpose: This is the Summary.txt log file for this session.

Summary_{MachineName}_<timestamp>_ComponentUpdate.txt log file

Location: %programfiles%\Microsoft SQL Server\100\Setup Bootstrap\Log\<YYYYMMDD_HHMM>\ Summary
{MachineName}_20080503_040551_ComponentUpdate.txt

Purpose: This is similar to the summary file that is generated during the component update work flow.

Summary_{MachineName}_<timestamp>_GlobalRules.txt log file

Location: %programfiles%\Microsoft SQL Server\100\Setup Bootstrap\Log\
<YYYYMMDD_HHMM>\Summary_{MachineName}_20080503_040551_GlobalRules.txt

Purpose: This is similar to the summary file generated during the global rules workflow.

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Detail.txt Log File

Location: %programfiles%\Microsoft SQL Server\100\Setup Bootstrap\Log\<YYYYMMDD_HHMM>\Detail.txt

Purpose: This log file contains the results from processing the global rules and component update, and it provides a detailed log of
the execution. The Detail.txt log file organizes the line entries in the order of the timestamps and the file extensions (module optional)
that produce the log. This log file is important for identifying any failures, because it generates the logs based on the time the actions
are invoked. You can use this file to determine the step-by-step execution process, the order in which actions execute, and the
dependencies between actions. This file is generated for the main workflow (similar to an installation or upgrade).

If an error occurs in the setup process, the installation program logs exceptions or errors when they occur. To find errors in this file,
you can find the exception or error at the end of the file. Then search the file for “error” or “exception” keywords, which will help you

determine when and where the error occurred.

Example of a failure in the Detail.txt log:

2009-05-12 10:26:26 Slp: Error: Action "RunFeatureSpecificRules" threw an exception during execution.
2009-05-12 10:26:27 Slp: Microsoft.SqlServer.Setup.Chainer.Workflow.ActionExecutionException: A previous release of
Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 is installed on this computer. Upgrade Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 to the SP1 before in‐
stalling SQL Server 2008. ---> Microsoft.SqlServer.Configuration.RulesEngineExtension.RulesEngineRuleFailureException:
A previous release of Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 is installed on this computer. Upgrade Microsoft Visual Studio 2008
to the SP1 before installing SQL Server 2008.
2009-05-12 10:26:27 Slp:    at
Microsoft.SqlServer.Configuration.RulesEngineExtension.RunRulesAction.ExecuteAction(String actionId)
2009-05-12 10:26:27 Slp:    at Microsoft.SqlServer.Chainer.Infrastructure.Action.Execute(String actionId, TextWriter
errorStream)
2009-05-12 10:26:27 Slp:    at Microsoft.SqlServer.Setup.Chainer.Workflow.ActionInvocation.InvokeAction(WorkflowObject
metabase, TextWriter statusStream)
2009-05-12 10:26:27 Slp:    at Microsoft.SqlServer.Setup.Chainer.Workflow.PendingActions.InvokeActions(WorkflowObject
metaDb, TextWriter loggingStream)
2009-05-12 10:26:27 Slp: --- End of inner exception stack trace ---
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2009 05 12 10:26:27 Slp:    End of inner exception stack trace
2009-05-12 10:26:27 Slp:    at Microsoft.SqlServer.Setup.Chainer.Workflow.PendingActions.InvokeActions(WorkflowObject
metaDb, TextWriter loggingStream)
2009-05-12 10:26:32 Slp: Received request to add the following file to Watson reporting:
C:\Users\petersad\AppData\Local\Temp\tmpDEE9.tmp
2009-05-12 10:26:32 Slp: The following is an exception stack listing the exceptions in outermost to innermost order
2009-05-12 10:26:32 Slp: Inner exceptions are being indented
2009-05-12 10:26:32 Slp:
2009-05-12 10:26:32 Slp: Exception type:
Microsoft.SqlServer.Configuration.RulesEngineExtension.RulesEngineRuleFailureException
2009-05-12 10:26:32 Slp:     Message:
2009-05-12 10:26:32 Slp:         A previous release of Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 is installed on this computer.
Upgrade Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 to the SP1 before installing SQL Server 2008.
2009-05-12 10:26:32 Slp:     Data:
2009-05-12 10:26:32 Slp:       DisableWatson = true
2009-05-12 10:26:32 Slp:     Stack:

2009-05-12 10:26:32 Slp:         at

Microsoft.SqlServer.Configuration.RulesEngineExtension.RunRulesAction.ExecuteAction(String actionId)
2009-05-12 10:26:32 Slp:         at Microsoft.SqlServer.Chainer.Infrastructure.Action.Execute(String actionId,
TextWriter errorStream)
2009-05-12 10:26:32 Slp:         at
Microsoft.SqlServer.Setup.Chainer.Workflow.ActionInvocation.InvokeAction(WorkflowObject metabase, TextWriter sta‐
tusStream)
2009-05-12 10:26:32 Slp:         at
Microsoft.SqlServer.Setup.Chainer.Workflow.PendingActions.InvokeActions(WorkflowObject metaDb, TextWriter log‐
gingStream)
2009-05-12 10:26:34 Slp:
2009-05-12 10:26:34 Slp: ----------------------------------------------------------------------
2009-05-12 10:26:34 Slp:
2009-05-12 10:26:34 Slp: Error result: -2067922356
2009-05-12 10:26:34 Slp: Result facility code: 1214
2009-05-12 10:26:34 Slp: Result error code: 588

Detail_ComponentUpdate.txt Log File

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Location:  %programfiles%\Microsoft SQL Server\100\Setup Bootstrap\Log\<YYYYMMDD_HHMM>\Detail_ComponentUpdate.txt

Purpose: Similar to the Detail.txt log file, this file is generated for the component update workflow.

Detail_GlobalRules.txt Log File

Location: %programfiles%\Microsoft SQL Server\100\Setup Bootstrap\Log\<YYYYMMDD_HHMM>\Detail_GlobalRules.txt

Purpose: Similar to the Detail.txt log file, this file is generated for the global rules execution.

MSI Log Files

<Feature>_<Architecture>_< Iteration >.log
<Feature>_<Architecture>_<Language>_< Iteration >.log
<Feature>_<Architecture>_<Iteration>_<workflow>.log

Location: %programfiles%\Microsoft SQL Server\100\Setup Bootstrap\Log\<YYYYMMDD_HHMM>\<Name>.log

Purpose: The MSIEXEC package installation process generates details in the MSI log files. To find errors in the MSI log files, search for
“value 3” (English MSI version only); the error is usually near this string. At the end of the file, is a summary of the execution (pass or
fail status and other properties). This does not apply for initialization failures, which are logged in a different way.

ConfigurationFile.ini
Location: %programfiles%\Microsoft SQL Server\100\Setup Bootstrap\Log\<YYYYMMDD_HHMM>\Configurationfile.ini

Purpose: This file contains the input settings specific to an installation (public settings that apply to the current setup). The
configuration file stores and uses settings provided by the user to restart the installation. This eliminates the need to enter the same
parameter values again. Passwords for the accounts and the PID are the only settings not saved in the configuration file. You can add
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pa a ete a ues aga . ass o ds o t e accou ts a d t e a e t e o y sett gs ot sa ed t e co gu at o e. ou ca add
these parameter values later to the configuration file, or you can provide them at a command prompt or in the UI.

SystemConfigurationCheck_Report.htm log file

Location: %programfiles%\Microsoft SQL Server\100\Setup Bootstrap\Log\
<YYYYMMDD_HHMM>\SystemConfigurationCheck_Report.htm

Purpose: Contains a user-friendly version of the rules execution status. It also provides a short description of each executed rule.

<span id="_Toc237912085">

SQL Server 2008 Express is designed to provide a lightweight and easy-to-use way to include powerful SQL Server functionality in your
applications. a successful, seamless installation or upgrade in your SQL Server 2008 Express application. When embedding SQL Server
2008 Express in an application, it is important for the new installation or upgrade to be successful and seamless. This paper provides
examples, tips, and troubleshooting information to help you achieve that goal.

For more information:

https://www.microsoft.com/sqlserver/ : SQL Server Web site

https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sqlserver/ : SQL Server TechCenter

https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/sqlserver/ : SQL Server DevCenter 

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