Steps for sql server decommission activities.

How to decommission sql Instances from the server?

Before uninstall we need to follow some steps.

1. Make a note of service pack and hot fixes installed.

2. Backup the databases master, msdb, and model to be used for roll back purpose.

How to check which Service Pack installed?

Run below SQL Server command

SELECT SERVERPROPERTY('productversion')

, SERVERPROPERTY ('productlevel')

, SERVERPROPERTY ('edition')

GO

If you’re using SQL Server version 7, you need a different command:

SELECT @@VERSION

GO

How to find which Hotfix applied on SQL Server?

To determine the Hotfix number, since each one will be different, and many may be installed. To determine the Hotfixes on your server, download the program called HFNetChk (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/305385) from Microsoft. There’s a commercial version of this tool by the way that will keep your servers up to date, but this is the free one Microsoft provides.

There are now stored procedures you can use to show you the build number on your server, such as:

EXEC sp_server_info 

GO

and 

EXEC master..xp_msver

GO

Steps to be followed for uninstall sql server:

1. Uninstall SQL Server through Windows Control PanelàAdd/remove Programs.

    a. Uninstall SQL Server patches in descending order

    b. Uninstall SQL Server installation

2. Restart server

Steps to be followed for re-intstall the old sql server.i.e(roll back)

1) Reinstall SQL Server.

2) Apply any service packs and hotfixes that were installed earlier.

3) Restore the databases master, msdb, and model from the last backup that was taken before you installed.

When we go for decommission of Sql instances?

If current application has been migrated to sql farm servers or other environment, then existing systems will not being used. So we need to uninstall sql server instances from the server.

False server down alert from the monitoring server.

Server team changed dns name and ip address for server XXY.After that, we were receiving sql host down alert from the monitoring server YYX for the server XXY.What we do to stop that false alerts?

Resolution steps:

1. Go to the following path file://yyx/c$/WINDOWS/system32/drivers/etc
2. Find host file inside the etc folder.
3. Open the hosts file in the notepad and it shows like below comments#.
4. Add newserveripaddress   servername in the bottom content of the file.

# Copyright (c) 1993-1999 Microsoft Corp.

#

# This is a sample HOSTS file used by Microsoft TCP/IP for Windows.

#

# This file contains the mappings of IP addresses to host names. Each

# entry should be kept on an individual line. The IP address should

# be placed in the first column followed by the corresponding host name.

# The IP address and the host name should be separated by at least one

# space.

#

# Additionally, comments (such as these) may be inserted on individual

# lines or following the machine name denoted by a '#' symbol.

#

# For example:

#

#      102.54.94.97     rhino.acme.com          # source server

#       38.25.63.10     x.acme.com              # x client host

127.0.0.1       localhost

10.176.12.245 XXY#we need to include new ip and hostname.

I’ve updated the host file in the monitoring server (YYX) to refer the new ip of XXY server.

That’s it.

Note: We need to change as per above notes after domain change and ip change.

Database Diagram generation issue

Description: For the SQL DB, I was trying to generate the Database Diagram in Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio Express

          But the application is throwing some error related to ownership of the database as given below...

"TITLE: Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio Express

------------------------------

Database diagram support objects cannot be installed because this database does not have a valid owner.  To continue, first use the Files page of the Database Properties dialog box or the ALTER AUTHORIZATION statement to set the database owner to a valid login, and then add the database diagram support objects.

Please resolve the error and install the necessary support objects to generate the diagrams.

Solution:

Issue due to recent restore of database from sql2000 to sql2005.We need to do run below steps to resolve the issue.

EXEC sp_dbcmptlevel 'yourdatabasename', '90';
go
ALTER AUTHORIZATION ON DATABASE::yourdatabasename TO "dbusername"
go